School experiments with four even terms a year / 台南虎山實小"四學季制"上路 寒暑假變短　　　　　　　　　　

All public schools in Taiwan have only two terms. This year Tainan City's Ren De District Hushan Elementary School, which specializes in teaching about the local ecology, changed its name to Hushan Experimental Elementary School and implemented a four term school year. Tainan City's Ren De District Hushan Elementary School, which specializes in teaching about the local ecology, started it's new term today. It has changed its name to Hushan Experimental Elementary School and implemented a four term school year. This means the original 40 week year will be divided into four equal terms. The school will be in session for 10 weeks and then take two weeks holiday. The school emphasized that this is more effective for the children's learning. ==LIN YUNG-CHENG Hushan Experimental Elementary School Head == we wanted to see if there was that possibility that we have classes for 10 weeks, those that study hard then have a break, for those that need to do a bit more work, we use those two weeks in the autumn or the spring to help those kids. It's a kinder study model divided into the four seasons. This new term is the autumn term and it will conclude at the end of October. Then there will be a two week break and the winter term will start. Spring and summer terms will follow the same pattern of ten weeks of classes. Their summer break will be six weeks long, shorter than that of most elementary schools. For students who are used to having two months off in the summer, it may take a little getting used to. ==STUDENT Hushan Experimental Elementary School Head== If you count up the holidays, its not fair. But if you don't, it feels very fair. ==STUDENT Hushan Experimental Elementary School Head == When we are off on holiday other schools will be working, so there will be a bit of a distance between us and our friends. This school apart, there are two others in Taiwan which have implemented this four term school year. Yilan's Renwen Middle and Elementary School and Yunlin County's Huadefu Experimental Middle School. It not only keeps up students' interest in studying, teachers can adjust teaching schedules more easily depending on the students' performance. TRANSLATED BY：CLARE LEAR 以生態教育聞名的台南市虎山國小，今天正式開學，除了更名虎山實驗小學之外，這間學校更是南部第一個實施四學季制的小學，而所謂的四學季制，就是把原本約40週的上課日平均分配到四季，因此虎山實驗小學平均只要上10週就能夠休息2週。而這樣的上課方式，校方強調更能夠提升學生的學習效益。 ===虎山實驗小學校長 林勇成=== 那有沒有可能說 我們只有上課10週 那學得好的 我們就放假 那學得需要加油的 我們利用這兩週的時間 秋假或者春假 來給孩子一些協助 站在友善孩子學習規劃下 我們認為可以來春夏秋冬 4個學季來進行 今天的開學算是秋學季，一直上到10月底結束，接著休息2週後，接著再展開冬學季，而春、夏學制也是照著這樣的制度實行，平均一學季上課10週就會放假，也因為這樣的原因，未來虎山實驗小學暑假預計會有6週，比一般的國小短，因此已經習慣放2個多月長假的小朋友也還在適應當中。 ===虎山國小學生=== 如果算起來(休假)就不會(不公平) 可是如果沒有算的話 就會感覺不公平 ===虎山國小學生=== 我們玩樂的時間反而就是 人家上課的時間 這樣會跟我們朋友 有那個 有點距離 全台除了台南虎山實驗小學之外，宜蘭的人文國中小以及雲林縣華德福實中，也是實施四學季制的學校；相同的是按照四學季制這樣學習方式，不僅可以讓學生維持學習興趣，老師也可視孩子學習狀況加強或改變，適時調整空間。 記者 溫正衡 台南報導