German families charged for helping children ditch school over Pentecost
In Germany, kids have to go to school whether their parents want them there or not.Police in southern Germany have filed 21 cases of truancy after spot checks at the Allgäu and Nuremberg airports on May 17 and 18. Officers caught families attempting to fly prior to the three-day Pentecost weekend without approval for their children to skip school. “The police are calling on parents not to take children out of school without the school’s permission, even just to take advantage of cheaper flights,” the police department in the town of Memmingen, home to the Allgäu Airport, said.All German children are required by law to be in classes during regular school hours unless they have been previously excused by the school. Police around Germany often perform spot checks at airports and train stations prior to holidays and long weekends to catch parents who have illegally taken their children from school, often to take advantage of less expensive tickets. To be fair, Munich police said they caught no families in a similar Pentecost sweep.German schools often refuse to excuse children prior to long weekends and holidays. International schools, however, often grant such requests because of the time and expense involved with visiting far-flung relatives.
Note: All posts in News Items, Opinion Pieces, and Home & Family are offered as a matter of interest to our readers. They do not necessarily represent the views of FBFI. They may often represent a different point of view which we think our readers might like to be aware.