Anonymous
Post 03/10/2016 13:16     Subject: HW has no benefit in elementary school
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.
Anonymous
Post 03/10/2016 13:13     Subject: HW has no benefit in elementary school
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I still think 2-3 hours of homework per night for a high schooler is totally appropriate, even if you have sports. If sports are interfering with your academic schedule, that's a choice you're making and you can choose to take a lighter schedule if you want. For others, it's quite appropriate to need that much time to do your reading and your math and study for your Chem test or whatever, and it will take even longer when there's a paper in English due. And it should, if you're not some sort of wiz, because that's how kid's learn -- by putting in the time and doing the work.


You do realize that kids outside of school need to get to and from school, have after school clubs and outside interests, have chores, sometimes babysit younger siblings, even work PT. And (gasp) even have some form of a social life to read books, see friends, use their mind creatively, learn some street smarts, common sense etc... They also need 8-10hrs of sleep and most are sleep deprived BECAUSE of homework. A high schooler's entire 4 years is not to go to school for 6+ hours (not including the time it takes to get ready, get there and get home) and then work 3+ hours more when they get home. That is a longer day than what most adults put in and we need less sleep than them. And 2-3hrs a night of homework is the NORM so there isn't really a lesser track to take. You go to an IB or start adding AP classes than the average is 4 to 4.5hrs of homework. That is about double what a college student puts in daily and they are in classes for less time than high schoolers. Sorry, that is not appropriate in my world.


High school hours in our area are from 8:30 to 3 pm. There are 7 or 8 hours in there, and that leaves plenty of time for 2-3 hours of homework. If you have a sport, that's your choice. Moreover, most kids have a study hall or two during the day during which they can get half their homework done. It's high school, not play time.


Well my child's day is 7:40am to 2:40pm. The earliest a child with no other outside interests, clubs, activities, sports or life could start homework is at 4pm. Then there is also dinner, shower and chores which I would stay take about 1.5 to 2 hours total. So that along with the normal 3hrs of homework takes you to 8:30-9:00pm at the earliest (no breaks!) for a child with ZERO outside activities except to do homework and a few chores. My child has to be up at 6am to be at the bus at 6:55am. So if teens are required to get 8-10hrs of sleep, my child would have no other time commitment to exercise, talk to friends, read a book of her choosing, work a PT job, do any outside activity. You believe that all kids ages 14-18 should be doing this on a daily basis? And you believe that kids who want to participate in sports with daily practices for 2hrs should be punished with less sleep because of it?
Anonymous
Post 03/10/2016 08:57     Subject: HW has no benefit in elementary school
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.
Anonymous
Post 03/10/2016 08:00     Subject: HW has no benefit in elementary school
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I still think 2-3 hours of homework per night for a high schooler is totally appropriate, even if you have sports. If sports are interfering with your academic schedule, that's a choice you're making and you can choose to take a lighter schedule if you want. For others, it's quite appropriate to need that much time to do your reading and your math and study for your Chem test or whatever, and it will take even longer when there's a paper in English due. And it should, if you're not some sort of wiz, because that's how kid's learn -- by putting in the time and doing the work.


You do realize that kids outside of school need to get to and from school, have after school clubs and outside interests, have chores, sometimes babysit younger siblings, even work PT. And (gasp) even have some form of a social life to read books, see friends, use their mind creatively, learn some street smarts, common sense etc... They also need 8-10hrs of sleep and most are sleep deprived BECAUSE of homework. A high schooler's entire 4 years is not to go to school for 6+ hours (not including the time it takes to get ready, get there and get home) and then work 3+ hours more when they get home. That is a longer day than what most adults put in and we need less sleep than them. And 2-3hrs a night of homework is the NORM so there isn't really a lesser track to take. You go to an IB or start adding AP classes than the average is 4 to 4.5hrs of homework. That is about double what a college student puts in daily and they are in classes for less time than high schoolers. Sorry, that is not appropriate in my world.


High school hours in our area are from 8:30 to 3 pm. There are 7 or 8 hours in there, and that leaves plenty of time for 2-3 hours of homework. If you have a sport, that's your choice. Moreover, most kids have a study hall or two during the day during which they can get half their homework done. It's high school, not play time.


I disagree with the statement above. Some kids may have study hall, but most kids?
And, I still am amazed that many parents do not care that schools are dictating how family time is spent.
I would bet that if your employer insisted that you do 2-3 hours of work at home each night, you would be looking for another employer or at least bitching about it on DCUM. Now, if you choose to do that work - that is another story.
Anonymous
Post 03/10/2016 07:19     Subject: HW has no benefit in elementary school
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I still think 2-3 hours of homework per night for a high schooler is totally appropriate, even if you have sports. If sports are interfering with your academic schedule, that's a choice you're making and you can choose to take a lighter schedule if you want. For others, it's quite appropriate to need that much time to do your reading and your math and study for your Chem test or whatever, and it will take even longer when there's a paper in English due. And it should, if you're not some sort of wiz, because that's how kid's learn -- by putting in the time and doing the work.


You do realize that kids outside of school need to get to and from school, have after school clubs and outside interests, have chores, sometimes babysit younger siblings, even work PT. And (gasp) even have some form of a social life to read books, see friends, use their mind creatively, learn some street smarts, common sense etc... They also need 8-10hrs of sleep and most are sleep deprived BECAUSE of homework. A high schooler's entire 4 years is not to go to school for 6+ hours (not including the time it takes to get ready, get there and get home) and then work 3+ hours more when they get home. That is a longer day than what most adults put in and we need less sleep than them. And 2-3hrs a night of homework is the NORM so there isn't really a lesser track to take. You go to an IB or start adding AP classes than the average is 4 to 4.5hrs of homework. That is about double what a college student puts in daily and they are in classes for less time than high schoolers. Sorry, that is not appropriate in my world.


High school hours in our area are from 8:30 to 3 pm. There are 7 or 8 hours in there, and that leaves plenty of time for 2-3 hours of homework. If you have a sport, that's your choice. Moreover, most kids have a study hall or two during the day during which they can get half their homework done. It's high school, not play time.
Anonymous
Post 03/09/2016 17:40     Subject: HW has no benefit in elementary school
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I still think 2-3 hours of homework per night for a high schooler is totally appropriate, even if you have sports. If sports are interfering with your academic schedule, that's a choice you're making and you can choose to take a lighter schedule if you want. For others, it's quite appropriate to need that much time to do your reading and your math and study for your Chem test or whatever, and it will take even longer when there's a paper in English due. And it should, if you're not some sort of wiz, because that's how kid's learn -- by putting in the time and doing the work.


You do realize that kids outside of school need to get to and from school, have after school clubs and outside interests, have chores, sometimes babysit younger siblings, even work PT. And (gasp) even have some form of a social life to read books, see friends, use their mind creatively, learn some street smarts, common sense etc... They also need 8-10hrs of sleep and most are sleep deprived BECAUSE of homework. A high schooler's entire 4 years is not to go to school for 6+ hours (not including the time it takes to get ready, get there and get home) and then work 3+ hours more when they get home. That is a longer day than what most adults put in and we need less sleep than them. And 2-3hrs a night of homework is the NORM so there isn't really a lesser track to take. You go to an IB or start adding AP classes than the average is 4 to 4.5hrs of homework. That is about double what a college student puts in daily and they are in classes for less time than high schoolers. Sorry, that is not appropriate in my world.


This is exactly why some parents send their kids to boarding schools. There is zero commute, little time spent on extraneous grooming and deciding on outfits (more so at single sex), and lights out making it hard to get less than 8 to 9 hours of sleep. Since you are with peers all day and evening there is also a lot of socialization. No TV or video games. That leaves plenty of time for 3 to 4 hours of homework and sports/activities.
Anonymous
Post 03/09/2016 15:22     Subject: Re:HW has no benefit in elementary school
I don't worry about homework for lower elementary. If it gets done great, if not, no big deal. If it's busy work below my child's level, it doesn't get done because my kid's time would be better spent on creative play or running around. Grades don't matter, so if you don't like the homework, don't do it.
Anonymous
Post 03/09/2016 13:03     Subject: HW has no benefit in elementary school
Anonymous wrote:I still think 2-3 hours of homework per night for a high schooler is totally appropriate, even if you have sports. If sports are interfering with your academic schedule, that's a choice you're making and you can choose to take a lighter schedule if you want. For others, it's quite appropriate to need that much time to do your reading and your math and study for your Chem test or whatever, and it will take even longer when there's a paper in English due. And it should, if you're not some sort of wiz, because that's how kid's learn -- by putting in the time and doing the work.


You do realize that kids outside of school need to get to and from school, have after school clubs and outside interests, have chores, sometimes babysit younger siblings, even work PT. And (gasp) even have some form of a social life to read books, see friends, use their mind creatively, learn some street smarts, common sense etc... They also need 8-10hrs of sleep and most are sleep deprived BECAUSE of homework. A high schooler's entire 4 years is not to go to school for 6+ hours (not including the time it takes to get ready, get there and get home) and then work 3+ hours more when they get home. That is a longer day than what most adults put in and we need less sleep than them. And 2-3hrs a night of homework is the NORM so there isn't really a lesser track to take. You go to an IB or start adding AP classes than the average is 4 to 4.5hrs of homework. That is about double what a college student puts in daily and they are in classes for less time than high schoolers. Sorry, that is not appropriate in my world.
Anonymous
Post 03/09/2016 12:50     Subject: HW has no benefit in elementary school
I still think 2-3 hours of homework per night for a high schooler is totally appropriate, even if you have sports. If sports are interfering with your academic schedule, that's a choice you're making and you can choose to take a lighter schedule if you want. For others, it's quite appropriate to need that much time to do your reading and your math and study for your Chem test or whatever, and it will take even longer when there's a paper in English due. And it should, if you're not some sort of wiz, because that's how kid's learn -- by putting in the time and doing the work.
Anonymous
Post 03/09/2016 12:45     Subject: HW has no benefit in elementary school
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.
Anonymous
Post 03/09/2016 00:07     Subject: HW has no benefit in elementary school
Anonymous wrote:I disagree. Homework has some value, one of which is preparing the expectation to do homework. Also, especially in math it does help reinforce the concepts taught in class.

Homework is not "wrecking" schools -- such nonsense and hyperbole. I swear parents today want to coddle kids with their demands for four/five recess and less pressure. Good Lord, expect more from your children. They are capable and want to learn.


This. You get a TON of homework in middle school these days. Stop coddling your kid.
Anonymous
Post 03/08/2016 23:26     Subject: Re:HW has no benefit in elementary school
Pre-K and even K are not mandated elementary grades. When people talk about changing elementary homework policies they should be referring to the mandatory grades which are either 1-5 or 1-6. If you want to change pre-k or k go right ahead, but these grades are not mandated.
Anonymous
Post 03/08/2016 22:40     Subject: HW has no benefit in elementary school
Once my district went to a policy in which homework does not count towards the academic grade, I've seen the amount of hw drop.
Anonymous
Post 03/08/2016 22:34     Subject: HW has no benefit in elementary school
Anonymous wrote:
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.


Spelling tests work about as well as homework when you look at the research. They certainly don't need to be inevitable and many schools don't have them.



Really? which schools? My two kids have collectively been to total of 10 schools between them (we move a lot) and I haven't come across a single one that does not have spelling tests from 1st grade onwards.

I know Waldorf leaves it later - but they do have them.


Two teacher household here. Both of us elementary. Neither school has spelling tests.
Anonymous
Post 03/08/2016 09:49     Subject: HW has no benefit in elementary school
Amen to above post