Why has primary homework become a race to the bottom?

[tokyogirl]

I've noticed this over a couple of years now.... to be seen to be doing any kind of homework in primary school is a literal race to the bottom.

"Oh we don't do that"
"I never fill in the reading chart"
"We don't bother"
"Can't be bothered to do all those spellings"

In DC school completed reading charts and such like are rewarded yearly with certificate and prizes, why wouldn't you want your child to be rewarded and have a confidence boost?

Any hint of actually doing homework seems to be met with an eye roll or smirk?!

Because there are many parents who are unbelievably pushy and competitive and their way of disguising it is by pretending they are too cool for school.

the British are an insecure bunch. They feel someone else's success is their failure. You see it everywhere in our society.

I'm not sure if it's due to the old class system or if it's some overhang from some part of history but we don't like the idea of "someone getting above their station".

The media are quick to take down anyone too big for their boots.

On the other hand the press are also very supportive of the underdog.

It's like we try to self-regulate ourselves to stay in the middle somewhere and not rock the boat.

If we're all somewhere in the middle we can all feel mediocrely good.

@Magentamules LOL the great pretenders. Yes the ones who say they do nothing and then their kids keep getting 100%.

#bigfatliars

I've known a few of those. Highly irritating.

I think it's to fit in with this weird British "putting yourselves down" thing. On here, if you post about any sort of achievement, you get accused of "humble bragging". It's so weird and kind of like a "know your place" attitude

So despite the evidence that primary age homework doesn't affect results, despite our children having poorer mental health than most other countries, if you dont' do homework its a 'humble brag', not following the evidence. Right.....

I don't think my DD (5) sees it as work. She likes the engagement, showing off what she knows or learning something new. Maybe that'll change in later years but it doesn't seem like a chore. We don't discuss it with the other parents or treat it as optional even though it may be, just do it over breakfast or dinner.

And as for china, yes the human rights are shitty - but everything else about the country is pretty successful. 2nd largest economy in the world, beat covid in 5 months unlike us lot still dithering around, largest global exporter of goods, just check where your washing machine was made or that jumper you're wearing, more billionaires than any other country

Ok, in China the successful middle classes are the exception - it is not like our large middle class. Vast amounts of the population are extremely poor. The billionaires they have are because of corruption - if you are linked to the communist party you will do well. A bit like all the Russian billionaires are rich because they stole all the state assets, not cos they have a brilliant education system and wonderful socially mobile society.

They beat covid because they have no human rights. Of course, they also allowed covid to spread in the first place because they have no human rights and free speech and the doctor who realised there was a problem was forced to recant to save the communist party reputation.

And yet even in China they don't teach children to read or write until they are 6.

[quote AtomicRabbit]I sometimes wonder if we're too laid back in this country...

I'll just leave this here so you know who your children will be working for in 20/30 years time...

twitter.com/alvinfoo/status/1157510365506408448?lang=en[/quote]
The rates of teenage suicide in China are eye watering. Be careful what you wish for.

The idea that we are laid back in this country is mad. Do you realise that when early years specialists from this country go to other countries they describe us as cruel or mad in our treatment of young children?

Because my child’s confidence is not predicated on any kind of end year award? It’s not a conversation I’ve ever had with anyone, but I don’t believe homework is the most important thing for development at that age so sometimes we do it and sometimes we don’t.

@neversayalways

No quite literally the opposite actually. Maybe re read what I put before coming in with a bitchy comment.

Because both parents increasingly work and don't have time compared to the previous generation.

Because more studies are showing that it doesn't actually benefit the child as much as say going out to play in the garden

@neversayalways

The idea that we are laid back in this country is mad. Do you realise that when early years specialists from this country go to other countries they describe us as cruel or mad in our treatment of young children?

@neversayalways I've never heard this - can you back this up with any articles etc?

It's the same for exposing your child to anything cultural whether that's music, art, theatre, science - I saw it a lot during lock down, parents logging on to see the Natural History Museum videos online and the like were accused of trying to do it better than anyone else.

yes, read Upstart by Sue Palmer.

In DC school completed reading charts and such like are rewarded yearly with certificate and prizes, why wouldn't you want your child to be rewarded and have a confidence boost?

Because I don’t want my DC doing school work to get a reward, they do school work because they need to learn. My DD has additional support needs and works with a specialist tutor outside school, I’m not going to push school homework on her too especially given it doesn’t actually help her learn.

My DCs confidence grows when they achieve something, when they learn a new skill or learn a new craft or skill - not for ticking a box to say they read Biff and Kipper.

Not wanting your primary school child to do (much) homework has nothing to do with not respecting academic achievement.

I love reading to my child, she regularly goes to museums, the library and heritage railways. Every Wednesday afternoon my husband takes her to the swimming pool to work on her physical confidence. We have a good selection of educational toys. We have books and resources in two languages as my child is bilingual. We set aside time for television in her additional language.

I would find it an infringement on my time with my child if school would send so much homework that there is less time for the activities above. Homework over the holidays... Not going to happen, sorry. Especially not if it is effectively homework for me.

I'm not completely against homework, but I am against homework for homework's sake.

Are you American? The Common Core math curriculum makes mastery difficult.

I also recently watched interviews with secondary school teachers in Finland who when asked what the purpose of education/ school was replied, ' to find out what makes you happy'

When asked about homework, they give very little because it is important for children to do other things. When asked what other things they replied, ' spend time with their families, their friends, doing what they enjoy, playing musical instruments' And they kick our ass in the performance league tables.

They started with a different basis. 50+ years ago they asked ' what type of society do we want to be?' ' What is good for our children' and proceeded from that.

My own professional experience has taught me that services/ systems whatever, work best when they have a really strong conceptual and philosophical underpinning. Then they work forward from there.

Another reason why Finland does so well is they just value education and have extremely good teachers. Its a high status profession where only a small percentage of applicants are accepted onto the course and they train for years (unlike a one year pgce that many teachers have over here and the worst performing students placed in special groups with TAs who are very poorly trained and paid). So they have a strong theoretical philosophical base to what they do and very competent and well trained teachers. That is what gives them good results. Not endless homework and starting children in pressurised early learning at age 4.

Its not so much about volume of homework as my DC actually get very little. It's the attitude that learning/academia isn't important or that learning anything outside of school is frowned upon and you are automatically assumed to be pushy.

My DC school send home a small list of spellings and some times tables questions once a week (reading is expected everyday). I don't think this is a lot and I embrace any work that helps consolidate their learning at school. It's the attitude of that doing the homework seems to be race to whoever can do the least or show the least interest. It applies to my comment about anything cultural above too.

Well the evidence shows doing school homework with children (as a population) at primary age doesn't make a difference.

In lockdown if parents were posting about what they were doing, other parents who were both working full time and struggling to do anything may have been reacting in that context.

Why don't you just do what you do and let others do what they do without judging them as ' racing to the bottom.' (which is a pretty unpleasant thing to say).

What a strange claim, OP. Part of not doing homework, as so many people have said here, is precisely because I value the learning DD does outside of school, and think it is important for her to have the time and energy for it.

And I value learning/academia so much I have completed a post-grad degree while working full time, and in my 40s have completed another first degree for fun. Which my daughter has seen me do - I suspect that will have more impact on her approach to learning than grinding out endless pieces of homework set simply for the sake of it, without regard to her needs or interests.

We didn't do homework prior to year 6 because I read the peer reviewed evidence which clearly stated it wasn't beneficial.

Didn't discuss this with other parents though, mainly because they were a bunch of nerdy teacher pets

I’m a primary teacher & never made my own children do homework at that age-unless they wanted to. It’s much more beneficial if they read at home.

Hmm, there is a bit of this at our school, kind of reverse pushiness. Making it clear how unpushy you are.

I think it’s probably because there are a few insanely pushy parents so others go the other way to compensate and differentiate themselves from the uber pushy ones.

In reality even the “we hardly ever do the homework” ones are doing the homework most nights.

What this attitude doesn't account for is that some children actually enjoy learning, I know I did and my friend's five year old told me the best thing about being at school, other than friends and the climbing frame in the playground, is the homework because 'it's like school at home' !
By taking this negative attitude early parents set up beliefs that learning is a chore or at the very least not something that can enrich and stimulate, rather than something to enjoy which is a real shame.