Experts warn of the risk of exacerbating educational disparities due to cuts to the school year; they describe the decision as "irresponsible."

The early reduction of the school year could deepen learning gaps in math, reading, and writing, and exacerbate educational inequalities between students from different socioeconomic backgrounds, warned Cristina Perales Franco, director of the Center for Research on Educational Development (Centro INIDE). The expert in school coexistence, inclusion, and educational equity explained that certain processes are particularly sensitive to prolonged interruptions, especially those related to math learning and the acquisition of reading and writing skills, as they require constant practice, support, and pedagogical continuity. Perales Franco noted that these learnings are essential not only for other academic areas but also for exercising various rights, including the right to education. She also pointed out that learning involves much more than simply reviewing content in class; it involves moving from "not knowing" to understanding, applying, and transferring knowledge to different contexts. This requires ongoing processes of repetition, monitoring, reflection, and practice. She also emphasized that much of this process occurs through interaction with teachers and peers within stable school environments. Perales Franco warned that shortening the school year, originally scheduled to end on July 15 and now planned to end on June 5, could have significant negative consequences. She argued that it is not feasible to expect most families to provide educational support without institutional guidance, especially while facing their own work-related challenges. She recalled that the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the difficulty of transferring teaching processes to the home environment and the need to maintain a close relationship between school and home to partially sustain learning. In this context, she argued that reducing the school calendar directly impacts the pedagogical work of teachers, who need time to plan, monitor progress, and identify the specific needs of each student. "Reducing classroom time limits the ability to identify learning gaps, provide specific support, and develop strategies to help students consolidate knowledge and skills," she said. The expert also criticized statements made by the Secretary of Public Education, Mario Delgado, who told state education officials that there are countries with fewer days of class and good academic results, and that the time in schools is not fully utilized at the end of the school year due to administrative burdens. Fernández also questioned the government's justification for the reduction, citing the 2026 World Cup and high temperatures. He pointed out that host cities in other countries, such as Boston and Seattle, will maintain their school calendars largely intact, while in Canada, classes will end between June 23 and 26. "No one said, 'I'm changing my school year because of the World Cup,'" he said. The academic also warned that the reduction ignores the learning problems that the country faces, particularly in reading comprehension, math, and science, where efforts should be made to maximize classroom time rather than reduce it. He also noted that if the problem is heat, the government should invest in school infrastructure, ventilation, and suitable conditions for schools, rather than canceling entire weeks of classes. He argued that a change of this magnitude should have been planned at least a year in advance and announced several months in advance to adjust assessments, content, and the next school year. He also criticized the proposal to "compensate" for the lost time by advancing the start of the next school year by two weeks, arguing that it shows a lack of understanding of how pedagogical processes and accumulated learning work between grade levels. He questioned the support that the National Union of Education Workers (SNTE) subsequently expressed for the measure and raised doubts about which teacher sectors had formally requested the reduction of the school calendar. Finally, he warned that tensions persist between states regarding the implementation of the measure, which could lead to differentiated calendars and coordination problems for the start of the next school year.