If MS don't give homework, how are kids prepared for HS?

[Anonymous]

I am hearing many MCPS MS don't give any homework or very little. Not that I am a fan of hours of homework, but how do kids develop organizational and time management skills if not given homework in preparation for HS? Granted, our MS will have a block schedule which allows time for hw apparently.
TIA!

[Anonymous]

MCPS' only weakness is writing, compared to reputable private schools. You wouldn't particularly notice the weakness unless you're a good writer yourself, or until your kid reaches AP English Comp or Lit, or goes to college, because of grade inflation and a very weak curriculum throughout MCPS courses (except APs, which are created by the College Board). So if your kid is not naturally good at organizing and expressing their thoughts in written form, they might fall through the cracks and you will need to coach them, or hire a tutor. This is what I did for one of my kids.

MCPS is very strong in STEM, however.

At the middle school level, the question of how much time your kid spends on homework will mainly depend on their executive functioning skills, and which advanced courses they take. I had one kid with inattentive ADHD and low processing speed take hours and hours to finish homework in middle school, and the other do all her homework in class. Both were taking language and advanced math classes, and Global Humanities, or whatever the supposedly advanced history course is.

So if your kid comes home with no homework in middle school, and has straight As in advanced classes, you can feel a little reassured that they're pretty well prepared for high school! There might still be an adjustment, especially as many kids hit a wall in math come calculus, or if they suddenly decide to take 6 APs in one year. Help them map out a 4-year plan to avoid loading up one year much more than the others.

[Anonymous]

Who told you this? My 6th grade middle schooler at Pyle has plenty of homework every day which he complains endlessly about.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Who told you this? My 6th grade middle schooler at Pyle has plenty of homework every day which he complains endlessly about.

My kid at Westland has homework to do every weekday (and most weekends) too. Not sure who "told you" middle school kids don't get homework. Sometimes kids can finish assignments in class, but my kid typically has 3 courses a day where he's doing some assignment or other...this doesn't include the time studying for whatever assessments they have for the week.

[Anonymous]

OP-what school are you hearing this about? Do you have a kid in middle school? You may want to check your facts.

[Anonymous]

I have a feeling this is very school specific. My kids always had homework while some other middle schools gave very little.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a feeling this is very school specific. My kids always had homework while some other middle schools gave very little.

Or maybe class/teacher specific. My MS kid always has a lot of homework from teachers who parents tell me are relatively tough, and not so much in other classes.

[Anonymous]

Because high school freshman ALSO don't get much homework! Ramps up as you go into AP classes, though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Who told you this? My 6th grade middle schooler at Pyle has plenty of homework every day which he complains endlessly about.

My kid at Westland has homework to do every weekday (and most weekends) too. Not sure who "told you" middle school kids don't get homework. Sometimes kids can finish assignments in class, but my kid typically has 3 courses a day where he's doing some assignment or other...this doesn't include the time studying for whatever assessments they have for the week.

My kid was at Westland (and is now in 9th grade at BCC) and never brought home homework: she was one of those taking Alg 1 in 6th, language all three years, etc.

This is the point about executive function. Some kids need to finish homework at home, others don't. She still does most of her homework at school in 9th grade, except some pre-calc and AP US Gov.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a feeling this is very school specific. My kids always had homework while some other middle schools gave very little.

OP here - 5 parents from 3 different MS (not Pyle or Westland though). Seems school specific. Thanks!

[Anonymous]

My kid at TPMS has plenty of homework in 6th grade, and not exclusively in magnet classes. I'm confident some of the the inability to finish in school is due to socializing/screwing around but it's also just plenty of work.

[Anonymous]

IMO, MCPS MS in general do a piss poor job of preparing kids for rigors of AP classes in HS.

[Anonymous]

My kid got homework at North Bethesda and was more than prepared for a rigorous AP curriculum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:MCPS' only weakness is writing, compared to reputable private schools. You wouldn't particularly notice the weakness unless you're a good writer yourself, or until your kid reaches AP English Comp or Lit, or goes to college, because of grade inflation and a very weak curriculum throughout MCPS courses (except APs, which are created by the College Board). So if your kid is not naturally good at organizing and expressing their thoughts in written form, they might fall through the cracks and you will need to coach them, or hire a tutor. This is what I did for one of my kids.

MCPS is very strong in STEM, however.

At the middle school level, the question of how much time your kid spends on homework will mainly depend on their executive functioning skills, and which advanced courses they take. I had one kid with inattentive ADHD and low processing speed take hours and hours to finish homework in middle school, and the other do all her homework in class. Both were taking language and advanced math classes, and Global Humanities, or whatever the supposedly advanced history course is.

So if your kid comes home with no homework in middle school, and has straight As in advanced classes, you can feel a little reassured that they're pretty well prepared for high school! There might still be an adjustment, especially as many kids hit a wall in math come calculus, or if they suddenly decide to take 6 APs in one year. Help them map out a 4-year plan to avoid loading up one year much more than the others.

Lol. You keep telling yourself that. It has way more than one weakness.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:MCPS' only weakness is writing, compared to reputable private schools. You wouldn't particularly notice the weakness unless you're a good writer yourself, or until your kid reaches AP English Comp or Lit, or goes to college, because of grade inflation and a very weak curriculum throughout MCPS courses (except APs, which are created by the College Board). So if your kid is not naturally good at organizing and expressing their thoughts in written form, they might fall through the cracks and you will need to coach them, or hire a tutor. This is what I did for one of my kids.

MCPS is very strong in STEM, however.

At the middle school level, the question of how much time your kid spends on homework will mainly depend on their executive functioning skills, and which advanced courses they take. I had one kid with inattentive ADHD and low processing speed take hours and hours to finish homework in middle school, and the other do all her homework in class. Both were taking language and advanced math classes, and Global Humanities, or whatever the supposedly advanced history course is.

So if your kid comes home with no homework in middle school, and has straight As in advanced classes, you can feel a little reassured that they're pretty well prepared for high school! There might still be an adjustment, especially as many kids hit a wall in math come calculus, or if they suddenly decide to take 6 APs in one year. Help them map out a 4-year plan to avoid loading up one year much more than the others.

Lol. You keep telling yourself that. It has way more than one weakness.

PP you replied to. I have young adults in college and high schoolers in MCPS. This public, free-with-taxes, school system has plenty of faults, but in terms of academic weaknesses, writing is the biggest one. It's because teachers have too many students and therefore cannot give the requisite feedback that private teachers can provide. The writing curriculum and reading assignments is also not high-level.

I note that you did not actually list the weaknesses you think I missed? Care to share?
Are you ready to pay more in taxes to get what you want?

I would be ready to pay more so that MCPS is allowed to build more schools and therefore hire more teachers and reduce classroom size, which in my opinion is the one criteria that could solve a good many behavioral and academic issues, especially in the lower grades. That's millions and millions of taxpayer dollars, and decades of negotiations to buy new land and find ways to expand existing schools.

Once you understand the pressures on the public school system, you'll realize that solving problems isn't that easy.