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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think that the homework is kind of pointless?

13 replies

extremepie · 03/05/2014 22:44

Ds is in yr2 and has his reading, spelling & maths homeworks to do daily/weekly. No objection to this in the slightest.

What I find kind of annoying though is that every week ds does his homework, takes it into school and then seems to return with it in his book bag - not 'marked', no comments written on it, nothing, just exactly the same as it went in.

I don't want to seem ott as I'm not militant with his homework but I kinda feel like part of the point of doing the homework is to check that they understand what they have been taught and ask them to practise, so what is the point if it is not checked and marked? How does he know he's gotten the answers right? Doesn't seem to make any sense to me!

Aibu?

OP posts:
WorraLiberty · 03/05/2014 22:50

YANBU at all

I think having your homework ignored after you've made the effort to do it and hand it in, is demoralising.

If there's no time to mark it, they shouldn't set it.

windchime · 03/05/2014 23:00

This is one of my greatest bugbears. It doesn't get any better by Yr8 tbh. We hear so much about teachers marking work in their own time. Not at our schools, unfortunately.

DogCalledRudis · 03/05/2014 23:33

YABU. The point of homework is not to be checked, but to practice and learn to study independently.

Nocomet · 03/05/2014 23:44

YANBU!

I did a Y7 Geog project and never got my mark.

Ok it was DD2's project, but sometimes it simply isn't worth the fight to get a bright, stubborn, craft allergic child to do something they are determined to learn nothing from.

echt · 03/05/2014 23:50

Drop the teacher a line. Ask what the homework is for. If, as Dog suggests, it is practising skills and developing independent study, then the teacher will say so. At which point you ask how the teacher is assessing the acquisition of those skills. And can you see the evidence of assessed work.

I may be missing something, but if I set work for my students to do, they need to know how well they've done, and so do I, so can plan my lessons to support their progress.

Original poster
extremepie · 03/05/2014 23:54

I get that Dog but surely the homework has to be checked and marked so the student knows whether they've got the answers right? There's no point in learning to study independently if they don't do it correctly is there? If ds did 4 hours of homework every night and still didn't get any of the answers right, clearly something isn't working and isn't it the teacher's job to check that? Similarly the point of practise is to improve but how can you if you don't know how well you are doing?

What really annoys me is the df's teacher has made a big deal of me getting ds to do the homework in the first place, things did slip a bit admittedly after ExH left as we were all under a lot of stress and trying to move house so now we are both making the effort to actually do the homework and he doesn't even bother to check it!

OP posts:
Original poster
extremepie · 03/05/2014 23:56

Exactly echt, do want to have a word with the teacher just not sure how he will respond to a perceived criticism :/

OP posts:
echt · 04/05/2014 00:04

Don't worry about his feelings. He's made a fuss about the work being done and you're checking up. I'd put it in writing if you're a bit nervous about fronting him, and don't forget to say you don't want this discussed with DS. Sorry to say, some teachers do this.

There will either be a good reason, though I doubt it, or he'll shit himself and the books will be miraculously marked up to date.

Teachers who don't mark piss me off royally.

juniper44 · 04/05/2014 01:57

I hate homework, but I still mark it. I think it's completely pointless.

softlysoftly · 04/05/2014 02:30

YANBU

write "arsebiscuits" across the next lot and see if they notice.

bragmatic · 04/05/2014 04:21

Homework at that age is pointless. They don't need to learn to study at 7 years old, they just don't.

CrohnicallyHungry · 04/05/2014 07:58

Is DS actually handing the work in?

I work with yr1 children and we ask the children to put their homework in a tray to be marked. We don't go through book bags or ask children that haven't yet handed it in, because not all children will do the homework, and in yr1/2 that's not the child's fault so why should they be singled out or embarrassed by it?

Original poster
extremepie · 04/05/2014 09:31

I think he is Hungry, the maths homework from last week had been done but I kept forgetting to put it in his book bag and teacher reminded me about it. Next day at pick up he thanked me for bringing it in so I'm guessing he has seen it at least :/

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