Using School Holidays to Close The Educational Attainment Gap

How thinking outside of the traditional educational normative box can bring fruitful rewards.

A recent BBC radio 4 programme on education posited the idea that narrowing the educational attainment gap could be achieved by shortening the number of school holiday days students receive and using the extra time to tech and reinforce topics covered during the previous term. The panellists included the founder of the Oak Academy, a London  headteacher and an American superintendent in charge of a group of Michigan schools who argued that 6 weeks was far too long for students to be doing nothing. This time, he opined, could be better spent by receiving more schooling and allowing those who have fallen behind, opportunities to catch up.

This may seem a fair point; under performing students can focus on bridging the gap by having a shorter holiday, which in turn leads to
shorter terms, providing better concentration of students. While this may sound good in theory, this approach fails to analyse fully why there is a widening attainment gap in the UK. It is important therefore to understand why and how this gap in the educational system might possibly be narrowed.

In the UK we have 6 weeks of summer holidays, the lowest among European countries, one of the highest, Estonia has double the number of
summer holidays and both Finland and Canada have much longer summer breaks than the UK. All of these countries outperform the UK in the Program for International Students Assessment (PISA) tables, which measures different countries’ 15 year old’s abilities in maths, science and reading. Were it the case that school holidays waste time for children, none of the countries above the UK should be doing well. The answer therefore to narrowing the attainment gap is not varying the length of school holidays. The notion that children will forget what they have previously learnt is a dangerous misnomer and the main premise of the radio program. So what are the answers then?

The issue of toying with summer holidays fails to address the underlying issues of low achievement and lack of engagement of some students. One that leads to dangerous assertions about the fundamental role of teachers and teaching. What matters is what we could be doing in the summer holidays to improve our children’s well being. Some have noted that at the end of a hard year of assessments and teaching, learners and teaching staff need a break, ensuring that everyone can return refreshed and reinvigorated for a new year. Unfortunately sections of the media have often pointed an accusatory metaphorical finger at the teaching profession. 

It is a fact however that learning does not only take place in the classroom, but outside in a world in which some young people appear alienated. During the six weeks summer holidays, we could, as educators, focus on a revamped radical extracurricular program. Students will be selected for events such as camping, orienteering, mountaineering, sports and recreational programs in addition to a light to moderately heavy touch of academic revision and or instruction for those who have fallen massively behind in the previous academic year. Team building days or weekends will focus on building students’ problem solving skills, resilience and teamwork abilities; all key elements of adult work and social life. Learners who have difficulty engaging with the traditional school curriculum, could join an intensive vocational course teaching the basics of plumbing, painting, electrical maintenance, motor vehicle mechanics, carpentry, computer software design, gaming to name a few areas of possible interest. These would not only instruct young adults in specific areas they may wish to pursue in subsequent years, but this approach would build confidence, resilience and a general feel good factor about themselves that may have eluded them in traditional mainstream school; important skills for the world in which they are about to inhabit and an opportunity for a young person to forge a different perspective on life.

Some schools have historically provided some of these programs within the school year. Sandwiching activities amongst content heavy
subject curriculum areas, is counterproductive in narrowing the attainment gap. Students who invariably miss out on lessons when taking part in these projects, then lapse further behind in their studies, exacerbating an already disadvantageous cycle. Having these activities in the holiday period however will engage and provide learners with a new branch of learning; one which prepares them for the real world of work and society. There is no reason why young adults who historically complete work experience placements during the school term, cannot complete these programs during the summer holiday period. 

As we are all aware, parents play an important role in their children’s educational and emotional well being. Many parents however are unable to communicate with their children in English. This could lead to a sense of alienation of both the parent from the school. and the subsequent fragmentation invariably harms many young adults further loosening and fraying important and essential ties among teachers, parents and fellow students. Summer courses for parents where English as an Additional Language can be taught would benefit this group and the wider community. Other programs, such as school system, child psychology, managing finances, diet and nutrition could be a way for schools to utilise their space to helping the wider community which they serve during the holiday period. If schools reach out to parents and demonstrate the benefits of working together, then the rewards for our young people are priceless as Canada can attest. Success is not guaranteed however unless all stakeholders are willing to rise to the challenge.

Covid 19 has changed our view of the world. It is perhaps too soon to know just how radically, but what we do know through economic predictions is that youth unemployment will rise in future indeed economists suggest young people are likely to suffer the most out of all groups, certainly in the short term and in a post Covid 19 society. We need to strive to provide our young people with an array of skills to cope with this negativity. During the school holiday period therefore professionals from a variety of key areas linked to this educational outcome, alongside professional educators can work on providing these services and programs. For the summer program to work, there needs to be an army of coaches, businesses, entrepreneurs, child psychologists, social workers, police officers, musicians, artists and
retired and newly qualified teachers willing to help train and nurture young adults. It will be a massive community and societal undertaking the likes of which we may not have experienced before. The days of community inertia and young people's lack of awareness of their community and their world must end immediately. Political dogma may lead many to argue against this plan in what they may see as an unorthodox unimportant intervention too expensive to contemplate. But what is the cost of doing nothing? What is the cost to a health service which deals with obesity, drug abuse on a wide scale? What is the price that we as a society currently pay for having a high number of young people who suffer from obesity in England and who require psychological help? What cost to our society of having the highest teenage pregnancy rates in Western Europe where the state must financially support those who cannot cope? And what cost to our criminal justice system which sees young adults incarcerated in high numbers affecting the wider society for those left behind and who have to deal with the aftermath of bad choices. What cost to society of an increase in self harm among young people who enter the criminal justice system? Are we suggesting this is a price we are willing to pay in order to sit back and do nothing?

In such times, we must all be brave and pursue a radical rethink of our education system. A rethink which addresses a very challenging and
uncertain future for the UK. If we continue to tinker from afar failing to seize the day, history and our young people may never forgive us.