No more homework!

Leslie

Leslie

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Staff member
My sons' school has implemented a no-homework policy. The principal, a young, dynamic guy who has infused a lot of energy into the school (he completed the Boston Marathon last year!), is tracking the results based on report cards and key test scores. And it seems that after a year, all scores have gone up. It's only been a year, but it's interesting. I'm happy with it so far. I do believe in the theory, and it sure makes for way less stress and has really erased the whole I hate school thing for us.

Anyway, here's the newspaper story.
 
Heh! I give my son more homework than he gets from his teachers..I get more questions that way and he learns faster...in case he falls behind later, he'll have room to spare
 
Man i wish they would do that here. That is the biggest problem i have with the oldest boy. From the time he gets home till 9:00 pm everytime i have them.
 
We have a ton of homework. I find it stressful. I am not cut out to be a curriculum teacher, that's why I sent my kids to school.
 
When I had all three in school - elementary, intermediate and high school at the same time - that was hell. I felt just as stupid helping my eldest son as I did helping my youngest daughter. Not to mention, I was attending University at the same time .. so we all sat around with our homework bundles until 9pm ... that was stressful ..

I think the school I work at is trying to implement something similar. I think for high school there should be homework but I also think teachers need to communicate so they know whatʻs happening across the grade level. My son has often had 4 different projects given at the same time with the same deadlines. It could have easily been one project that spanned and incorporated the four subject areas. Of course, because of their extracurricular activities (sports, hula, LIFE), homework doesnʻt get finished until nearly 11pm .. that just canʻt be right.
 
My strategy in high school was to not do any homework unless it was absolutely required, but pay attention in class and get A's on all the tests without studying for them.
 
At least at the level I teach, homeworks (in other words projects) are vital. Lack of practice and stimulus on the alumni only leads to poor learning and lack of skills.
 
Yeah, I did an Inky in high school too. Simple math is easy enough, no reason to practice doing basic calculus.

Now it seems like all I do is MATH MATH MATH... linear algebra, vector calculus, differential equations, imaginary numbers...
 
I hate homework with a passion, it has done irreparable damage to me. Damn stuff was half my grade, and doing little to none of it made me a C student. Math was an exception, since I was looking for a challenge in it, I ended up completing most of the work by the end of the first semester. Hell, I slept through Calc 3 in college (7 AM classes should also be banned) and still got a B, but I don't remember how or what it was about that I didn't already know before taking that class.
 
"Ah, but here's the thing with homework!" Ms. Future Teacher says as she steps onto her soapbox...

I agree that homework is definitely a pain in the ass. And I agree that teachers give out WAY too much every night. However, there has to be some sort of homework going to these kids on a regular basis.

I'm now a student teacher and I've been given this schpiel about how important each step of the learning process is. You have to test a student's prior knowledge before teaching to gauge their content knowledge level and adjust your lesson accordingly. Then, you have to deliver the information in the most effective way you can. After the bell rings, they need to be able to go home and recall what they learned, and perhaps even personalize it, to store the information in long-term memory.

If you send kids home without homework every night, they will come in the next day remembering nothing; we're talking tabula raza. But if you give it every night, they're going to hate it and never give it a second thought after they blast through it. Creating a happy medium and providing homework 2-3 times a week that allows them to connect to the material is key.

For example, I just gave a lesson on Friday about Louis XIV. They came in to the room listening and responding to 17th century music, then they saw a short Power Point with lots of pictures and guiding questions about Louis' reign. Then for homework they are responsible for choosing one from 3 possible connection activities that make them use what they have learned and personalize it (they got to choose from a sensory figure, postcard, or letter). My supervisor who observed commended me on the lesson and agreed that the assignment would definitely help them remember the information, because they've made it their own.

So I promise, homework can and does have a valuable purpose if done correctly. Now, are most teachers doing it correctly? That's another story.
 
BeardofPants said:
I got through high school without EVER doing homework (I have post-grad university qualifications). :shrug:
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Well, there certainly are exceptions :) I know that it doesn't work like that for everyone. The kids I teach, especially. They forget it as soon as the walk out of the classroom if they don't have homework to do. It's a pretty common phenomenon.
 
I actually used to have a significant amount of homework in highschool. That said, I didn't mind it because I am driven by knowledge. I enjoy learning and always have.
 
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