Sir, – Carl O’Brien writes that parents taking children out of school for a family holiday is disrupting their education (“Number of pupils taken out of school for holidays soars since Covid”, News, June 16th), and quotes a school principal who stated, “Maybe Covid has prompted a more lackadaisical attitude towards attendance”.
While education is hugely important, there are things we cannot learn in school – the importance of spending time with family, of relaxation, and of taking a mental health break, both for parents and for children. Surely the recognition of this is what has surged since the pandemic, and should be applauded once it isn’t overdone? And if a child has missed 19 days of school sick, they and their parents are likely in more need of a holiday than anyone.
My own parents took us out of school a week every year for a sun holiday, and these remain the happiest memories of my childhood (and did not hamper any academic performance).
Let them have a break! – Yours, etc,
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Dr MARIA O’BRIEN,
Bayside,
Dublin 13.
Sir, – I fully support the concern of the school principal who laments the growing trend of removing children for holiday reasons before the end of term. It is unsettling but understandable that the principal in question chooses to remain anonymous.
As a past primary school principal, the days approaching holidays, be they Christmas, Easter or summer, were full of absorbing the excitement and opportunities each holiday offered. Do you remember hearing the bells of a visiting old man in a red suit, the small chocolate eggs, often donated by the local shops, and the magnificent feeling of experiencing nature in its prime in the summer? The world is hard on our young pupils. Celebrating the end of term and midterm breaks with your class is a highlight that is as important as the curriculum content taught during the school year. Primary schools must be open for a minimum of 183 days, post-primary schools 167 days. Removing pupils for holiday reasons should be punishable, be it with a fine or a summons. – Yours, etc,
BRENDA MORGAN,
Howth,
Co Dublin.