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Homework banned? How dare they!
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I ran across this article a few moments ago: NYC School Bans Homework, Urges Kids to Play Instead.
The first sentence of the article reads, “Parents at a New York City elementary school are outraged by a decision to eliminate homework assignments and instead urge kids to play, DNAinfo.com reported.”
Outraged? Really?? When my two older stepsons were in elementary school, I would have done the happy dance if they came home with a letter announcing no more homework! Less fuss for me, less frustration for them….
The principal’s letter stated in part, “the negative effects of homework have been well established,” Finally, someone in public education has connected a few of the dots!
What I found bemusing is this statement in the article: “Some parents have threatened to pull their students from the school over the new homework policy.”
O….kay….are they planning to homeschool them? If so, will they make them walk out the door at the end of the day and walk back in with a few “homework” papers to complete???
You made me smile again, Sue!
The homework was a huge frustration to me when my kids were in public school. I would’ve danced that happy dance right alongside you!
I am saddened that parents can’t/don’t/won’t choose to see the benefits to this idea.
I think the parents are probably worried about their kids’ future academic success. But kudos to the principal for understanding that more and more academics don’t mean more long term success. For my own kids I would argue that whileI would love for them to be successful that is not the primary goal anyway. I don’t know if they have school choice but there are always private schools.
Nebby
So they’re doing away with homework in NY, while in PA, they’re in the process of introducing a bill to “encourage” 3- and 4- year olds to go to preK school. The bill states that at first the school days would be half-days….then it will change to full days, then go year-round. This was in our newspaper.
Got my blood going at breakfast yesterday!
And all this after a letter to the editor in Monday’s paper from a mom who closed her letter saying, “Where in ____ County can my daughter get a quality education?”
The mom’s gripe was that in the “advanced” language course, the students were not allowed to read the full-length Scarlet Letter. They had to read the comic book version of the novel……and then, not all of that! So the mom was complaining.
I wanted to write a letter, but wisely (probably) I just ranted to my husband instead. I know that homeschooling isn’t for everyone – but regardless of whether a parent home-educates or not, it is the parent’s responsibility to see to it that their children are educated in fitting manner. Our county has several private schools, LOTS of homeschoolers, and decent public schools. I guess the gist of my rant is that that mom should take her daughter’s education into her own hands and DO something! (Whether that’s after-school her, home-school her or switch schools.)
I think most parents don’t even realize they have choices; public schools are so ingrained in our minds. People might consider private schools but many don’t have the money. I think there are still many to whom homeschooling doesn’t even come to mind. They are also brainwashed into thinking that one needs a degree in education to teach kids and that it is the local government’s responsibility.
I would slso also be upset if my kid were given the comic book version of Scarlet Letter. Where are the real books??
Nebby
I think you’re right Nebby. One thing homeschooling has done for me is that it has given me a chance to think “outside the box” on all sorts of issues – schooling, medical care, cultural entertainment, household management, etc.
Homework is fine, as long as it’s not busy-work. Having time to play is fine, as long as it’s true play and not vegetating in front of a screen.
We had a family over for dinner a few Sundays ago. The two children are dropped off for Sunday School and Wed. night clubs. They are very faithful in their attendance. So, my daughter wanted to get to know the girl better. I suggested we have them for dinner. What a surprise to find out that we couldn’t talk about anything!
The children didn’t want to play outside. Didn’t want to play card games (no Uno, no Dutch Blitz). Didn’t want to play board games. Didn’t want to color (okay, the kids are 9 and 11 years old and one’s a boy, coloring was probably a stretch). What was left? the computer. My daughter (in desperation to find something they wanted to do) asked if they could play on the computer – I did say yes.
That lasted 20 minutes. The boy was wandering around our house (on a farm, with animals outside, with machinery to watch) and complained that there was nothing to do here.
I was so flabbergasted that I couldn’t get over it! I still am not over it!
The mom was the same way – she doesn’t like to cook (they eat all their meals boxed – the kids heat up what they want when they want!!!); she doesn’t read (has 8 years worth of Parenting magazines piled up – unopened); she doesn’t preserve food; she has no hobbies, etc.
It was a LONG 4 hours til their ride came to pick them up. In talking with the mother (what little we could converse) I found out that the children come home from school, do homework, and then either watch TV or play on their own laptops…….
All I can say is too much screen time makes for extremely DULL company!!! I am still not over it! I can’t believe it! How do people live with themselves?
And a bigger question: How am I, as a Christian, to befriend someone with whom I have NOTHING in common? I feel like I tried. And I failed – I don’t think the other mom was very helpful, either (she wasn’t real good at “throwing the ball” back to me. I tried to compensate for it, but that gets tiring after a bit.) I understand that as the world gets farther away from Biblical foundations, there won’t be too much in common. But, really, do I start watching TV so I have something to talk about to people who ONLY watch TV???
I’m sorry to rant! (*L* I guess I’m still not over it! *L*) But my guess is that teachers in NY are trying to give their students time to develop interests (which will make them interesting people!) and teachers in PA are trying to get kids in school earlier so that they won’t be turned into boring people by parents who park them in front of a screen.
Karen, what a rough experience! I can see how that would discourage you from inviting people over. I find that most people will talk about themselves if you ask questions. Then you can get to know them better and perhaps find some commonalities. Questions about where they grew up, or their families, etc. It is difficult if the other is particularly shy. Sometimes it helps if there is another person too (sort of like a play date maybe).
Back to the original topic of no HW – Some friends of ours had their daughter in a charter school a few years ago that kept longer school hours 4 days per week and no HW. The family did not stay at the school for several reasons, mostly the lack of consistency, honesty, and some concern about safety. In addition to that, the mother said to me on more than one occasion that it was hard to know how to help her child academically when she didn’t bring anything home to work on. In other words, the HW kept the parents abreast of what the child was learning and how the child was handling the learning. Just another perspective. I’m all for playing!
I agree that many parents doubt their ability to homeschool their child. I hear many parents say they could not teach their child anything, and often refer to the nightly HW battle as proof that they could “never” homeschool.
(note: I am a former public school teacher and private school teacher. Yes, I assigned HW. It was expected. The general rule at both schools I taught was no more than 10 minutes per grade level with a maximum of 1 hour. I think it was reasonable, especially if part of the HW assignment was reading with your child, as was usually the case in the early elementary years. Lots has changed since I came home 10 years ago…)
The episode of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood that aired on our PBS station recently was about music and play, from 1985. So the idea is not new. In this episode, Mister Rogers stated the importance of play in childhood, and to be really good at it – all kinds of play. It is too bad his reruns aren’t still on at primetime daily for all children to watch. Instead, they show it once a week at about 5 am on the weekends when everyone is sleeping. However, our children have watched it on Amazon Prime streaming. I see it differently now as a parent than I did as a child and I have a new appreciation for his wisdom in working so well with children. And he did not watch tv. I would say he was a VERY interesting person.
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