Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Almost no aspect of education can be discussed without either politics or some special interest raising its head, and the length of school terms is no exception. Some parents and educationalists believe that long holidays give pupils much-needed space for recreation.
Others cite studies showing that children from disadvantaged backgrounds not only lose the habit of school, but forget much of what they learned the previous term. Then there are working parents who cannot afford to take so much time off, and – of course – teachers who, while insisting that their work extends in to the holidays, nonetheless defend their long break to the death.
The Government’s plan to allow all state schools in England to fix their own terms offers an answer of a kind. But only if there is local consistency so that families can go on holiday together and only if schools are rigorous in putting their pupils’ interests first.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments