Philologists' Association Calls for Summer Holidays to Be Moved to July

The German Philologists' Association has spoken out against the early summer holidays that already start in June in several federal states. The association is calling for summer holidays to begin only from July onwards.

The background to this demand is the Abitur examinations. According to the Philologists' Association, the early start of holidays leads to problems in coordinating and conducting final examinations. Teachers and students have less time for intensive exam preparation when holidays begin as early as June.

Federalist Regulation Leads to Differences

Deutschlandfunk reports that holiday regulations in Germany are governed on a federalist basis, with each federal state making its own decisions. This leads to considerable differences: while some states begin their summer holidays in early June, others do not start until mid or late July. The Philologists' Association argues that a more uniform nationwide regulation with a later start to holidays would improve school organisation.

The association's demand aims to structure the school calendar in such a way that sufficient time remains for teaching and exam preparation. A uniform start to holidays in July would also create planning certainty for schools, parents and students, and reduce coordination problems between federal states.