Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am amazed that any parent would question that at the high school level there is work that needs to be completed by the student in solitude away from their class. That students need to spend time away from their teachers using their brains to apply the concepts they have learned in school, or simply just reading great literature and writing papers about it.

There is still time for "family time" in there if you schedule things properly. What there probably isn't time for is 3 hours of sitting in front of the TV together every night. I had 3-5 hours of homework when I was in high school, and my parents understood I'd be off in my room after dinner together. I'm not saying that should be the norm for every kid, but for the ones who are serious about school and academics, 2-3 hours of homework on average should really not be a big deal imho.

H
ALL kids in high school have 2-3hrs of homework. The ones that are serious about school and taking advanced classes have 4-5 hours and are popping ADD drugs to stay awake and focus because they are so sleep deprived. But yes, no big deal.

My DS is a sophomore. So far I don't recall him ever having more than an hour or so in a night. It's usually less than that.

What school? He takes all 5 majors and gets good grades?

WSHS. I don't know the exact GPA, but based on the end of last year and this year's grades I know it's above 3.0 and under 3.5. He is taking Geometry, Spanish II, Chemistry, TechEd, World History II, English 10, PE.

Well he is on a below grade level track so that makes sense.

Not the pp, but your comment is so condescending and reeks of elitism. I hope you are not like your post in real life.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am amazed that any parent would question that at the high school level there is work that needs to be completed by the student in solitude away from their class. That students need to spend time away from their teachers using their brains to apply the concepts they have learned in school, or simply just reading great literature and writing papers about it.

There is still time for "family time" in there if you schedule things properly. What there probably isn't time for is 3 hours of sitting in front of the TV together every night. I had 3-5 hours of homework when I was in high school, and my parents understood I'd be off in my room after dinner together. I'm not saying that should be the norm for every kid, but for the ones who are serious about school and academics, 2-3 hours of homework on average should really not be a big deal imho.

H
ALL kids in high school have 2-3hrs of homework. The ones that are serious about school and taking advanced classes have 4-5 hours and are popping ADD drugs to stay awake and focus because they are so sleep deprived. But yes, no big deal.

My DS is a sophomore. So far I don't recall him ever having more than an hour or so in a night. It's usually less than that.

What school? He takes all 5 majors and gets good grades?

WSHS. I don't know the exact GPA, but based on the end of last year and this year's grades I know it's above 3.0 and under 3.5. He is taking Geometry, Spanish II, Chemistry, TechEd, World History II, English 10, PE.

Well he is on a below grade level track so that makes sense.

Haha. Where do you get that? What...because of Geometry rather than Algebra II? That's not below grade level. We are both teachers and don't feel he was ready for Algebra I in 8th grade. He's doing fine and he's on track for an Advanced diploma. We are quite happy with his courses and how he is doing.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am amazed that any parent would question that at the high school level there is work that needs to be completed by the student in solitude away from their class. That students need to spend time away from their teachers using their brains to apply the concepts they have learned in school, or simply just reading great literature and writing papers about it.

There is still time for "family time" in there if you schedule things properly. What there probably isn't time for is 3 hours of sitting in front of the TV together every night. I had 3-5 hours of homework when I was in high school, and my parents understood I'd be off in my room after dinner together. I'm not saying that should be the norm for every kid, but for the ones who are serious about school and academics, 2-3 hours of homework on average should really not be a big deal imho.

H
ALL kids in high school have 2-3hrs of homework. The ones that are serious about school and taking advanced classes have 4-5 hours and are popping ADD drugs to stay awake and focus because they are so sleep deprived. But yes, no big deal.

My DS is a sophomore. So far I don't recall him ever having more than an hour or so in a night. It's usually less than that.

What school? He takes all 5 majors and gets good grades?

WSHS. I don't know the exact GPA, but based on the end of last year and this year's grades I know it's above 3.0 and under 3.5. He is taking Geometry, Spanish II, Chemistry, TechEd, World History II, English 10, PE.

Well he is on a below grade level track so that makes sense.

Anonymous wrote:I think 2-3 hours a night is excessive. My DW and I were talking about this. We didn't even have that much in college.

I don't think I did more than 2-3 hrs in law school (not counting furious cram sessions before finals). And given that I was only in class 4 hrs a day, that might be less time altogether than is apparently expected at DMV highschools. And that was Ivy League and law review.

I think 2-3 hours a night is excessive. My DW and I were talking about this. We didn't even have that much in college.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am amazed that any parent would question that at the high school level there is work that needs to be completed by the student in solitude away from their class. That students need to spend time away from their teachers using their brains to apply the concepts they have learned in school, or simply just reading great literature and writing papers about it.

There is still time for "family time" in there if you schedule things properly. What there probably isn't time for is 3 hours of sitting in front of the TV together every night. I had 3-5 hours of homework when I was in high school, and my parents understood I'd be off in my room after dinner together. I'm not saying that should be the norm for every kid, but for the ones who are serious about school and academics, 2-3 hours of homework on average should really not be a big deal imho.

H
ALL kids in high school have 2-3hrs of homework. The ones that are serious about school and taking advanced classes have 4-5 hours and are popping ADD drugs to stay awake and focus because they are so sleep deprived. But yes, no big deal.

My DS is a sophomore. So far I don't recall him ever having more than an hour or so in a night. It's usually less than that.

What school? He takes all 5 majors and gets good grades?

WSHS. I don't know the exact GPA, but based on the end of last year and this year's grades I know it's above 3.0 and under 3.5. He is taking Geometry, Spanish II, Chemistry, TechEd, World History II, English 10, PE.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am amazed that any parent would question that at the high school level there is work that needs to be completed by the student in solitude away from their class. That students need to spend time away from their teachers using their brains to apply the concepts they have learned in school, or simply just reading great literature and writing papers about it.

There is still time for "family time" in there if you schedule things properly. What there probably isn't time for is 3 hours of sitting in front of the TV together every night. I had 3-5 hours of homework when I was in high school, and my parents understood I'd be off in my room after dinner together. I'm not saying that should be the norm for every kid, but for the ones who are serious about school and academics, 2-3 hours of homework on average should really not be a big deal imho.

H
ALL kids in high school have 2-3hrs of homework. The ones that are serious about school and taking advanced classes have 4-5 hours and are popping ADD drugs to stay awake and focus because they are so sleep deprived. But yes, no big deal.

My DS is a sophomore. So far I don't recall him ever having more than an hour or so in a night. It's usually less than that.

To me this isn't a good sign either. 2-3 hours of homework a night is reasonable. 45 minutes is not adequate for high school the same way 4-5 hours is not.

I would hate to have 2-3 hours of extra work when I get home from work. Kids are already at school for 7 hours, hopefully they are learning what they need to learn. 2 hours at most should be the limit. I like my kids being able to spend time with family and friends in the evenings. Reading this thread makes me realize I'll have to place limits on the number of AP classes my kids take.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am amazed that any parent would question that at the high school level there is work that needs to be completed by the student in solitude away from their class. That students need to spend time away from their teachers using their brains to apply the concepts they have learned in school, or simply just reading great literature and writing papers about it.

There is still time for "family time" in there if you schedule things properly. What there probably isn't time for is 3 hours of sitting in front of the TV together every night. I had 3-5 hours of homework when I was in high school, and my parents understood I'd be off in my room after dinner together. I'm not saying that should be the norm for every kid, but for the ones who are serious about school and academics, 2-3 hours of homework on average should really not be a big deal imho.

H
ALL kids in high school have 2-3hrs of homework. The ones that are serious about school and taking advanced classes have 4-5 hours and are popping ADD drugs to stay awake and focus because they are so sleep deprived. But yes, no big deal.

My DS is a sophomore. So far I don't recall him ever having more than an hour or so in a night. It's usually less than that.

To me this isn't a good sign either. 2-3 hours of homework a night is reasonable. 45 minutes is not adequate for high school the same way 4-5 hours is not.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am amazed that any parent would question that at the high school level there is work that needs to be completed by the student in solitude away from their class. That students need to spend time away from their teachers using their brains to apply the concepts they have learned in school, or simply just reading great literature and writing papers about it.

There is still time for "family time" in there if you schedule things properly. What there probably isn't time for is 3 hours of sitting in front of the TV together every night. I had 3-5 hours of homework when I was in high school, and my parents understood I'd be off in my room after dinner together. I'm not saying that should be the norm for every kid, but for the ones who are serious about school and academics, 2-3 hours of homework on average should really not be a big deal imho.

H
ALL kids in high school have 2-3hrs of homework. The ones that are serious about school and taking advanced classes have 4-5 hours and are popping ADD drugs to stay awake and focus because they are so sleep deprived. But yes, no big deal.

My DS is a sophomore. So far I don't recall him ever having more than an hour or so in a night. It's usually less than that.

What school? He takes all 5 majors and gets good grades?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am amazed that any parent would question that at the high school level there is work that needs to be completed by the student in solitude away from their class. That students need to spend time away from their teachers using their brains to apply the concepts they have learned in school, or simply just reading great literature and writing papers about it.

There is still time for "family time" in there if you schedule things properly. What there probably isn't time for is 3 hours of sitting in front of the TV together every night. I had 3-5 hours of homework when I was in high school, and my parents understood I'd be off in my room after dinner together. I'm not saying that should be the norm for every kid, but for the ones who are serious about school and academics, 2-3 hours of homework on average should really not be a big deal imho.

H
ALL kids in high school have 2-3hrs of homework. The ones that are serious about school and taking advanced classes have 4-5 hours and are popping ADD drugs to stay awake and focus because they are so sleep deprived. But yes, no big deal.

My DS is a sophomore. So far I don't recall him ever having more than an hour or so in a night. It's usually less than that.

Well hopefully playing soccer and using their brain for some form of work. But to play soccer at age 40 recreationally does not require hours of practice in high school.

Anonymous wrote:What I don't understand is why parents don't mind their child being on sports teams for up to 20 hours per week even in elementary but then gripe about 30-60 minutes of homework a night? Maybe you'd have more family time if junior wasn't playing travel soccer and baseball at the same time.

Yeah, this is the crazy part to me.

If you break it down, two to three hours of homework is roughly a half hour of homework per class you have the next day. So: a half hour of reading for English, a half hour of Algebra or Calculus math problems, a half hour of History reading, a half hour of Chemistry or Bio problems (or reading), a half hour of World Religions or Health or whatever (for me it was another English class). If you're a fast reader or worker (or, really, if you just don't care) you can get through the reading more quickly. If you had study hall or extra time at lunch, you could knock some of the easy stuff out of the way earlier. (I always used to try to do the work with the heaviest textbooks first, so I wouldn't have to carry them home. Maybe textbooks are all on the computer now!)

But if kids don't have a new Chapter to read before the next class happens, what exactly do people think the kids are going to talk about in class the next day? If it's a particularly difficult concept in Chem or something, sure, maybe they need another day to discuss it. But most kids need to do the reading in advance of the lecture in order to understand WTF is going on. And you certainly can't have a meaningful discussion of The Canterbury Tales if nobody in class has actually done the reading. And then there are days when you need to write a paper or study for a test or turn in your lab results or whatever. For the people who are advocating that 2-3 hours per night is too much homework, when do you think the kids are going to read their textbooks or the novels they're discussing in class? Or do you think they should be doing the homework in class, and never discussing the issues together? I don't understand why you think this is crazy, because this is what I did as a high school student and I suspect it's what you did, too.

I agree that I'm sure that some kids are putting too much pressure on themselves and are too stressed out, if they're doing 4-5 hours of homework every night and they want everything to be perfect. But 2-3 hours is not craziness. That's what you need to be prepared for classes the next day to have something to discuss together and have a meaningful conversation, or understand the lecture (unless you are brilliant and don't need to do the reading!). I just don't understand the whining about 2-3 hours, especially from the parents who go along with their kids' crazy time commitments to sports teams. Your kid probably won't be playing soccer when they're 40, but hopefully s/he'll still be using that brain of hers in some job somewhere that his/her academic interests led her to.

What I don't understand is why parents don't mind their child being on sports teams for up to 20 hours per week even in elementary but thengripe about 30-60 minutes of homework a night? Maybe you'd have more family time if junior wasn't playing travel soccer and baseball at the same time.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am amazed that any parent would question that at the high school level there is work that needs to be completed by the student in solitude away from their class. That students need to spend time away from their teachers using their brains to apply the concepts they have learned in school, or simply just reading great literature and writing papers about it.

There is still time for "family time" in there if you schedule things properly. What there probably isn't time for is 3 hours of sitting in front of the TV together every night. I had 3-5 hours of homework when I was in high school, and my parents understood I'd be off in my room after dinner together. I'm not saying that should be the norm for every kid, but for the ones who are serious about school and academics, 2-3 hours of homework on average should really not be a big deal imho.

H
ALL kids in high school have 2-3hrs of homework. The ones that are serious about school and taking advanced classes have 4-5 hours and are popping ADD drugs to stay awake and focus because they are so sleep deprived. But yes, no big deal.

I am sorry but this is an insane amount of work. I think even 2 hours is too much for older kids and my kids are still in middle.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well if studying at home for the inevitable spelling test is a waste of time, I'd love to know how you otherwise go about doing well on it.

I know of a way - spellcheck

Honestly, we push these kids to be read to or read on their own. Why don't we just push more actual writing in school instead of quick worksheets and boring spelling tests? Why? Because the teachers have too many kids and can't proofread and help each one. But either way, if kids as young as 4th grade are getting tablets or computers to use, why bother with spelling? Take it away like cursive.

That said, I am fine with some homework and that is mainly because it is the ONLY way I know what my kid is even doing in school. But I don't think anything more than 15min until 2nd grade and no more than 30min from 3-5th. Ironically high schoolers who play sports are in school until 6pm but yet they expect those kids to do 2-3hrs of homework a night. THAT is insane. That is where the push back needs to begin.

My 1st grader loves his spelling tests.