Comments on: Home is Not for Homework – Ban It!

By: Whit

Whit — Sat, 12 Dec 2015 18:08:41 +0000

In reply to Liv. Inspirational. Thank you.

By: Liv

Liv — Fri, 11 Dec 2015 19:15:25 +0000

You’re all appeasers of a lazy narcissistic education debacle. Teach your kids, people. Govt cant do it for you.
Whit
Homework is not just for the kid learning on his own, it’s so you can help your kid understand the material. It’s to help the kid develop study techniques. It’s so you can teach the kid that learning is a high priority. It’s also to give the confidence to the kid that doing homework and learning material is a good thing, as opposed to what many other kids are telling your kid: that it’s not cool to be smart and it embarrasses them and if he doesn’t stop being smart they’re are gonna beat the hell out of him.
That is what the govt schools do…babysit, and coddle bullies. Social promotion and PC forgiveness of “disadvantaged” “students” cause bullies to discourage your kid from learning. Homework is critical to raising a good kid. If he becomes a feral kid, like millions have become, he will have to compete by street merit and not by book learning merit. Not that we don’t need some of both, but the declining govt education system is becoming a babysitting gladiator academy. Teach your kid. If he even gets homework, help him strategize how to solve it. If he doesn’t get enough homework, give him some you make yourself. If he gets no homework, pull him out of that Turkish prison and put him in a private school or home school him. Think. What is going thru your head that makes you think kids shouldn’t learn books at home if theyre not learning them at school? Be a parent. Teach your kid. Get him away from ferals. Or you will lose him.

By: Whit

Whit — Tue, 08 Dec 2015 16:55:56 +0000

In reply to Nana. As I'm sure you are aware, that sounds like something that would need to start at the district level, and then, hopefully, set an example for others. I wish you luck!

By: Whit

Whit — Tue, 08 Dec 2015 16:53:36 +0000

In reply to Evelyn Krieger.

That ‘s great. I bet those essays made you feel pretty wonderful (and rightfully so). Best of luck to her in the application process.

Also: “Ban the worksheets!” I would wear that t-shirt.

By: Whit

Whit — Tue, 08 Dec 2015 16:50:55 +0000

In reply to Priscilla. Thank you. You're doing it right! I'm guessing the kids actually enjoy your class more than others, and where there is comfort there is learning. < That's not an actual saying, but it seemed appropriate.

By: Whit

Whit — Tue, 08 Dec 2015 16:48:24 +0000

In reply to Colleen Johnson.

We had one teacher last year that gave my then 6th grader nearly three hours of homework each night—that was just one teacher and it was ridiculous, mind-numbing stuff. He usually had a collective hour of homework from his other five teachers, but those assignments were greatly affected by the fatigue and pressures of the former. And holy cow, the tears and the yelling. It was awful.

There is a popular movement where parents are opting out of homework, and while I think as a policy that would be wonderful I didn’t/don’t want to put my boys in the position of being different or viewed as a problem by his instructors. I have, however, on a few occasions written notes to teachers and explained that homework was not completed due to family activities or whatnot, and excused my kids from the consequences (typically an incomplete or poor grade on the assignment in question). It’s not a win, but it’s something.

By: Whit

Whit — Tue, 08 Dec 2015 16:38:58 +0000

In reply to Sharon. I read a great quote somewhere that, to paraphrase, stated that kids cheat because our society values grades more than learning. I think there's something to that.

By: Evelyn Krieger

Evelyn Krieger — Sun, 06 Dec 2015 04:26:26 +0000

I agree with you, particularly for elementary school-age children. My youngest daughter has homeschooled since grade two. She is now applying to selective colleges. In one of her essays, she thanked her parents for giving her the “gift of time” and for allowing her to “live her childhood.” I am a former classroom teacher. Now I work as an educational consultant and work with kids and families. I’d love to ban worksheets.

By: Priscilla

Priscilla — Sat, 05 Dec 2015 22:04:33 +0000

I totally agree and I’m a TEACHER!!! I get so much criticism from some of my fellow educators when I am unapologetic about not giving my students homework. I teach middle school and many of my kids have all kinds of things going on after school. Also, I hate worksheets! A child can learn a concept from doing a few carefully selected questions/problems rather than a million of them.

By: Colleen Johnson

Colleen Johnson — Sat, 05 Dec 2015 07:17:50 +0000

Whit, your article is a sight for sore eyes (sore from hours of overseeing 4th and 7th grade homework) and weary minds. I’m so glad I came across it in a sponsored feed. You mention that homework can be legitimate when it represents work unfinished in school when ample time was provided for same. Also, that homework bearing no connection to coursework is unmeaningful. What about homework that may, indeed, bear a connection to the coursework (e.g., reinforcement of the day’s math lesson with 1-2 pages of problems), but which contributes (along with other assignments) to a lengthy “second shift” at home that compromises family time, shuts out other forms of engagement / learning, and can also involve frequent and unpleasant parental yelling / kid pushback? I find that though my children’s homework may incorporate relevant learning material, the 3-4 assignments given by multiple teachers really add up to many more minutes of homework than perhaps they intend or are aware of. While no one single assignment is itself soul-crushing, taken together, they are….whether topically relevant to coursework or not. Appreciate any comments you may have to offer about the burden of cumulative and collective homework amounts, even when those assignments may bear relation to the in-class instruction. Thanks!