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Original poster

Homework madness

115 replies

emkana · 12/09/2004 19:35

I read today that for 11 year olds the recommendations are that they should do between 1 1/2 and 2 1/2 hours of homework a day. So if school finishes at half past three, then they go home, have something to eat, then do homework - they're finished at six. Isn't that complete and utter madness? When are our children supposed to have a life outside school?
It's still a long way off for my dd's, but I'm not sure if I'll be able to support such recommendations - even though I used to be a secondary school teacher myself.

OP posts:
Galaxy · 13/09/2004 15:22

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froggiebaby · 13/09/2004 19:51

I agree that at a primary level, homework should be kept to a minimum. I teach primary at an international school in France, and give a small amount of reading every night, and maths/english/etc once a week on a Friday, for the following Friday - that way, if a child has a problem with the work, they have all week to come and ask ME for help - rather than the poor parents having to do it. This also helps them to feel more responsible for their own work.
Just thought I'd let you know, if you're looking for some ammunition to go see a form teacher with!!

pixiefish · 13/09/2004 19:55

i teach a core subject in a secondary school and we give 2 homeworks a week- one written and one reading/ spelling test etc. The type of homework depends on the group- and the kids should be able to do it. personally i hate being told when i have to give it as setting homework to keep up with govt guidelines is daft imho

Hulababy · 13/09/2004 20:13

Galaxy, that art teacher sounds horrid. I'd send a copy of the letter to the form tutor/Head of Year too. Just isn't on. I'm assuming in Y7 he has just started the school too - grrrr!!!

tigermoth · 13/09/2004 23:56

I think homework for primary school pupils, especially the young ones, is a means of discrimination. Children of that age are dependent on their parents for help, and if it's not forthcoming, there is little the child can do about it.

I think homework clubs, whether held at lunchtime or after school, should be available for all primary aged children and their homework should be kept to an absolute maximum of 1 hour a night (and not every night at that).

Custardo - I feel for you - that is one hell of a homework burden you have.

nikkim · 14/09/2004 00:35

some of these accounts of homework sound appalling to me. the advice given before about only spending the required time on homework is certainly one to follow if kids are spending hours. As a form tutor who had a number of kids who struggled with homework I was happy to talk to subject tutors to find out how long they expected pupils to spend on a task. Parents could then just sign the work to say little Johnny has been working for 30mins on this. If the teacher is new or the topic perhaps they do not realise how long pupils are spending on the tasks being set.

As a subject teacher I was pressurized into setting homeworks just to fill the homework timetable and keep ofsted happy. I would often set find out homeworks which could be verbally fed back the following lesson or learn spellings so the kids had something to write in their journals so heads of department, inspectors etc were kept happy but kids weren't doing pointless tasks and I wasn't marking them when I could have been using my time more effectively.

i think we have an odd culture here of overworking everone children and adults alike! Talking of which I had better get on with my own homework!

toddlerbob · 14/09/2004 01:41

Galaxy, I can't believe that art teacher. I think he deserves extra marks for being creative. If it is essential he has a shell then she should go to the beach and get enought for everyone.

One of my flute pupils (only learning for 2 months) wrote a piece of music for me and brought it to her lesson last night, it wasn't part of her learning for the week, she just wanted to. I would be sad if keen kids didn't have time to do stuff like this because of excessive school homework.

nikkim · 14/09/2004 01:56

I can remeber growing up how much of my learning was incidental, it just happened as I was merrily bobbing through life's tapestries of experiences. Further more i was always reading gleaning all sorts of knowldge and ideas from books. I can remember my Mum had a set of encaeclopeadias ( sorry can't spell!) that I used to read for hours. My imagination was constantly being fed as I lost myself in books.

Kids will not have anytime to do any of the above if they are doing bloody daft homework tasks all night. How can they experience life if they spend most of their free time at the dining table doing sums. Its no wonder literacy levels are so poor for so many kids if they do not have time to read things they actually find interesting and relevent.

MeanBean · 14/09/2004 09:11

Galaxy the art teacher is absolutely impudent beyond belief. Your DS may live only 30 minutes from the seaside, but is that 30 minutes by car, or would that work out to be a 3 hour walk if he did it?! Is she setting homework for him or for you? How dare she tell you that you have to get on a bus/ in a car and go to the seaside? Because that in effect is what she is saying.

I agree with Tigermoth - homework is a way of discrimination against children from families where time is short/ interest is low. All the work that needs to be done at primary level should be done in school. Otherwise, school is not fulfilling its function. If it actually needs children to do homework in order to keep up with the curriculum, then some children are being set up to fail before they've even started.

littlemissbossy · 14/09/2004 09:46

I think children get far too much homework as well... they're just kids for gods sake! Even my 4yr old ds who started reception class last week, came home on Friday with homework

MeanBean · 14/09/2004 10:29

The funny thing is, all the teachers I know don't agree with kids of this age being given homework. None of the parents agree with it either.

So why is it happening and what can we do to stop it?

Galaxy · 14/09/2004 10:52

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Galaxy · 14/09/2004 10:55

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Prettybird · 14/09/2004 12:19

Interesting variation on the "homewrok for primary school kids". I have been told by a collegaue at work that the school closest to me (a Catholic one - not my normal catchment one, which I have also had to rule out) ASKS the parents if they will support their children with their homework - and if they won't confirm that they will help, then the children aren't given any!!!! He presented it to me as a good thing - he was trying to persuade me to consider it as his own 4 kids have all gone there (his youngest has just started) - but to me, it just confirms that I was right already to have ruled it out!

MeanBean · 14/09/2004 12:56

I think it would depend on the tone Prettybird - do they really "ask" and accept with good grace when you say that at the age of five, you don't agree that homework is a constructive approach to education, or do you get labelled as a yobbo parent who would bash up a teacher as soon as look at them if you decline?

Galaxy · 14/09/2004 13:12

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daisy1999 · 14/09/2004 13:38

IMHO homework is the work of the Devil and a way of the state controlling what our children do in what should be family time. Not that I feel strongly about it or anything.

Galaxy · 14/09/2004 14:23

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Prettybird · 14/09/2004 14:24

Meanbean - I don't know the answer to that. I didn't really want to engage him further in conversation: he had then cast aspertions on the school we DO want to get him into, as it is "too Indian" (in the contect of where we live, that means Muslim). He is a Sikh by the way - so ithis is not "white on black" racism. He did agree with our reasons for not wanting to send ds to our catchment primary - but not because of the fact that it is 98% "English as an additional language" - but because "they teach Indian songs".

There were other reasons for us already having discounted the catholic primary - only one of which was because it was catholic!

Philly · 14/09/2004 14:50

There is an independent school in Norfolk where the Head has banned all homework on the basis that children should spend their time outside school broadening their horizons,playing sport etc.Admittedly the school has a long day so more can probably be done but even so i think it's a fantastic philosophy.

some of the children at ds1's school raised this at school council and the school have agreed to no homework for the first nad last weeks of term and nothing at half terms or holidays other than a diary in the long summer.He is 10 and this school is independent.

suedonim · 14/09/2004 17:17

Maybe we should set up a Mumsnet campaign against homework for primary children, seeing as so many people dislike it!

Did anyone here have homework themselves before secondary age? I certainly didn't!

MeanBean · 14/09/2004 21:36

God no.

I've just spoken to a thirteen year old and asked her how much homework she does - 2 hours per night!

How the hell can she have any life outside school if she is doing 2 hours a night? She actually said that she doesn't have time to practice her musical instruments during the week, only at the weekend. I didn't have two hours a night until I was doing A Levels. And even then, it was only because I was incompetent and wasted time - it was supposed to be an hour and a half!

aloha · 14/09/2004 21:57

I think primary pupils shouldn't get any homework at all, and at secondary level there should be independent study time in the school day (prob at the end) with equal access to computers/internet/library facilities for all. Couldn't agree more with Tigermoth, and have said so myself - much homework is socially divisive. I really dislike the stuff like 'bring in a book with an interesting cover' - lots of homes don't have books, sadly. Why can't it be, find a book in the school library with an interesting cover? As for the shell thing - I'm speechless. It does seem to me that much homework is for us poor parents. I am very glad I was able to spend my primary years unencumbered by homework. I read books instead and made things. As for what I'll do with my kids, I really don't know. I hope I will be able to say, right that's it, 20minutes is long enough. Now we'll play a game or something. We all need downtime.

nikkim · 15/09/2004 00:41

looking back at my own teaching I used to set some rather extravagent homeworks and be rather impatient with those who didn't do the work. but i didn't have children and had no idea how hectic family life can be. If I went back to the classroom now knowing what I know about being a parent I would be a very different teacher. I would be interested how many other teachers who set excessive homework have no children and therefore no understanding of the demands of family life and the difficulties associated with homework.

Doing homework in school, perhaps in a free period or an after school club is an excellent idea. I used to run an aferschool homework club and found it very rewarding to work with pupils on a one to one basis in a more relaxed environment. I also know the kids got a lot out of it as well and it ensured that everyone had access to computers and the necessary books and children are not spending hours doing work and teachers can apprecaite the effort that has gone into the work as they have witnessed it for themselves.

Prettybird · 15/09/2004 08:58

My Mum has told me that the headmaster at the first school she taught at (actually MY headmaster too, as we both "started" school at the same time) gave her the best bit of advice when he told her to make sure to have the weekends off - as we ALL need time for ourselves. She extrapolated that onto the kids and NEVER gave homework for over the weekend.