SCHOOL HOLIDAYS

Evening Star, Issue 20721, 18 February 1931, Page 12

SCHOOL HOLIDAYS

CHANGE PROPOSED OTAGO SUPPORTS PRESENT DATES The proposal that the end of the year school vacations should be held in February instead of in December as at present was the subject of further consideration by the Education Board at its meeting this morning, the Board deciding that it was in favour of adhering to the present dates. The Education Department wrote asking for the board’s views on the matter of commencing the long summer holidays in February instead of about December 19. Thv Council of Education discussed the matter and resolved that the matter be referred to each of the governing bodies and the Teachers’ Association. Mr W. M Cooper said that he would move that the old vacation dates be adhered to. If the new scheme came into force children who were boarding would be deprived of the opportunity_ of associating with their parents during the holiday season as at present. If the weather in February were better than it was during the present school holidays, then he thought it was to the advantage of the children to be going to school at that period. Children were entitled to their vacation, and, he did not think it was any argument that an alteration in the holidays would mean that many countrj children would be able to assist in the harvest operations. Mr G. Livingstone seconded the motion, and the Chairman (Mr J. Wallace) said that although the weather, according to the Government Meteorologist, was finer in January than in February, the days, on the other hand, were shorter. Mr Wallace said that he thought they had better let things remain as they were. That it was Dunedin’s experience that February was a much better month than January was the opinion expressed by Mr W. R. Brugh. He did not believe that because a thing was good enough for their fathers and their grandfathers they should agree that it was good enough for them, providing there were ' reasonable grounds for making an alteration. If it were not for the Christmas and New Year holidays he did not think December would ever have been considered as the period for the school holidays. The greatest difficulty in making a change would bo in regard to the secondary schools and the University. Ho moved as an amendment that the matter bo deferred. Mr J. II Wilkinson said he thought a change as was proposed would result in the dislocation of business from the point of view of employers, especially as the school holidays would then come so soon after the New Year holidays. The amendment was lost and the motion carried.