UBC Motherhood - School

School in Switzerland is very different from the U.S. 

I mentioned an example in my post about maternity and motherhood: kids come home for lunch as per the school's schedule. They have Wednesday afternoons off. Depending on their age, they have an additional afternoon off. Some afternoons they're done at 3pm, other weekdays they have classes until 4pm. 

If their teacher is sick, they are sent home. 

Clearly the system, society, call it whatever you will, expects the Moms to stay put at all times. 

And this is actually the new and improved version! Mornings are stable, Monday - Friday it's 8am to 12 noon for everyone. 

When my brother and I attended elementary school, it could very well happen that I had class from 8 - 10am and from 2 - 4pm; my brother's schedule, however, was, let's say 9 - 11am and 1:30 - 3pm. 

How my Mom did not go crazy, I don't know.

So when a few years ago a nationwide harmonization of the school system was proposed, it included block lessons, compulsory school subjects (the French language was a point of contention in the German-speaking part of Switzerland) and supplementary school care, i.e. lunch and help with homework after school.

In other words the idea was to send kids out of the house before 8am and not have them back home before 5pm, which would give working mothers a chance to have jobs, even though not full-time.

There was a lot of resistance from the conservative population, many of which still think the woman belongs at the stove.

The small country of Switzerland did not manage to enforce these structures uniformly. Thanks to federalism, it is different from canton to canton. A canton is comparable to a state.

We live in an area that in the U.S would be called a Red State. Up until 2012 our town did not have a childcare center or a place for school kids to get lunch.

Until a courageous and determined lady, who was quickly becoming a friend of mine, took matters into her hands. She started her own daycare. To obtain an operating license, one must meet many requirements like hire a minimum number of qualified people and rent a space that complies with the safety regulations. 

In her case she had to remodel an older house, and she did so using her own money. In order to cover the running costs, she applied for subsidies from the local government, just like any other nursery would do.

It fell on deaf ears with our administration. 

Without financial support, fixed costs become so high that no family can afford to have their child cared for by daycare.

It took a municipal assembly, an old-school democratic tool, and a lot of parents attending, to outvote the conservative white old men, but we managed. I mentioned this childcare center in the respective post. It's literally within walking distance, right between our home and school. 

I'm so gratufeul we have this institution and this lady for our town. In the meantime she was elected as community president. Way to go!

For Day 19 of this UBC we were asked to write about something we did wrong, and how we worked through it. I have an example that has to do with school. 

A few years ago, I found out that we made a terrible mistake when booking the flights for our family vacation. 

Usually around here, fall break starts the last week of September, and we were convinced that this was what the school's website said when we checked before booking. We were wrong, in 2016 the first day of fall break was Oct 3rd. We had booked non-refundable tickets for Sept 25. 

Damn!!! I went to see Colin's teacher, and it was our first meeting as he had only just started 3rd grade. While she was very understanding and supportive, she said it was not up to her to allow for him to miss a full week of class, we needed to apply for an exceptional leave in writing, and we should do so asap because school board meetings take place twice a month, and she was not sure when the next one was going to happen. 

I had read about families in other cities leaving early or returning late without permission, and they got fined by the school. Amounts vary from several hundred to several thousand... Damn! 

Luckily it didn't take long and we got the green light.

The teacher didn't know it at the time, but - as always - I was going to be the one to take care of farewell gifts at the end of the school year, and I am always happy to do so.

It is immensly important to be on good terms with school. I am aware of the fact that principals and teachers sometimes frown upon parents, and I can't blame them. So many Moms and Dads lack appreciation and respect towards teaching staff. They call or show up for the most ridiculous things and insist their precious child must get a better grade or special treatment.

The truth is, I am one of them, too. Sort of. Only I do have a lot of respect and appreciation towards teaching staff, and I depend on their grace because I need special treatment for my son. Depending on his training schedule, he needs to be excused from a handful of classes per month. 

In primary school we used to write a letter to the school authorities once a year, and our request was granted. It got a lot more difficult in middle school. I wrote about it here. 

Fortunately Colin has kept his part of the bargain: good grades, good behavoir. 

All in all we've been very lucky where school and teachers are concerned. Kindergarten, elementary and middle school all have been positive experiences. This is not be taken for granted. Distant learning during the pandemic and teaching staff shortages are current reminders. 

Back when I was a student I used to believe that the stuff we had to learn was so important. If we didn't know our way around vectors geometry or the WW II, we would not become valuable members of our society, or worse, get a decent job. 

Today I see things a bit differently. While the actual academic subjects, especially foreign languages, as well as our own mother tongue, are important, everybody doesn't need to be able to solve equations with three unknowns.

Everybody should, however, use their time at school to develop curiosity and the urge to learn more about certain things, practice analytical and critical thinking as to not to believe medical advice from Facebook acquaintances, and most importantly, be part of a community. Support each other, adapt yourself in a group, speak up for yourself or be a voice for someone who can't. 

The friends you make in school are your roots. You'll notice as you move away and find it hard to make the same level of friends elsewhere.

Are you still in touch with some of your schoolmates?