Should the classrooms stay open during the long break?
The discussion about whether the classrooms should stay open during the long break has been around for a long time. Little has changed in the arguments for or against locking the rooms. Nevertheless, a change in the rules can be achieved in individual cases with good reasoning.
Why many rooms are closed during the long break
There is no legal regulation that the classrooms have to be closed during the long break. It is solely a matter of the school's house rules which rooms remain open during breaks and which do not. If you want to change anything about your school, understand the reasons for this rule.
- On the part of the school management, it is not desirable for the students to copy homework during the breaks. However, this is only a marginal reason for the measure.
- It is desirable that students exercise and breathe fresh air during break. The concentration decreases noticeably if you sit in a closed room all morning without interruption. That is certainly a more important argument not to keep the classrooms open.
- As a rule, students leave their school bags in the classroom during the long break. Lockable subjects are not common in German schools. Therefore, locking the rooms serves to protect the property of the students.
- The head of the school is responsible for the safety of the students. In principle, accidents can happen in all rooms and in the playground. Reckless behavior on the part of students increases the risk. For this reason, there is a supervisory authority that ensures that students do not endanger themselves or others. It would be negligent to leave students in rooms unattended.
There are actually schools that have set up their own break radio. …
So if you want classrooms to stay open during breaks, you need to refute these arguments and at the same time come up with reasons against closing.
Why classrooms should stay open
The arguments for classrooms that are open during the long break come mostly from the students' side. Students of at least legal age can always argue that they do not need supervision. In some schools it is even customary for the upper level rooms to remain open during breaks.
- When it is very cold and rainy, the students can hardly be expected to be outdoors. Especially if a large number have already caught a cold. In schools where there is no break room, you can advocate open spaces in extreme weather situations.
- Consideration for disabled students is also an argument to allow them to stay in classrooms during the long break. For reasons of equal treatment, it is appropriate to allow all students to stay in the rooms.
- Project groups and other group work are now the norm in schools. Most of the time, the students do not live in the immediate vicinity of the school. So it is hardly possible for you to prepare at home after school. Joint preparations are made more difficult by closing the rooms.
- Don't forget that there is a weighty argument in favor of closing classrooms during the big break. The measure serves to protect the property of the students. If the rooms remain open, you have to supervise your school supplies yourself during the long break. It may become an obligation to take the things with you.
- You must not ignore the argument that the school management is responsible for supervision. The break also helps the teachers relax, so it is not possible to have a supervisor in every room. Suggest that older students take over the supervision of younger ones. A teacher can also monitor several rooms if the doors remain open and he is in the hallway.
Student safety is a very important issue. Perhaps you can simply accept the rules in the house rules on this basis.
