The mania of Summer vacation [Archives:2005/853/Community]

By Abu Talib
Taiz University
Faculty of education
English Department
“Daddy, if you fancy buying me something in case I pass all my exams, please buy me a football.” This is what many parents confess that their sons keep on saying as the examinations come to an end and summer holidays knock at the door. For many school boys, streets have become their main arena where they can practice all sorts of base and roguish behavior. Most often, they trouble the passers-by, annoy their neighbors, involve themselves in gangs and end up in prison.

In fact, summer vacation has become a horrible obsession for parents.

Many families receive phone calls by the police saying that wards sons have been caught rioting or involved in a crime. Prison, of course, is their

destination where they can spend their quiet holidays!!

In short, summer vacation is no longer interesting. Some say that it is dull.

They argue that there is nothing innovative their children can do or

occupy themselves with, while some others send their elder children to summer camps or send them back to their villages where they look after

cattle or help on the farms .On the other hand,some, but few, of the

students enroll themselves in language or computer institutes, but they keep on grumbling that these institutes charge them a

lot of money, as only some can afford to pay such a high fee. Furthermore, the

students are fed up with the texts books. Most of the school boys turn to be the black sheep of their families due to their lazy times after the exams.

Hence, revising the students summer schedule is of vital importance..

Ministry of Education along with ministry of youths should lend a helping hand. Holidays should be a fruitful time for students so that they can

entertain themselves as well as benefitting from an educational environment.

The status quo is disappointing. Students lose more than they gain. They completely leave behind what they learnt as soon as they finish their exams. With the advent of the new academic year, they come back to school forgetting everything they learnt the previous year. Is this the situation we look forward to?

Specialists should answer.
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