Education director of St. Gallen with an explosive proposal: school only in the morning – or fewer holidays?

For Kölliker, it would be conceivable that students would only go to school from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. “The afternoon would then be used for homework, tutoring or club sports.” So what has so far focused on the evenings or Wednesday afternoons. “The teachers would then have time for preparation and follow-up,” says Kölliker. “According to our calculations, the lesson time remains roughly the same.”

Nevertheless, the SVP politician still has a suggestion to relieve “the school as a whole”: increase the number of school weeks, that is, shorten the holidays. Instead of the previous 13 weeks in the canton of St. Gallen, it would only be 11 weeks. “The workload for teachers and students would be better distributed.”

But Kölliker can also imagine a week more holiday. “Then the teachers would have more time to prepare.” The suggestions can be viewed individually or in combination, the education director said.

“The entire system is overloaded”

Kölliker also makes suggestions to combat the teacher shortage. But not alone. “The entire school system is overloaded and needs reform. The teachers are part of it, but the parents and students are also part of it.”

Kölliker sees many advantages, especially in half-day lessons. “The children are less productive after lunch. It would also no longer be necessary to go back and forth to school to eat.” For parents in the canton of St. Gallen, not much would change, he says, because every school must now provide a daily structure from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Mixed feelings in parliament

Kölliker’s proposal concerns the canton of St. Gallen. But he also has something to say nationally. SP national councilor Sandra Locher Benguerel (47, GR) welcomes the approach. «It is right to reduce the number of lessons for teachers. However, there are still many unanswered questions.” In secondary school, students sometimes have more than 30 lessons. “If they only have lessons in the morning, important school material is missing.”

She is also critical of the reduction in vacation days. “The burden on teachers is highest when operations are active. Now that there are fewer holidays for students, the stress continues to increase.” She would therefore be more in favor of an extension of the preparation time.

“There is no point in having lessons for five hours in a row,” says Center State Councilor Simon Stadler (35, UR). “The students get tired and their concentration decreases.” At best, the problem of teacher shortages will only be postponed. “The children also have to be looked after in the afternoon. Then other caregivers work as normal, or the parents reduce their workload.”

Education director Kölliker would like to provide food for thought with his suggestions. The primary school law will be revised in his canton. “Now the teachers, but also the schools, can position themselves and take a stand.” Kölliker’s successor will probably finally implement this.