Your opinion on my family's homework policy

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I never assign homework for practice, only for preparation for the next day's lesson (flipped classroom) so I would be troubled by a student ignoring this. However, if you feel your kids are only assigned busy work, challenge the benefit of the specific assignments.

UGH! Flipped classroom is the ultimate fail. Please do not do this to your students. It has proved to be a near disaster in my family. I will have my younger children avoid the teacher who does this in our school. My kid could have learned so much more and developed a thorough understanding of the topic had the teacher taught properly.

My 8th grade Algebra class was part of a flipped classroom pilot program. We were supposed to do homework on something we hadn't been taught yet and the next day, the teacher explained to us what we should have done. Needless to say, it was a disaster and I took Algebra again in 9th grade.

9th grade algebra was the correct placement for you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Congrats, they think rules don't apply to them. Good luck getting them to pay their taxes.

A's and B's may not be good enough to get into a good college. Of course if all you aspire to is somewhere like JMU, you should be o.k.,

Oh, can it.

low expectations, sub-par results. College acceptance is so competitive, but I have heard there is one for everybody; i.e., the right "fit" and all. I wonder which school is the right fit for kids who choose which homework they will and will not do? Maybe put this on your application essay - why I picked and chose which homework I would do.?

Also a good thing to discuss in your future job interviews: "I simply ignore assigned tasks that I'd rather not do."

[Anonymous]

Any system that requires 3-4 hrs of homework per night needs to be fixed. I plan to limit the number of AP classes my kids take because I don't think kids should spend 3-4 hrs per day on homework after spending 6.5 hours in school. I see this as a race to nowhere. I hope at some point the school system will figure this out and cut back on the expected homework. I think sometimes teachers look at the homework they assign in isolation without considering what all the other teachers are also expecting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If your plan is to teach your kids that they only need to do the bare minimum to get by, and extra effort is a waste of time...congrats. You're successfully raising kids with absolutely no work ethic.

I'm not sure that you, and the other pps who are saying OP's kids will have no work ethic, know what that means. Work ethic is going to work and doing a good job there. It's not being on your blackberry 24/7, doing more work after the kids are in bed, bringing your work along on vacation, etc.

People are concerned that high school students in this area are overstressed. Then they say that high school students who choose not to do 4-5 hours of homework every night are slackers who will never go to a "good" college and have absolutely no work ethic. There's huge cognitive dissonance here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If your plan is to teach your kids that they only need to do the bare minimum to get by, and extra effort is a waste of time...congrats. You're successfully raising kids with absolutely no work ethic.

I'm not sure that you, and the other pps who are saying OP's kids will have no work ethic, know what that means. Work ethic is going to work and doing a good job there. It's not being on your blackberry 24/7, doing more work after the kids are in bed, bringing your work along on vacation, etc.

People are concerned that high school students in this area are overstressed. Then they say that high school students who choose not to do 4-5 hours of homework every night are slackers who will never go to a "good" college and have absolutely no work ethic. There's huge cognitive dissonance here.

I think they were saying 3-4 hours, not 4-5 hours. If it takes 5 hours something is wrong. Are you watching them do it to make sure they're not on their media devices while up in their rooms doing "homework?"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Any system that requires 3-4 hrs of homework per night needs to be fixed. I plan to limit the number of AP classes my kids take because I don't think kids should spend 3-4 hrs per day on homework after spending 6.5 hours in school. I see this as a race to nowhere. I hope at some point the school system will figure this out and cut back on the expected homework. I think sometimes teachers look at the homework they assign in isolation without considering what all the other teachers are also expecting.

Oh I don't think the highly selective colleges are "nowhere." They expect the most rigorous coursework possible. Of course if a kid can ace those without doing homework, more power to him/her.

[Anonymous]

4 -5 hours of homework every night is ridiculous.

What I'm saying though is rather than teach kids to just not do what they don't think is necessary, take it up with the teacher. Request a meeting with parents, teacher, and the student and see what's up. Likely you can come to an agreement that way while also showing kids how to resolve issues like this.

OP if your boss gave you an assignment you didn't see the need for that also required over time, what would you do? Would you go in and figure it out or would you just not do it?

[Anonymous]

check how much time they are spending on their I-phones and social media whist allegedly studying. 1-2 hours of homework can easily take 3-4 hours.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Any system that requires 3-4 hrs of homework per night needs to be fixed. I plan to limit the number of AP classes my kids take because I don't think kids should spend 3-4 hrs per day on homework after spending 6.5 hours in school. I see this as a race to nowhere. I hope at some point the school system will figure this out and cut back on the expected homework. I think sometimes teachers look at the homework they assign in isolation without considering what all the other teachers are also expecting.

Oh I don't think the highly selective colleges are "nowhere." They expect the most rigorous coursework possible. Of course if a kid can ace those without doing homework, more power to him/her.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, what state had that system?

I'd like to know this too. Sounds like a great system.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, what state had that system?

I'd like to know this too. Sounds like a great system.

Texas?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Any system that requires 3-4 hrs of homework per night needs to be fixed. I plan to limit the number of AP classes my kids take because I don't think kids should spend 3-4 hrs per day on homework after spending 6.5 hours in school. I see this as a race to nowhere. I hope at some point the school system will figure this out and cut back on the expected homework. I think sometimes teachers look at the homework they assign in isolation without considering what all the other teachers are also expecting.

AP and IB courses are supposed to be COLLEGE level courses ... I can't think of any college course where I didn't do outside reading/studying.

I have found in ten years of teaching, that when kids are spending that much time on homework, it is because they either are a) on social media or b) procrastinated and doing everything at the last minute. Students are pretty open about this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Any system that requires 3-4 hrs of homework per night needs to be fixed. I plan to limit the number of AP classes my kids take because I don't think kids should spend 3-4 hrs per day on homework after spending 6.5 hours in school. I see this as a race to nowhere. I hope at some point the school system will figure this out and cut back on the expected homework. I think sometimes teachers look at the homework they assign in isolation without considering what all the other teachers are also expecting.

Yes, please don't let your kids waste an AP course seat that could go to a motivated student.

[Anonymous]

I think that had you explained your family's policy on homework in a response to one of the early emails that you received and ignored, you wouldn't have needed to have the unpleasant conversation later in the year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Any system that requires 3-4 hrs of homework per night needs to be fixed. I plan to limit the number of AP classes my kids take because I don't think kids should spend 3-4 hrs per day on homework after spending 6.5 hours in school. I see this as a race to nowhere. I hope at some point the school system will figure this out and cut back on the expected homework. I think sometimes teachers look at the homework they assign in isolation without considering what all the other teachers are also expecting.

Yes, please don't let your kids waste an AP course seat that could go to a motivated student.

I didn't know there was a competition to get into AP courses. My kids will have a balanced life and will do the homework they are assigned in the classes they take. I'm fine with that.