The Homework Crunch

     School has been back in session for a little over a week.  So by now, your kids are probably settling back into the routine.  But have you noticed how much homework students have lately?  Research was done at the University of Michigan.  And the numbers show a 50 percent increase in the amount of homework between the years 1981 and 1997.  Some say the rise began with "A Nation At Risk," a 1983 report put out by the Department of Education that claimed American school children were falling behind their peers in other countries.  But have things gone overboard when some students as young as eight have two hours worth of homework?  Fears about our children being able to compete in a global community, more focus on trying to get test scores up, and the need to get into the best colleges... all these factors have led to added pressures on our children to achieve.  What do you think?  Do your children get too much homework? Not enough homework?  Or just the right amount?  While there's evidence that homework does improve academic performance, at least in the junior high and high school years, its true value may be more subtle.  It encourages good study habits and acclimates students to self-directed work-- but only when it's not so oppressive that it turns them off school altogether.  What do you think?

Comments

[Judah]

Yes, I think the kid's do have way too much homework. I can see the older children having Lot's of homework because of their age and them being able to handle a larger amount of responsibility. However, I think that the amount that some of our younger students are having is way too much. I think the teacher's should take into account that these kid's get up early in the morning come home sometimes as late as 5pm in the evening. When do these children get to be children? I think it's kinda overwhelming to some children.

[judy]

What do you mean to much homework? They need homework to keep their butts out of trouble. I had a ton of homework .. but if it's taking away from extracurricular activities .. then maybe there should be an exception.

[jw]

So far the homework is not bad.We have been taking this time to study.Some times homework was so heavy that study time was limited.The two things I hope teachers keepin mind is we also need study time and please be light on wednesday as this is a Church night.

[Pete]

When I was a kid I believed that three things caused stress.. Kids, bad soap opera days (mom) and bringing your work home with you.. I know all three caused stress at my house.. So two things come to mind, if not leaving your work at work causes stress then the same logic must apply to homework.. Also if you remove your uniform and carry a cell phone will it still be school work?? After all it is a school function.. Yes kids have to much homework, if extra work is necessary we get overtime pay.. They should be compensated as well... Thanks Pete

[Ann]

No, I don't think that children are overloaded with homework. Parents continually put pressure on the school board and teachers to educate their children and to prepare them for their future and to make them productive citizens and adults. Children are involved in so many extracurricular activities that homework is interfering with those activities. I feel that extracurriculars aid in making children "well rounded" but to compete in the real world, they need to work a little harder on academics.

[Bob]

what do we pay teachers for? to pass out work for kids to to at home? how can a parent help with homework when they are unable to explain the problems. I think homework is just another way teachers get out of doing their job then blaming others for kids low test scores.
Bob

[Master Sgt. Otis T. Bilbo]

As a Correctional Officer for the past ten years and a parent, I do not believe that kids these days have to much homework. Mainly due to the resources that is available for their use. With computers in schools and in most homes, the work load for school work may have increase but the resouces have been made more available to them. If we compare the times we should also compare the technology that was\is available.

[cindy]

my son is in the 9th. grade and hasn't had any homework since school started.when i went to school we had homework the first day of school.

[Greg]

As a teacher we are REQUIRED to give a light amount of homework at least three nights a week. The total per subject should be no more than 30 minutes. Math and ELA tend to give much more than science and social studies so therefore most students do not get as much as you and I did in school.

The down side of this is that most students don't do the work and their grades drop. The parents, like those above, then want to know why their child isn't passing. I have the students for less than an hour a day. I can't teach everything in that short amount of time.

Learning is a 24/7 job.

[ELIZABETH]

I do believe that the homework the children have is entirely too much!! The state circuilum has caused this problem for the most part. The teacher have to cover so much stuff, that they have no choice, but to send it home. Our children won't become smarter with more homework. They will become smarter with good quality teachers, challenging clases and parents who see to it that the kids are at school to learn. I have see our own school spend from January til March "practicing" for the upcomming testing. We do great as a school on those test. But my question is, do we really know the stuff or did we just learn how to "test" and make our school look good for the state officials. We are a working farm family and when our five kids come home from school they need a break from school. We all have chores to accomplish before sun down and the kids need some time to have fun with each other and be kids. All of this home work takes away from our family time and we really dislike it!!! I believe we need to get back to the "basics" of a lot of things in school and life.This, i believe, lays the strong foundation that everythings else builds on. Our children are over stimulated.

[Lucretia]

I do not think the kids have too much homework. Us parents want our children to be successful and educated so we need to do our best to support our children and the teachers who are trying to educate them. I just do not think kids should have homework on weekends because just like working adults live for the weekend off, the kids do too.

[Amie]

I think they give kids WAY TOO MUCH homework. They don't have time for anything else. They go to school for 7 hours then come home and do homework for 1 - 2 hours. And people wonder why so many kids drop out of school. They get burned out. It don't take a rocket scientist to figure that out. I think 30 minutes is more than enough. I didn't sign up for home schooling for a reason.

[Melva]

Last night was a prime example of too much. After my 9th grader finished 5 full written pages of one subject he still had to read 15 pages in Literaturre and answer 4 pages of questions on the story. At 10:30 he was still at it and bedtime is 10:00. Teachers give work without knowing how much another has given. I believe in homework and feel as though it's necessary but when several teachers give large assignments at one time it's difficult to complete in a timely manner.

[Amanda]

My daughter is in the 3 rd grade.. and i am truely amazed at how heavy her booksack is.. and there are afternoons when she has gymnastics or softball and time is crunched and we have to hurry.. I feel they are at school nearly 8 hrs already why give them 3 r 4 hrs of homework... i believe they should have homework but i a high school graduate can't figure out how to explain somethings to her in a way that she can comprehend. My child is in resource and struggles with dislexia. She comes home and says I have math homework but I wasen't in my regular class so i dont know exactly what i am suppose to be doing.. I realize teachers don't get paid a lot but if a child has learning difficulties why stress them out giving them work they can't do.. it has taken me years to get my child help in the school system. I think they are leaving my child behind and in the dark.. what happen to "no child left behind"? It breaks my heart to watch her struggle and try.. my 3 rd grader spends as much time doing homework as the middle school kids in the neighborhood if not longer... these children need to have time to get out and play. they shouldnt have to spend 2-5 hrs after they get home doing homework.. spending time with your children while they do homework is not spending quality time with them.. hope lakecharles

[chastity]

My daughter is now in the 4th grade and I can tell you that we both dred when the school year starts because of the overwhelming amount of homework. She is at school all day and when she gets home she is tired and wants to rest or even--oh my gosh, PLAY!! The abundance of homework is not helping her to learn the material because by that time of the afternoon her brain has shut down. She does not care anymore about right or wrong answers it is just about getting it done so that she doesnt get into trouble. And also, she has had homework every Friday since the second grade! Now come on, seriously, what is this going to accomplish? I can see high school or jr. high having to study on the weekends but elementary? How ridiculous.

[Chris]

Having an older child of 22 and twins that are seniors, I believe that "some" of our teachers are not dedicated in teaching. therefore they have no choice but to send work home with their students. But what needs to be realized is that a student may have 6 or 7 classes and if 4 teachers {thats avg.} sends your child home with work at the suggested 30 minutes minimum. Your child will have 2 hours of homework, provided he/she understands it. Keep in mind that the morjority of those students ride the bus to and from school they are up at 6:00am or before and catch the bus by or before 7:00am and some may not get home until 4:30/5:00 in the evening. Then you have 2 or more hours of homework to get done if they understand it. In the past I have had my children stuggle with a subject for at least an hour. Just one subject.Oh did I forget its usually for a homework grade. I have stuggled with this along with many many parents for years. Can you imagine an 11*18 year old with this much on their minds. Don't forget those students who have to work. Re-educate our teachers. Make them accountable. Have them test yearly like our students do to see if they are knowlegeable and or have the capabilties to teach our children, if they past the testing then reward them by a raise. Not an across the board raise. I believe our teachers would be more dedicated and they would try harder if they had an incentive that they had no where to go but up in pay by figuring out how to utilize there class time better. Most jobs require knowledge of a position and ways to work through them. Our children deserve better.

[Dymphna]

I just wrote my daughter's teacher a letter yesterday august 23 2006. Two of my children are struggling with attention deficit disorder and the teachers don't give a ++++. They have no compassion for children with disorders or someone who is to shy to ask the teacher for help. They need more programs for children to give them some comfidence in themselves . I quit school in the eighth grade .I didnt know what was wrong with me .I always struggled in school. I was two years behind because I could'nt keep my attention on what was going on but back then no one new about ADD . So anyway it very hard for me to help my children when I have a learning disorder and did not finish school.It breaks my heart to see them going through this because I really hated my self in school.

[Thomas Payne]

Pheww ! No spell check, no grammar check, easy to see why homework is not favored by the PREVIOUS. Sad to read the laments of the above, it is amazing that people like myself ever graduated from college w/o a calculator, computer , cell phone, jam-box, boom-box, I-pod, back pack, cokes, candy, potato chips, American Idol, Survivor, Paris Hilton, Tom Cruise. Wait a minute, we had hours of homework then as well, wars, economic crises, emotional distress, segregation , intergration and we still survived and did our homework. Reading , Writing and Arithmetic, ( now called Math, I think ), somehow we baby boomers survived, some became doctors, lawyers, some became bums, what do you want yours to become ?

[Just my thoughts]

I think homework in Kindergarten is outrageous. However, I do feel that homework is necessary. Children have a small attention span and this allows them to stimulate and reinterate what they have learned for that day or week to better prepare themselves for there normal tests. I know many on here do not agree with me. I have a child in elementary and one in high school. Each child is different. I can tell you from MY experience when that child is complaining and fussing about that paper or project that is due the next day---that child knew many days in advance and just waited until the last minute to complete it. I personally had no sympathy for my child when he did things that way....bedtime is still the same and therefore if he didnt complete it before bedtime---Oh well sorry, he should have managed his time better. After a few bad grades and then punishment for those bad grades at home he has learned not to wait until the last minute---he is learning to make the correct choices. Sorry but we as parents will not be there to look over their shoulders when they are in college and become nothing more than a number to a professor. Remember they are taught at a much faster pace in college, dont go to school everyday and have lots of homework and projects then. This younger years are preparing them for those times. They have to be taught how to manage their time, accept responsibility for their choices and learn self discipline. I personally do not allow my children to participate in ALL extracurricular activities. Yes they do participate but it is limited. Many parents want their children in all sports, cheerleading, etc but those things require ALOT more time than homework. These kids want to do well in everything so mommy and daddy will be happy with them....but to listen to many of these kids they do not want to be in everything....it stresses them. Again this is just MY opinion!

[Just my thoughts]

I would also like to add that when parents complain and speak negatively about the teachers and school in front of the children....they do hear and take that to school with them. They do repeat what parents say and the teachers hear what you think. The children also begin to treat the teacher and school with less respect. This can cause some of the friction between teachers and parents. Teachers are human too. They hear of parents belittling them to their child....then want to go to the teacher for help with their child....but the teacher already has heard what the parent thinks about them and some will say "why should I go the extra mile for little johnny or susie when I (the teacher) am not respected." Remember in all of this it is the child that suffers....

[Pete]

While I do think kids are having to much homework I also know that an education is a valuable thing.. When you read the section I copied and pasted from the Office of Motor Vehicles you will see a good reason to protect your student status.. Between a 16 year olds pre registration for the draft and the information available through the student directory. You kids stay in school.. Maybe that's why the uniform code, to get you prepared for your military future.. The draft threat is very real. Fighting terrorists is great, but it should not lead YOUR kids to Iraq.. And above all tear up or delete any mail from the military.. It's not worth your life.. Stay in school and become a professional student at least until the next Presidential election.. thanks and peace... Pete
Q. Can I register for the Military Selective Service at the local Office of Motor Vehicles?

A. United States male citizens or immigrants who are eighteen years of age or older, but less than twenty-six years of age, shall be registered for the Military Selective Service when applying to receive or renew a learner's permit, driver's license, commercial driver's license, or identification card. Any US male citizen or immigrant who is 15 years of age, but less than 18 years of age, shall provide personal information for registration with the Selective Service. Upon the applicant attaining eighteen years of age, the applicant shall automatically be registered with Selective Service.

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