How long is a school day in France? (2023)

Why are school days so long in France?

School days are long – in part to fit in the two-hour lunchbreak which allows children to eat their meals without gulping them down, and to decompress after a busy morning conjugating verbs and learning about Charlemagne. READ ALSO Do French kids get the best school lunches in the world?

At school, the lunch break lasts between 90 minutes and 2 hours, during which a four-course meal is eaten while seated. French etiquette recommends that everyone starts eating at the same time and leaves the table only once everybody is finished.

Chile School Hours

The honor for “most time spent in school for elementary students” belongs to Chile, where data compiled by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development shows young kids spend 1,007 hours in school every year.

French children go to school four days a week. They have about two hours each day for lunch. And they have more vacation than their counterparts almost anywhere in the West.

In Finland, children get a 15-minute break every 45 minutes.

This equates to an average of three hours and 45 minutes of educational instruction each day.

French schools have a reputation for being tough, with students enrolled in study-abroad programmes often bemoaning the number of working hours, the pressure of the grading system and the lack of physical activity.

School routine

Generally speaking, the school day in France is from 8:30 until 4:30, but it varies depending on which area you live in. This is longer than the typical school day in the UK or America, but there is a longer lunch break and two other breaks during the day. There are 24 hours of lessons a week.

A typical French breakfast is light, sweet, and fairly simple. It's usually made up of breakfast cereals, a tartine (slice of bread with topping) and a drink (tea, coffee, orange juice). It's usually eaten between 6 AM and 8 AM.

In general, kids have to be at school by 8:45 am. School finishes around 3:15 pm, so they have to be in school for about six and a half hours every day from Monday to Friday. However, most kids also attend after-school clubs, and many also go to juku (cram school) in the evening to do extra studying.

What country has 6 days of school?

Israel is the only country in the developed world where children go to school six days a week.

Essentially, they teach 24 hours per week, typically from Mondays to Friday, and Wednesday is a half-day. That said, a minority of primary schools (in French) have chosen to swap out Wednesday mornings for Saturday mornings or have every Wednesday off.

Those preparing for the baccalauréat exam, which is the exam that pupils must pass to get into university, may have to go to school for up to 40 hours a week. Depending on the region of France, students may attend school four, four and a half, or five days per week. Some schools close on Wednesdays.

Every employee is entitled to: Twenty minutes rest break if they work more than six hours. At least 11 hours of rest daily. Minimum weekly rest of 35 consecutive hours.

Students in France traditionally have no school on Wednesdays, a vestige from the 19th century when students were expected to study catechism once a week, the Los Angeles Times reports.

The uniqueness of the Finnish education model is encapsulated in its values of neither giving homework to students every day nor conducting regular tests and exams.

Finland School Hours (9am – 2pm)

Typically, the Finnish school day starts anywhere from 9 to 9:45 a.m., and students typically spend only about five hours a day in the classroom. What's more, Finnish students typically have little to no homework.

Well-known for its high-achieving students, South Korea's education system is quite demanding. Students spend much of their time, often between 12 to 16 hours per day, at school or at a special after-school academy called a hagwon.

Phone use is banned inside school grounds

It's up to each school to determine how to police the ban, which applies to children in école maternelle (pre-school), école élémentaire (equivalent to junior high school, up to age 10) and collège, up to age 15 (ninth grade).

La cinquième (12 ans) = 7th grade (Year 8 UK). La quatrième (13 ans) = 8th grade (Year 9 UK). La troisième (14 ans) = 9th grade (Year 10 UK).

Is there no homework in France?

Homework is officially banned in French primary schools, and has been since 1956. But many teachers ignore this and send children home with exercises to do. Older children often spend up to an hour each evening doing homework, and longer at the weekend or on Wednesdays when most schools close.

Most schools in France are state-run and free, and children are not required to wear uniform. The Education Ministry is responsible for education across the country and decides the curriculum. In order to enrol your child in primary or secondary state school, you must go to the local town hall (mairie).

That French schoolchildren have had Wednesdays off is a quirk of history. When France instituted universal public education in the late 19th century, the government granted a weekly day off for children to attend catechism by the Roman Catholic Church.

School holidays in France

The breaks are usually around two weeks each, apart from the summer holidays, which last about eight weeks.

Dinner usually takes place between 6pm (Belgium, Canada) and 8pm (France). In France, there is a main dish and a dessert, and sometimes a first course (soup or grated or sliced raw vegetables). The main dish is brought out once the first course is finished, and dessert is brought out after the main dish has been eaten.