Y8 English Lit - is it appropriate to ask pupils to draw characters/scenes for homework?

[cavell]

That's it, really.

DD1 is in Y8 of a grammar school and, for the fourth time this year, her English homework has been along the lines of "read the description of so-and-so on pages 18-21, and make a sketch of him/her/it".

Is it me, or is this pointless and inappropriate homework for this age group (supposedly of high ability, given that it's a grammar school)? I feel inclined to complain, but wonder whether I am simnply out of touch with how things are done in schools these days.

It does sound very lazy to me, for a top set of yr 8 and more than once per academic year.

Ds in yr 7 of a non-selective (but set) independent has had 1 of these types of homework for English, plus one cartoon strip thing for each of science and history. No posters and no blooming PowerPoints like a lot of primary homeworks. I think the rest of his homeworkp have been really appropriate and useful.

I probably would make an enquiry of the HOD if you have any other concerns about how English is being delivered.

The day Sally Shuttleworth discusses a literary text by drawing a picture of it, I'll agree this is a valid homework. But this sounds rubbish, I'm afraid. As a child very interested in books and writing, I hated being judged on how artistically and neatly and prettily I could make my reading look, and in normal circumstances I don't think it's of any use for any child.

I'm still fuming about having to do this in my final year of secondary with the excuse being 'English is compulsory so it's important to give those who aren't good at writing a chance to do well.'

Fuck off. No one was giving those of us who were rubbish at drawing a chance to write essays in art instead painting or drawing, were they? Just so frustrating for those who aren't good at art, find it stressful and could reasonably be expected to have been excused it in bloody English Lit.

This rant brought to you by late nights tracing and artfully shading pictures of WWI battlefields then staining the paper with tea to 'age' it. For assessment. At the age of 16.

"I've just asked dd for clarity on this and she said: "Mrs X said she doesn't like marking essays as she's dyslexic so that's why we have to do pictures".

Sorry but I don't believe you (or rather I don't believe your daughter) If she did say this it was probably sarcastic. Some of the kids were probably whining and rather than explaining why it is a useful home work she probably took this approach. Children learn in all different ways and 1 or 2 home works a year where you draw and label characters from a set text is absolutely fine. (I wouldn't suggest it is done more than this) It is still a good use of time at GCSE to encourage students to find and understand relevant quotes, especially in complex texts.

"The day Sally Shuttleworth discusses a literary text by drawing a picture of it, I'll agree this is a valid homework."

Sorry, were you a professor at 13 then? If not I fail to see how this point has any relevance whatsoever.

No one's actually said: Oh the homework the OP describes sounds great! What on earth are you worrying about?!

It really doesn't sound very satisfactory (mind you, I share Dominodonkey's scepticism about the dyslexic, non-marking English teacher tbh).

Some of us have pointed out that note-taking/planning/collating of evidence from a text can sometimes be done in a format other than writing on its own, & a drawing to show awareness of key points in a description is one possibility here.

I'd always give options in any task like that - 'you can draw & label the character OR you can just bullet point the key quotations OR you can do a power point collage of images to go with the key quotes OR you can video yourself reading out the key quotes you've chosen & explaining why', so being crap at art would never be an issue.

However, for a student who loved drawing but wasn't so sure about English, it can be a great way of getting them to respond confidently - as would the video for a student who likes to discuss their ideas rather than write them down.

Sounds fine to me, it shows whether the text has been understood and how well.

And for all you, 'I'm academic but can't draw' lot, there are also students who are artistic / visual and who would struggle with the written task.

Changing the tasks so some are written others drawn and other assessment methods is inclusive teaching.

Nothing wrong with giving the choice sometimes, although I think you'd need to be clear that this option will eventually run out, as it were, because you won't be allowed to draw a picture in your exam. So yes, for a basic character description I guess you could draw Curley's wife and label her fancy hair and her painted nails and all that, as an alternative to listing her physical attributes in words.

However, only a really talented artistic kid would be able to show in a drawing that she is frustrated, naive, been dealt a crap hand in life, craves attention but doesn't know why or what to do with it.... So I think you do need words to go beyond a certain level, and by extension I think that if you limit the task to 'draw a picture', as the OP describes, then you actually are stopping the pupils from getting beyond a basic level.

The point about literary critics was an exaggerated way of saying I don't think anyone who really had something to say about a text would choose to do it through the medium of art unless they actually were an artist. All those per-raphaelite Ophelias and stuff: brilliant, but not very realistic as an expectation of 12 year olds!

Ok, thanks all for your responses.

Regarding the teacher's dyslexia... I can understanbd why some of you mighht be dubious about this. I asked dd about it (again) and asked if she was sure that this was what her teacher had said because, if I decided I wanted to take this matter up with the school, I needed to be certain... of my facts. DD said that the teacher has talked about being dyslexic on several occasions.

I think, on the basis of what I have read here, that I am going to bring the whole homework issue up with the teacher because I am not satisfied that it is age and ability appropriate. The homework is very much "stand alone" stuff - it isn't done in preparation for a piece of written work. She has done things like mind maps from time to time, but only one essay in Y8. This essay received a single tick and an illegible comment.

I would like to bring up the dyslexia issue because, from my perspective, it is interfering with the teacher's ability to do her job properly. I'm not sure how to do so, however without causing offence.

Perhaps you could bring up the proiblems first without raising the issue of dyslexia. She's not preparing them adequately for their exams if she's not pushing them to write regular essays by yr8. I'd be squirming with irritation by now.
Offend her. Why not? As Philip Pullman said, no one has the right to go through life without being offended. If her disability is being used as an excuse for her inadequate teaching, then she needs to face up to this problem and offer solutions not excuses.

I loathe this. It's not a hw I'd ever set (for History) but I've seen plenty who do set 'draw a storyboard' as work. Also hate doing posters. As others have said, fine if you are good at Art and don't like writing. But it's not going to help you when you have to write essays at GCSE. And it's bloody difficult to mark - are you commenting on the fab art skills or the English knowledge?