That the Spanish educational model is still anchored in the past in many aspects is something that I believe that today nobody can refute. He high school failure It is a clear example of this, and that is why for a few years we have been trying to improve from many fronts so that children not only learn, but do so with interest and motivation; and so that, in short, they grow up happy, capable and well prepared to try to make the world we live in, which will soon be theirs (because they will be the ones who govern it), is better.
One of those aspects that is changing in many Spanish cities is the theme of the schedule, which is happening from the day that we all know a continuous journey that could be beneficial in many aspects, but perhaps harmful in others. These days this topic is being debated in Valencia, where yesterday the parents of 315 schools voted on it. While the results are known, we wanted to talk about it with Alberto Soler, psychologist, and Alma García, psychopedagogue, to see what they think about the continuous journey.
What time would it be?
Before entering to show you their opinions, we explain what we are talking about, so that you can also form your own opinion about it. The continuous day in the schools of Valencia would consist of not leaving the school day, so that the children will enter the school at 9 in the morning and leave it at 2:00 p.m..
As we read in the Self, for it to be approved, the results must be favorable to the continuous day with a percentage of 55% of votes. If so, the centers will obtain the relevant authorization to apply it.
AdvertisingThis will cause children to leave school at 2:00 pm to leave with the adult who picks them up, at 3:30 pm if they stay to eat at school, or at 5:00 pm if after the dining room they stay to do extracurricular at school.
Is the split day or the continuous day better?
In order to answer this question, and given that there is a lot of controversy because it seems that both options have their advantages and disadvantages, we have asked the psychologist Alberto Soler, who tells us that in reality neither option is eminently good or bad:
There is no good or bad option by default, it depends on the organization of each family. While a rest time between subjects, recess time, etc. is respected, the continuous working day does not have to be negative. If families have room to reconcile after leaving school, it is a very good option. For those who do not, they must continue to use other types of resources (family, extracurriculars, etc.).
The psychopedagogue Alma Garcia, for its part, suggests something similar, which could be beneficial for children, but complicated if only the schedule is modified to them:
In my opinion the children are winning and after all it is what counts. There are many studies on whether or not it favors concentration (and therefore the notes) and that is not important. The important thing is that they will have schedules for children and not for adults in miniature. However, in Spain, school is never considered when planning work schedules and will continue to be the case with the continuous workday: I do not believe that parents have their schedule modified to adapt it to the new situation. The continuous day favors those who work in shifts, for example, but it will not be useful for the rest.
On the other hand, one of the doubts that many parents have is not so directed at the time they spend in school, but while staying at home. Going in the morning and in the afternoon it seems that they study more and that that will be of more benefit than if they only go in the morning, that it seems that they will work less. Come on, that being all afternoon without going to school can make them think (to parents) that they are not doing anything of profit, and we have also asked them about this.
In this sense to usually do It is clear in explaining that the game and the possible interactions with other children that happen outside of school can become as or more valuable than those they maintain during school hours:
Regarding the afternoons, perhaps there begins the important day: time to interact in a different way (unstructured) with their peers, park time, play, less directed activities. All this can bring them as much or more than the rest of academic activities.
And it is that free play, to which we increasingly give less importance to adults because we do not really know what they do (it does not have a plan created by adults to achieve a specific purpose), is actually the type of game that most contributes to children, and what more we should respect so that they could carry it out.
For its part, Garcia suggests something similar, that free time, if it offers freedom of movement and play, may be the best:
If we look back at the first schools, they are much more like this continuous option than "all day in school" now. With the continuous day they can stay longer for the dining room and the extracurricular ones, but from the two there are no more pressures or exams, only leisure and more time to do "the Indian" and move. And we know that the movement is very useful for developing intelligence.
Maybe it's time for us to change as a society
Thinking about children, maybe it's a good time for the whole society change. If it turns out that we modify the schedules of the children because they have more free time, they can play and run more and be happier, parents should be able to reconcile with those schedules, because it also poses a real problem to us and in passing mode, also to children. Does anyone remember key children? Those who leave school with house keys in the backpack to enter alone and spend the rest of the afternoon?
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In Babies and more | At school, continuous day or split day ?, Around the time of conciliation, Spanish children leave school later than most Europeans
