In recent years, I have seen an increasing trend in students taking huge vacation trips with family, relatives, and friends during the school year.  I have no issue with students going on vacation and with going on huge vacation trips with family, relatives, and friends, but I am not in favor of them taking these huge trips during the school year.

What is a huge vacation trip?

A huge vacation trip, to me, stimulates students’ minds and everyday life experiences such as cruises, Disney World, cross-country, and any other long excursions which a lot of student families typically do during the 9-week summer break every year.

The Problem

Students missing school to go on huge vacation trips during the school year can have a measurable negative impact on their academic performance, and this concern is supported by educational research and data. Here’s a breakdown of why it’s problematic and the research-based evidence that supports it:

📉 Why It’s Problematic:

1. Loss of Instructional Time:
   1. Core skills, especially in math and reading, are built progressively. Missing lessons create gaps that are hard to fill.
   1. Teachers must keep pace with curriculum standards, so reteaching missed material is often limited.
2. Disruption of Routine & Structure:
   1. Schools provide consistency and structured learning. Long absences disrupt routines and can affect student behavior and focus.
3. Falling Behind in Group Projects & Assessments:
   1. Students may miss collaborative learning, important assessments, and deadlines.
4. Stress in Catching Up:
   1. Returning students often face a pile of missed work, leading to anxiety and decreased motivation.
5. Negative Effects on Peers & Teachers:
   1. Teachers may be asked to provide separate assignments or re-teach content.
   1. Group projects can suffer if a student is absent for an extended time.

Taking long vacation trips during the school year can significantly impact students’ brains, sleep patterns, and overall learning. Here’s a breakdown of how:

🧠 Cognitive & Academic Impact

1. Interrupted Learning:
   1. Students miss key instruction, practice, and scaffolding.
   1. Gaps in learning can form, especially in cumulative subjects like math or reading comprehension.
2. Cognitive Overload Upon Return:
   1. When students come back, they often try to “catch up” fast. This can lead to cognitive overload and frustration, reducing retention.
3. Loss of Routine:
   1. Schools provide structured learning. A break from that structure can cause regression in focus, study habits, and organizational skills.

💤 Sleep Pattern Disruptions

1. Time Zone Changes:
   1. Traveling across time zones disrupts the circadian rhythm. Students may have trouble adjusting back to a normal sleep-wake cycle, leading to:
      1. Daytime sleepiness
      1. Mood swings
      1. Lack of focus and slower processing speed
2. Late Nights & Irregular Sleep:
   1. Vacations often involve late nights and less consistent sleep schedules. When students return, they may experience:
      1. Difficulty waking up
      1. Decreased REM sleep (important for memory and learning)
      1. Poor sleep hygiene

📉 Emotional and Behavioral Effects

1. Re-entry Anxiety:
   1. Missing peer interactions and falling behind can cause social anxiety or stress.
2. Motivation Dip:
   1. The shift from fun, unstructured vacation time to academic demands can result in reduced motivation or engagement.

📚 Educational Research & Evidence:

1. Chronic Absenteeism Correlates with Lower Achievement:

Report: Schools Won’t Recover from COVID Absenteeism Crisis Until at Least 2030 – The 74

• U.S. Department of Education (2016):

Students chronically absent (missing 10% or more of the school year) score lower in reading and math assessments.

• Vacation absences can contribute to this “chronic absenteeism” status.

2. “Everyday Matters” Reports (Attendance Works, 2014):

• Early grades: Absences correlate with weaker reading and math scores by third grade.
• Middle & high school: Poor attendance is a key predictor of dropping out.

3. Johns Hopkins University (2012) – “The Importance of Being in School”:

Missing even a few days in a row can negatively affect learning. The impact is cumulative, and achievement gaps grow wider the more days are missed.

4. National Center for Education Statistics (NCES):

Students who miss more than 15 days of school are more likely to score below basic levels in reading and math.

5. Harvard University – “Preventing Missed Opportunities” (2016):

• States that absenteeism due to vacations and other non-health-related reasons is underreported but has similar negative effects as illness-related absences.

👨‍🏫 What Educators Like Me Recommend:

• Schedule vacations during official school breaks.
• If a trip is unavoidable, request assignments in advance and plan catch-up sessions.
• Keep trips short and focus on educational value when possible (e.g., historical sites, museums).
• Take those huge vacation trips during the long 9-week summer break only, giving at least 2 weeks free for students to readjust at home before the new school year begins.