Spring Vacation! Time to Think About Serious Studying

Spring vacation is finally here, and all through Japan children are getting ready to enjoy a well deserved two week holiday. This year is special for our family, because my son will be entering Junior High School in April, which is a big change. First of all, all Junior High students are compelled to join a school club like baseball club, karate club, art club and so on, and engage in bukatsu ("club activities") for several hours a day. My son likes music and has decided to join the school's wind orchestra club, which will be practicing into the evening three days a week. After spending time with club members, many students will then go to juku, evening school where students study for 2-3 more hours. While a lot of students attend these night schools because their friends are there, those who want to go to a good university start their power-studying at this time, attending a night school until 10 pm or so then coming home for a spot of dinner before studying even more. We're having a family debate right now over which course we want to pursue for my son. My wife is sure he'll need to attend night school every evening just to keep up with his studies and to prepare for his upcoming entrance exams for high school, since there's a lot of competition for the school he wants to go to. I'm of the opinion that family should come before cramming useless knowledge into the brain for a test that's three years off, but that's just me...

(This is an ad for a juku that promises to get you into your university of choice.)