Long summer holiday debate: Parents demand rearrangement of the school calendar

Parent representatives state that the long summer holidays in Portugal exacerbate the child care problem for working families. The suggestion is to shorten the summer break and distribute the holidays more evenly throughout the year.

Parent representatives in Portugal repeated their call for the reorganization of the school calendar. The National Confederation of Parents' Associations (CONFAP) argues that long summer holidays leave working families faced with expensive childcare options or leave children unattended at home for long periods.

In the current calendar, summer vacation for pre-school students lasts approximately 11 weeks, while this period can be up to 15 weeks for secondary school students. CONFAP wants breaks more evenly distributed throughout the academic year in exchange for a shorter summer break.

Depending on the institution, schools may open earlier; The first days can be used for activities that reinforce learning, school trips or adaptation studies, instead of the classical curriculum. However, the reform is not limited to just the calendar change. Parent representatives emphasize the need for a broader family policy that addresses working life and child care together.

ANDAEP, which represents public school principals, points out that exams, grading, document control and preparations for the next year are carried out in the last period of the school year. Therefore, rearranging school holidays is not a simple change that can be implemented without taking into account the workload of the education administration and the exam schedule.

The debate moves to a more sensitive point after the digital evaluation disruptions in the 2026 national exams. The Ministry of Education announced that some exam results and problems affecting the transition to higher education had been corrected. The Ministry also reported that an error in the scoring matrix setting in one question of the Physics and Chemistry A exam was detected and corrected.

The General Inspectorate of Education and Science (IGEC) report published at the end of August also noted that exam re-evaluation applications were sent late in 69 schools, and that there was a delay in the delivery of the first stage exam documents in 29 schools. According to the report, the problems were mainly caused by operational errors in processing, control and document submission.

PTNewsHub evaluation: While the holiday calendar is discussed, the disruptions in the exam system and the grading errors that had to be corrected should not be ignored. If schools are planned to open earlier or holidays are planned to be spread throughout the year, a reliable process must be established to prepare, evaluate and control the results of the exams. Otherwise, the change in the calendar, while aiming to reduce the burden on families, may create new uncertainties for students and school administrations.

Sources reviewed:

- Portugal Resident news —

- Portuguese Government – problems and corrections in digital exam evaluation

- Portuguese Government / IGEC – exam paperwork and re-evaluation delays

- JNE – exam objection and information processes