Developing
and planning yearly calendar for school activities
Calendar
·
A chart or
series of pages showing the days, weeks, and months of a particular year, or
giving particular seasonal information.
·
A system by which
the beginning, length, and subdivisions
of the year are fixed.
School calendar
An academic term or
term is a portion of an academic year, the time during which an educational
institution holds classes. The schedules adopted vary widely. A semester system
divides the academic year into two terms, which are usually 14–20 weeks each. A
trimester system divides the academic year into three terms which can be as
short as eight weeks or as long as 16 weeks each. A quarter or quadmester
system divides the academic year into four terms, up to 12 weeks each, and
generally counts the summer as one of the terms. Mostly school follows 3 terms
academic calendar.
As you define academic
calendars, it is important to consider how the dates in these calendars affect
all of the business processes (such as class enrolment, tuition refunds, and
statistical reporting).
Developing and planning yearly calendar for school
activities
In any education system
school is important in achieving educational as well as institutional
objectives. All the planning of class and the school is done keeping in view
the academic year. School time table, examination schedule, sports, vacations
and field trips are arranged keeping in view the school year.
In Pakistan the school
year in the past started from the April 01 and ended on March 31 of every year.
A few years back Govt. of the Punjab have its policy regarding school year. In
govt. school the school started after the summer vacation i.e. September 01 and
termination august 31 of every year but privately managed registered schools
are not following this school year.
This school year
promotes their students and starts new admission on January 01 of every year
and completes their sessions on December 31 of every year. Due to this enrolment
in govt. school is decreasing as privately managed school offer admission in
January. Beginning of the school year is important in preventing the problems
in education system. Now govt. has again decided to start the school year on April
01 and end on March 31.
Yearly school calendar includes the following
things.
1 1.Previous school
calendar considerations
2. Modified time schedule for school year
3. Check in/out of school building
4. Schedule for repairing equipment and building
5. Head and teacher meetings
6. Head and staff meeting ( Administrative & clerical staff)
7. Parents and teachers meeting
8. Admission schedule
9. Fee deposition schedule
10. Head and C.R’s meeting
11. Examination schedule2. Modified time schedule for school year
3. Check in/out of school building
4. Schedule for repairing equipment and building
5. Head and teacher meetings
6. Head and staff meeting ( Administrative & clerical staff)
7. Parents and teachers meeting
8. Admission schedule
9. Fee deposition schedule
10. Head and C.R’s meeting
12. Result announcement
13. Salary distribution schedule
14. Different awareness seminars & programs
15. Sport functions
16. Visitors meetings
17. Vacations schedule
18. Farewell and Funfairs schedule
19. Co-curricular activities schedule
Factors affecting yearly school calendar planning
To secure a maximal
degree of efficiency in its work the school must make the most effective use of
the time at its disposal. This is a complex problem, involving the adjustment
of several determining factors. Among these the following required
consideration:
1.
Length of the
school year
2.
Length of school
day & Time tables
3.
Time devoted for
recess and intermission
4.
Vacation
schedule
5.
Examination schedule
6.
Results schedule
Length of school year
Academic year for
public/Govt. schools is different from the private sector. Both have different
policies for catering education and attain the goals in that year. Public/
Govt. school starts new session from 01 April and ends on 31 march. While
private sector schools start their session from 1st January and
completes on 31 December.
Length of the school day
Duration of school days
is also not same for Govt. and private sector. Even the timings are different
in summer and winter season for public sector schools. While the private school
timings are almost same throughout the year. Mostly private schools have shorter
duration for primary schools and longer durations for secondary classes.
Recess timing
Recess duration is same
in both sectors and is half hour duration. In summer the recess takes place
before afternoon and in winter it takes place at afternoon.
Vacation
Both sectors have approximately
same duration of vacation in summer which starts from the mid of June to the mid
of august. While public sector have also winter vacation which varies from 8-10
days. Regardless of that private sectors may have winter vacation or maybe not.
And both sectors also
enjoys some festival holidays, like eid holidays.
Examination
Both sectors have same
curriculum for higher classes and different boards of education takes exams
from the city. So the timing of exams is same but may have shifts of morning
and evening. Mostly board examination starts from February and ends in June.
And it varies from class to class.
While
the primary classes exams are held in school and it is different in and private
sector. Curriculum is divided into three terms, 1st term ends before
summer vacation and 2nd term ends after the summer vacation and the
3rd term ends at the end of academic year. After that the students
are promoted to next levels.
Time table
Both
sector plans the duration of periods for subjects according to the complexity
and importance of subjects. As curriculum is divided into terms so teachers can
plan their lessons and achieve academic goals at the specific time.
Advantages of yearly planning
Ease intervals
The
chief advantage of the yearly intervals comes from the ease with which it fits
the school organisation. The course of the study is graded by year and it is
natural that pupils should begin the work of a grade in September and complete
it is following June. The practice is probably inherited from the colleges
which have always followed the yearly interval of classification.
Individual needs adjustment
The
yearly interval allows the pupils to remain with the same teacher a full year,
thus enabling the teacher to become acquainted with the pupils and to adjust
the work to their individual needs.
Better management
It enables the teacher in the higher grades to
have one class in the room instead of the two or more which are necessary under
the half year or short interval, thus allowing for quiet study periods during
which time the teacher may work with individual pupils.
Yearly Planning Disadvantages
Lack of flexibility
The
chief disadvantage connected with the yearly interval is its lack of
flexibility. Under it, as ordinarily administered, no provision is made for the
superior pupil to progress rapidly without skipping a whole year of work, a
leap to greet for any except the very few; nor is any provision made for slow or
retarded pupils, who if he fails, must lose a whole year, repeating a
considerable amount of work that has already done.
Rigid
These
objects are valid so long as the yearly plan of promotions
is unmodified and unsupplemented.
Superficial work
It may be well to state here that many who told
to the yearly interval believe, and with some justification, that there is more
to the educative process than hurrying rapidly through a course of study. They
hold that the rapid transit plans of grading tend in main to superficial work
and that the course of study should be deep and broad as well as long. 