That’s not it. It is pushed by the teachers. They want to longer winter break.
Nonsense. A longer winter break for the sake of a shorter summer break. Most would rather have the longer stretch off. The administrator I know in the wine country region of CA says it was for the reason I stated. Migrant labor is a large part of the work force here. They care little if anything for education but they do seem overly obligated to their dysfunctional families. It isn’t worthwhile to travel to Mexico with the entire family for a week or two and farm labor needs are low during that period, so they disappear for a month or two and school be damned. As always, the white liberals that comprise the public school system cannot cow tow enough to these people, and despite their anti-capitalist claims desire money, so the extend the break.
Teachers find breaks problematic as it requires reteaching material from the previous semester rather than progressing forward. On average, the summer break requires a month of review to bring pupils back up to speed. Christmas break used to require a week or two but now it requires more time, closer to a month. It is a waste.
Another interesting note is that schools and libraries here will not close for the allegedly racist Columbus holiday. They will hold school on this day and take off another day, because sacrificing any union required paid holiday off would be too much sacrifice for these educators supposedly dedicated to education. The other day is usually the following Friday and is called an administrative day but is very inconvenient as parents had Columbus Day off and must scramble for someone to watch the inmates on Friday.
Nothing public school teachers do is about education. It is about union, “socialization” or liberal agenda issues, and education is a very distant third.