Punjab Education Department considers reducing school holidays

The Punjab Education Department is reviewing a plan to reduce school holidays to help students complete their syllabus on time and improve academic performance.

Private schools have suggested removing weekly holidays in the next academic year so that the school calendar can reach at least 180 days of classes.

Qazi Naeem Anjum, head of the Pakistan Education Forum, proposed limiting summer holidays to two months and reducing winter breaks in January to ten days. He pointed out that last year, unannounced school closures meant students had only 127 days of classes, making it hard to finish the syllabus.

He also recommended introducing summer camps during vacations to help students cover the syllabus more efficiently.

The education department said it will consider these proposals and implement them where possible to improve learning and reduce disruptions.

Earlier, the Punjab government had closed all public and private schools from March 10 to 31 due to tensions in the Middle East, which affected the academic schedule.