AP CLASSES why so much homework?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I graduated from a relatively small public high school in 2001. Every AP class averaged probably one hour’s worth of homework per night, although the English courses could sometimes be even more. (And of course this includes time over the weekend to get stuff done.)

This seems totally normal. If your kid doesn’t want to do the work maybe they should reconsider taking the classes?

That's not normal. That's 5hrs a week of homework plus 4 hrs of class, per course, which is far too much for a school with 7-8 courses at a time.

This-- in college you take maybe four classes a semester, so it makes sense to be responsible for a fair amount outside of the class meetings time. In HS you are in classes all day, and taking 7-8 classes. It's unreasonable for an AP course to mimic the amount of work in a college course. The rigor and the learning should be geared towards advancement but not the sheer amount of work.

Well, since you are earning college credits, it will be a similar workload as at university. 7-8 classes doesn't mean they are all AP classes. Some electives may have little homework. Students need to consider what else they have on their plates (sports, part-time jobs, music lessons, etc) and not over extend themselves if they can't manage the workload.

[Anonymous]

Earning college credits through AP courses should be a similar workload as an actual college course. Nobody cares that your kid is overextending himself with after school stuff. That’s a choice. If they choose to take an AP course then they need to set aside the time to do the work.

[Anonymous]

Be thankful that the teachers are preparing your kids for college. If they are not college bound then let them take honors or gen Ed classes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Forget AP Classes, those are college level and expected to have a lot of work. Why is my freshman in History honors drowning in SO MUCH homework? Every weekday evening and most of the weekend is spent ONLY on finishing up History assignments. And no, the teacher does not give any time in class to work on hw. Kid manages to finish all the other classes hw during Study Hall and comes home and does only history work every day. I have a suspicion that the history teacher is deliberately overloading the hw so that the kids will drop down to lower level. The same teacher is teaching AP World also and I suspect they are trying to scare away the kids from AP World with too much work. Thankfully, the other teachers are giving normal hw.

+1 omg bless you. My poor kid is in the same boat. We have no idea why this teacher is assigning gobs of work. It is absolutely insane. My son is also spending hours on it. The sad part is the work is only for completion. The teacher doesn’t teach - just assigns reading (they read it outloud in class old school round robin style) and then they are given these ridiculous assignments that keep them busy the rest of the period. They cannot ever possibly be finished with them.

The teacher is teaching the kids how to study.

If your kid doesn't want to study and learn, then just scribble through the work and don't waste time making it correct.

I don’t agree that simply reading a text outloud in class and assigning work after that is teaching my child “how to study.” If there was a lecture or discussion, where my child had to take take notes, and then study said notes, that might be “teaching him how to study.” But assigning copious amounts of busy work with zero discussion is not it.

Is it possible that your kid is not relaying accurate information about what they are doing in class?

No. He is a straight A student and extremely truthful.

Also, I can see they don’t have any notes taken from lectures.

I guess your kid is lazy, or notes aren't important.

My kid learned the incredibly complex skill of note taking in middle school

Not at all, more like the teacher is lazy. Having kids read outloud the text during class time to kill time and then simply assigning independent work with no discussion? That’s the definition of lazy teaching.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Earning college credits through AP courses should be a similar workload as an actual college course. Nobody cares that your kid is overextending himself with after school stuff. That’s a choice. If they choose to take an AP course then they need to set aside the time to do the work.

No. the scores are college credits. Not the classes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe the classes your kid prior to these had little to no homework do this seems like a lot. My kid had hours of homework starting in 6th grade so he was used to it. Public schools don’t assign much to be done at home due to equity. It’s a college level class so expect a large workload.

I might add that this shows what happens when homework is virtually eliminated in elementary school. Even in AAP classes, it is pretty minimal. The students are not prepared for a more rigorous education. The irony is that those URM for whom "equity" is being forced do not benefit from this in the long run; many of them would be better off receiving more homework and harder coursework with an opportunity to excel and break out of whatever barriers FCPS attribute to race. Not all kids respond in the same way to opportunity, but the answer is not to take the opportunity away from all of them.

Ugh! Enough with the generalizations! URM does not equal low achieving. Low achieving equals low achieving, no matter the race or ethnic background.

[Anonymous]

My kid took 9 APs through her HS years. She had homework, but never too much. I think she had good time management skills. She worked on homework whenever she finished her class work. She was able to to play two varsity sports plus a travel club sport outside of school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Forget AP Classes, those are college level and expected to have a lot of work. Why is my freshman in History honors drowning in SO MUCH homework? Every weekday evening and most of the weekend is spent ONLY on finishing up History assignments. And no, the teacher does not give any time in class to work on hw. Kid manages to finish all the other classes hw during Study Hall and comes home and does only history work every day. I have a suspicion that the history teacher is deliberately overloading the hw so that the kids will drop down to lower level. The same teacher is teaching AP World also and I suspect they are trying to scare away the kids from AP World with too much work. Thankfully, the other teachers are giving normal hw.

+1 omg bless you. My poor kid is in the same boat. We have no idea why this teacher is assigning gobs of work. It is absolutely insane. My son is also spending hours on it. The sad part is the work is only for completion. The teacher doesn’t teach - just assigns reading (they read it outloud in class old school round robin style) and then they are given these ridiculous assignments that keep them busy the rest of the period. They cannot ever possibly be finished with them.

The teacher is teaching the kids how to study.

If your kid doesn't want to study and learn, then just scribble through the work and don't waste time making it correct.

I don’t agree that simply reading a text outloud in class and assigning work after that is teaching my child “how to study.” If there was a lecture or discussion, where my child had to take take notes, and then study said notes, that might be “teaching him how to study.” But assigning copious amounts of busy work with zero discussion is not it.

Is it possible that your kid is not relaying accurate information about what they are doing in class?

No. He is a straight A student and extremely truthful.

Also, I can see they don’t have any notes taken from lectures.

I guess your kid is lazy, or notes aren't important.

My kid learned the incredibly complex skill of note taking in middle school

Not at all, more like the teacher is lazy. Having kids read outloud the text during class time to kill time and then simply assigning independent work with no discussion? That’s the definition of lazy teaching.

Challenge for you. Call the school and ask to observe the teacher’s class.

I’m willing to bet the story your child brings home doesn’t match what is really occurring in class.

From my 20 years of experience teaching advanced courses in high school, I’m comfortable saying there aren’t many lazy AP teachers left. The 60 (or more) hours a week it takes to teach an advanced course is enough to scare the lazy teachers away. Those of us who remain are the work horses who unhealthily put our jobs over our own families and our own health.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Forget AP Classes, those are college level and expected to have a lot of work. Why is my freshman in History honors drowning in SO MUCH homework? Every weekday evening and most of the weekend is spent ONLY on finishing up History assignments. And no, the teacher does not give any time in class to work on hw. Kid manages to finish all the other classes hw during Study Hall and comes home and does only history work every day. I have a suspicion that the history teacher is deliberately overloading the hw so that the kids will drop down to lower level. The same teacher is teaching AP World also and I suspect they are trying to scare away the kids from AP World with too much work. Thankfully, the other teachers are giving normal hw.

+1 omg bless you. My poor kid is in the same boat. We have no idea why this teacher is assigning gobs of work. It is absolutely insane. My son is also spending hours on it. The sad part is the work is only for completion. The teacher doesn’t teach - just assigns reading (they read it outloud in class old school round robin style) and then they are given these ridiculous assignments that keep them busy the rest of the period. They cannot ever possibly be finished with them.

The teacher is teaching the kids how to study.

If your kid doesn't want to study and learn, then just scribble through the work and don't waste time making it correct.

I don’t agree that simply reading a text outloud in class and assigning work after that is teaching my child “how to study.” If there was a lecture or discussion, where my child had to take take notes, and then study said notes, that might be “teaching him how to study.” But assigning copious amounts of busy work with zero discussion is not it.

Is it possible that your kid is not relaying accurate information about what they are doing in class?

No. He is a straight A student and extremely truthful.

Also, I can see they don’t have any notes taken from lectures.

I guess your kid is lazy, or notes aren't important.

My kid learned the incredibly complex skill of note taking in middle school

Not at all, more like the teacher is lazy. Having kids read outloud the text during class time to kill time and then simply assigning independent work with no discussion? That’s the definition of lazy teaching.

Challenge for you. Call the school and ask to observe the teacher’s class.

I’m willing to bet the story your child brings home doesn’t match what is really occurring in class.

From my 20 years of experience teaching advanced courses in high school, I’m comfortable saying there aren’t many lazy AP teachers left. The 60 (or more) hours a week it takes to teach an advanced course is enough to scare the lazy teachers away. Those of us who remain are the work horses who unhealthily put our jobs over our own families and our own health.

Thank you. FCPS is lucky to have teachers like you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Earning college credits through AP courses should be a similar workload as an actual college course. Nobody cares that your kid is overextending himself with after school stuff. That’s a choice. If they choose to take an AP course then they need to set aside the time to do the work.

No. the scores are college credits. Not the classes.

So skip the classes and take the test via self study. Or is that too much work too?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Forget AP Classes, those are college level and expected to have a lot of work. Why is my freshman in History honors drowning in SO MUCH homework? Every weekday evening and most of the weekend is spent ONLY on finishing up History assignments. And no, the teacher does not give any time in class to work on hw. Kid manages to finish all the other classes hw during Study Hall and comes home and does only history work every day. I have a suspicion that the history teacher is deliberately overloading the hw so that the kids will drop down to lower level. The same teacher is teaching AP World also and I suspect they are trying to scare away the kids from AP World with too much work. Thankfully, the other teachers are giving normal hw.

+1 omg bless you. My poor kid is in the same boat. We have no idea why this teacher is assigning gobs of work. It is absolutely insane. My son is also spending hours on it. The sad part is the work is only for completion. The teacher doesn’t teach - just assigns reading (they read it outloud in class old school round robin style) and then they are given these ridiculous assignments that keep them busy the rest of the period. They cannot ever possibly be finished with them.

The teacher is teaching the kids how to study.

If your kid doesn't want to study and learn, then just scribble through the work and don't waste time making it correct.

I don’t agree that simply reading a text outloud in class and assigning work after that is teaching my child “how to study.” If there was a lecture or discussion, where my child had to take take notes, and then study said notes, that might be “teaching him how to study.” But assigning copious amounts of busy work with zero discussion is not it.

Is it possible that your kid is not relaying accurate information about what they are doing in class?

No. He is a straight A student and extremely truthful.

Also, I can see they don’t have any notes taken from lectures.

I guess your kid is lazy, or notes aren't important.

My kid learned the incredibly complex skill of note taking in middle school

Not at all, more like the teacher is lazy. Having kids read outloud the text during class time to kill time and then simply assigning independent work with no discussion? That’s the definition of lazy teaching.

Challenge for you. Call the school and ask to observe the teacher’s class.

I’m willing to bet the story your child brings home doesn’t match what is really occurring in class.

From my 20 years of experience teaching advanced courses in high school, I’m comfortable saying there aren’t many lazy AP teachers left. The 60 (or more) hours a week it takes to teach an advanced course is enough to scare the lazy teachers away. Those of us who remain are the work horses who unhealthily put our jobs over our own families and our own health.

You’re confusing me with OP. I’m talking about a freshman honors history class, not an AP class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Forget AP Classes, those are college level and expected to have a lot of work. Why is my freshman in History honors drowning in SO MUCH homework? Every weekday evening and most of the weekend is spent ONLY on finishing up History assignments. And no, the teacher does not give any time in class to work on hw. Kid manages to finish all the other classes hw during Study Hall and comes home and does only history work every day. I have a suspicion that the history teacher is deliberately overloading the hw so that the kids will drop down to lower level. The same teacher is teaching AP World also and I suspect they are trying to scare away the kids from AP World with too much work. Thankfully, the other teachers are giving normal hw.

+1 omg bless you. My poor kid is in the same boat. We have no idea why this teacher is assigning gobs of work. It is absolutely insane. My son is also spending hours on it. The sad part is the work is only for completion. The teacher doesn’t teach - just assigns reading (they read it outloud in class old school round robin style) and then they are given these ridiculous assignments that keep them busy the rest of the period. They cannot ever possibly be finished with them.

The teacher is teaching the kids how to study.

If your kid doesn't want to study and learn, then just scribble through the work and don't waste time making it correct.

I don’t agree that simply reading a text outloud in class and assigning work after that is teaching my child “how to study.” If there was a lecture or discussion, where my child had to take take notes, and then study said notes, that might be “teaching him how to study.” But assigning copious amounts of busy work with zero discussion is not it.

Is it possible that your kid is not relaying accurate information about what they are doing in class?

No. He is a straight A student and extremely truthful.

Also, I can see they don’t have any notes taken from lectures.

I guess your kid is lazy, or notes aren't important.

My kid learned the incredibly complex skill of note taking in middle school

Not at all, more like the teacher is lazy. Having kids read outloud the text during class time to kill time and then simply assigning independent work with no discussion? That’s the definition of lazy teaching.

Challenge for you. Call the school and ask to observe the teacher’s class.

I’m willing to bet the story your child brings home doesn’t match what is really occurring in class.

From my 20 years of experience teaching advanced courses in high school, I’m comfortable saying there aren’t many lazy AP teachers left. The 60 (or more) hours a week it takes to teach an advanced course is enough to scare the lazy teachers away. Those of us who remain are the work horses who unhealthily put our jobs over our own families and our own health.

You’re confusing me with OP. I’m talking about a freshman honors history class, not an AP class.

I still recommend observing the class. What students report is rarely what is actually occurring. I’ve witnessed that with my own children.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe the classes your kid prior to these had little to no homework do this seems like a lot. My kid had hours of homework starting in 6th grade so he was used to it. Public schools don’t assign much to be done at home due to equity. It’s a college level class so expect a large workload.

I might add that this shows what happens when homework is virtually eliminated in elementary school. Even in AAP classes, it is pretty minimal. The students are not prepared for a more rigorous education. The irony is that those URM for whom "equity" is being forced do not benefit from this in the long run; many of them would be better off receiving more homework and harder coursework with an opportunity to excel and break out of whatever barriers FCPS attribute to race. Not all kids respond in the same way to opportunity, but the answer is not to take the opportunity away from all of them.

+1. Kids from the less wealthy living situations are the ones who suffer most.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Personally, I’ve been pleased to see my junior finally has homework! She’s finally working
hard and learning to connect effort to outcomes.

+1

The real question is why they had so little homework before!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Personally, I’ve been pleased to see my junior finally has homework! She’s finally working
hard and learning to connect effort to outcomes.

+1

The real question is why they had so little homework before!

Homework is not equitable and public schools are all about equity now. So if they assign homework, they give time in class to do it. So it's not really HOMEwork, it's more classwork IMO.