Thursday, June 16, 2011

Homework Revolt!

From the NYTimes, In Homework Revolt, More School Districts Cutting Back.

8 comments:

  1. I had my hopes up until I got to the part about the school system reducing homework DOWN to the 10 minute/grade/day rule.

    Anecdotally, however, I am sensing increasing resistance to how schools are run among the parents I talk to. It may just be the crowd I hang out with, but it seems like a start. Now I just need to get them to start actually doing something about it.

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  2. Ya know, the problem isn't just necessarily homework. It's teachers giving the work that wasn't completed in class to the parents to get done each night. Which means the special-needs kids get bogged down with no family time at all and the smartie-pants kids can crib their homework during class time and have NOTHING to do at home most days. WHY can't we just admit some of our kids are on a different track and drop it? We only burn out the parents around ohhh fourth grade or so.

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  3. PsychMom adds:

    Does anyone get that means an hour of homework per night in Grade 6? These are 11 and 12 year olds. In so many other contexts an 11 year old is viewed as a child, wholly unresponsible and precious. 11 year olds are technically not allowed to be left alone unsupervised. If an 11 year old wanted to sail around the globe alone, a court case would ensue. 11 year olds can't work legally. 11 year olds who die in accidents or who are kidnapped (horrible thought, I know) are ONLY 11 years old. But when it comes to homework, 5 extra hours of school work per week is OK.

    I don't know where I read it, but it was an anecdote about Harris Cooper and how his "10 minutes per grade" idea came about. It's a completely arbitrary decision that got tossed out one day during a discussion of some of the homework data ..that 10 minutes per grade "seemed" to be an OK length of time for homework. It became gospel. And now we can't shake it.

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  4. Thanks FedUpMom...I knew it was something like that.

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  5. @Happy Elf Mom - at least in my district, the smart kids are being buried in homework (because more work = more rigor, you know :)). It seems to be the average kids I see playing out in the neighborhood all afternoon and evening.

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  6. PsychMom, I, too, read something about how Harris Cooper came up with the 10 minute thing. I think he heard it from a teacher he chatted with somewhere, then latched onto it and it turned into Gospel

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  7. not to worry... public schools are on the austerity for non millionaires chopping block like everything else in the public sector. They will be closed and then replaced by the "charter" for profit"schools"industry.

    This happening in Detroit right now....The private company who will get the kids was recently started up and is owned by a well connected Detroit politico.....this is coming soonto a state near you.

    Please don't fool yourself into thinking that this turn of events will bring you a greater say in how your child's "school" is run or less city /state taxes. Thinking that is missing the point. imo

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