Söder's dispute over summer vacation: teachers demand fairer rules!

Söder's dispute over summer vacation: teachers demand fairer rules!

Schwerin, Deutschland - The discussion about the summer holidays in Germany does not end. While the debate was further fueled by the explanations of the Bavarian Prime Minister Markus Söder, the union of the teachers remains outraged by the holiday season set for 2025. In the eyes of the GEW, Söder's arguments on the distinction between Bavaria and other federal states are not acceptable. [Merkur] (https://www.merkur.de/politik/soeders-biorhythmus-alsstab-fuer-summer holidays-Lebellieren-93847428.html) reports that Söder justifies the start of the holiday in Bavaria with the "DNA of Bavaria", which bounds on little understanding in other federal states.

Bayern and Baden-Württemberg are the last federal states that begin with their summer vacation-a fact that is particularly resented in other parts of Germany. The Education and Science Union (Gew) not only criticizes Söder's statements, but also calls for a fundamental reform of the holiday planning to end this grievance.

dispute over Ferientermine

The holiday dates in Germany are set until 2030. But the regulation for the following is controversial. Some federal states, including North Rhine-Westphalia, signal the desire for a fairer solution. Minister Dorothee Feller from the CDU speaks for a later holiday start and receives support from several national colleagues. The NRW politician Sven Teuber from the SPD sees the summer vacation as no exclusive country privilege and calls for a nationwide regulation. This reflects a growing need for uniformity in the holiday planning. ZDF

Aline Sommer-Noack, deputy chair of the Federal Parental Council, brings an important point into play. She speaks for a uniform, rolling holiday cycle that would make it easier for families to plan the vacation. Parents and students from the federal states who start their holidays early are often faced with the problem that their appointments are not in line with the main travel season. This ensures frustration among families who rely on inexpensive trips.

historical backgrounds

The discussion about the holiday season in Bavaria has deeper historical roots. Originally, children in rural areas had to help with the harvest, which justified the late holiday season. Söder records this tradition, although critics like the former Bavarian Minister of Culture Hans Maier point out that 1971 no other federal state was willing to take over the late vacation. The GEW also sees a loss of valuable lesson time in the early holiday dates, since these decisions are often made out of economic interests.

The holiday planning in Germany is regulated by the "Hamburg Agreement" from 1964, which determines the total duration of the school holidays. Different regulations were created in the context of this agreement to take into account both learning times and recreational periods of the students. At the same time, however, the special regulation in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg results in many disadvantages for pupils and parents in other federal states. The lively holiday traffic and the demand for accommodation during the high season could be controlled significantly better by nationwide adaptation of the holiday periods.

If these conflicts are not resolved soon, the question remains whether the summer vacation will remain a political issue in the future or whether there will finally be an agreement that relieves the families. The decision -makers are responsible for not only taking into account the tradition, but also the needs of today's society.