September 15th, 2009
Family holidays affect children’s school attendance
The discounted family holiday packages during the school year have reportedly affected the attendance of the children.
For parents, the deals presented for holidays abroad during the school year are just too good to pass that they avail of it, bringing their children along for that quality vacation they’ve been yearning for.
However, this increasing practice has led to the increased absences of kids in school in Victoria. Even though they are not aware of it, parents could be breaking the law. According to the Victorian Education and Training Reform Act 2006, parents can pay up to $116.82 for keeping their kids away from school without valid and reasonable excuse. Bringing children on family holidays during school term is deemed invalid.
Victorian Principals Association President Gabrielle Leigh said that there’s a significant increase of children going into family holidays. However, she added that there are no official figures on this yet.
