Academic year
An academic year, or school year, is a period that schools, colleges and universities use to measure the duration of studies for a given educational level. Academic years are often divided into academic terms. Students attend classes and do relevant exams and homework during this time, which comprises school days and school holidays. The duration of school days, holidays and school year varies across the world. The days in the school year depend on the state or country. For example, in most of the US states, there are 180 days in a school year, but in the US state of Minnesota there are 165 days in the year.
Terminology
School days
A "school day" is a day when school is open. Governments often legislate on the total number of school days in a year for government funded schools.School holidays
School holidays are periods during which schools are closed or no classes or other mandatory activities are held. The dates and periods of school holidays vary considerably throughout the world, and there is usually some variation even within the same jurisdiction. The holidays given below apply to primary and secondary education. Teaching sessions in tertiary education are usually longer.Spring vacation
In the northern hemisphere, many school districts have traditionally offered a week-long vacation in the spring, often called Spring Vacation or Spring Break. In parochial schools and jurisdictions that follow a Christian religious tradition, the vacation may be described as an Easter holiday, which starts on Good Friday and continues through the subsequent week.Summer vacation
In the northern hemisphere, the longest break in the educational calendar is in the middle of the year, during the northern summer, and lasting up to 14 weeks. In Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, and Russia, summer holidays typically last three months, compared to six to eight weeks in Britain, the Netherlands, and Germany. In India, summer holidays typically span a duration of one to two months, extending from May to June. In the southern hemisphere, the longest break in the educational calendar is in the end-beginning of the year, during the southern summer, and lasts up to 14 weeks, from December 21 to March 20.Common practices and effects
Traffic congestion and heavy passenger loads on public transport on school run routes may be worse on school days during term time.Summer holidays for most children are a time to relax, enjoy themselves, catch up on studies, or spend time with family or relatives. Many families travel together on school holidays. School holidays have many effects on a country, ranging from the price of travel and holiday accommodation, which increase as demand increases while children are off school, to a change in crime rate. The number of families taking holidays away from urban areas can reduce traffic and use of public transport in cities while loading long-distance highways and means of transport.
In some countries where many families travel to their holiday destinations, such as the Netherlands, the start and end dates of school holidays in different regions are staggered to reduce the heavy traffic and pressure on means of transport that would otherwise occur on these dates.
By country
Africa
Nigeria
In Nigeria, the longest holiday is from January ending to first or second week of November for secondary schools and a longer duration within same period for tertiary institutions. Holidays are generally determined by schools and typically run from July to the early days of September.Egypt
In Egypt, the longest holiday is usually from May ending on the start of October. There is also a mid-term break between semesters that lasts 3–4 weeks.South Africa
The South Africa academic calendar starts in mid-January and ends in early December. The academic lesson for the school year ends in mid-October, with final examinations taking place from late October to late November. The learners usually stop attending class after their last exam. In essence, the December closing is more for teachers and school staff to mark exams and prepare end-year school reports to issue on the last day of the academic calendar.The year is divided into four academic terms, with the first term starting in mid-January and ending in late March or early April. The second term starts in early or mid-April and ends in late June. The third term runs from early July to late September. The fourth and last term usually starts at the beginning of October and closes in mid-December when the academic year officially comes to an end.
In South Africa, the main holiday usually lasts from early December to early or mid-January. There is an autumn break of up to two weeks in late March or early April, a longer winter break in late June and early July normally around three weeks, and a spring break in late September or early October which is one week.
South African schools and universities are closed on all South African public holidays. In terms of the Public Holidays Act, if the holiday falls on a Sunday, then schools are closed the following Monday.
Americas
Brazil
Brazilian schools must have at least 200 school days.In Brazil, summer holidays start in late November or early December and end in late January or early February. Winter holidays are generally the entire month of July, while in some states it lasts during the São João recess. Some schools in the tropical north follow a different school year. The Brazilian Carnival is 40 days before Easter Sunday and those dates are not school holidays. Some national and Catholic holidays are usually celebrated in 3 or 4 days, like Easter, Corpus Christi and Carnival.
Canada
In Canada, the school year typically lasts between 185 and 190 days. The summer holiday includes the months of July and August, with students returning to school in late August or early September, most commonly on the day after Labour Day. The winter break lasts for two weeks, beginning on Saturday and encompassing Christmas Day and New Year's Day. The spring break is one to two weeks long depending on the city or province. Good Friday and Easter may or may not fall within spring break. The Thanksgiving break is a 3-day break that falls in mid-October.In Ontario, the school year is regulated to last at least 194 days, with up to seven of those days being professional activity days, for a total minimum of 187 instructional days. Spring break is the third week in March.
Chile
The school year is divided into semesters. The first semester runs from late February or early March to July. Following a two- or three-week winter break, school resumes and lasts until early or mid-December, followed by 10–12 weeks of summer vacations. In addition, schools have a one-week-long break for National Holidays in mid-September. Being located in the Southern Hemisphere, spring begins approximately at the end of this holiday week so it acts similarly to the American spring break. There is also a brief Easter break in March or April.United States
Duration of US academic year
Public schools averaged 180 school days in the 2023 academic year. However, different states have different legal minimum requirements for instructional days and hours per year. In 2023 the number of instructional days required ranged from the lowest minimum of 160 in the state of Colorado to the highest minimum of 186 in the state of Kansas.Most states require around 180 school days. School years at colleges/universities are often shorter, ranging from 140 to 160 days. Private schools tend to have classes for 170 days each year.Event-based breaks in the US
Below are the school holidays/breaks in the US, with the four main breaks underlined:- Thanksgiving or Fall Break – Occurs at the end of November. This holiday usually consists of the week of Thanksgiving – the day before Thanksgiving, Thanksgiving Day, and the day after Thanksgiving. Some areas have the Monday and Tuesday of the Thanksgiving week as regular days and take Wednesday as an early dismissal day, with Thanksgiving and the day after off. Other schools take the whole week off and have an early release on the Friday before the break. US Thanksgiving is on the fourth Thursday of November, while Black Friday is on the Friday after the fourth Thursday of November.
- Christmas or Winter Break – Varies in length per school; usually starts on the third Saturday in December and ends a day or two after New Year's Day.
- Martin Luther King Jr. Day – Martin Luther King Jr. Day is always on the third Monday of January each year. Some students have a full or half-day Friday and have the weekend, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and sometimes the subsequent Tuesday off.
- Spring or Easter Break – Usually lasts for one or two weeks in March or April
- Columbus Day or Indigenous Peoples' Day Break – Columbus Day is always the second Monday in October. Many schools take a week off, though some areas only take Columbus Day itself off. In many states, however, Columbus Day is not observed as a school holiday at all. Also called Indigenous Peoples' Day.
- October Break – Usually lasts for one week in October. See Columbus Day above. Not all schools have this break.
- Mid-Winter or February Break – One week in February or March.
- Spring Vacation or Break – See Easter Break above.
- Summer Vacation or Break – Lasts for about 11–16 weeks, starting anywhere from the Friday before Memorial Day to late June, and ending anywhere from August to the day after Labor Day in early September. This often depends on the region – for example, most schools in the Northeastern United States end in June and start just after Labor Day, while the majority of schools in the Southern and Southwestern U.S. have school years end around Memorial Day and begin in August.
- Inservice day – Scheduled breaks for teachers to participate in training, discussions, or to attend the state or national conventions held by a teachers' union.
- All federal and state holidays – Includes Christian religious holidays, such as Good Friday, and sometimes Jewish and Islamic religious holidays, depending on school demographic.