19 pieces of homework!

[breward]

DS just turned 13 and in Y9. The amount of homework that his school has set each week since the start of term is ridiculous- 19 pieces last week. Family life has gone out the window.

It is not just the number of pieces, it is the difficulty. Yes, DS is at Grammar School, but he was only Level 4 writing when he left primary 2 years ago (Level 5 and 6 for other areas). ONE of last week's English homework was to write an essay: 'How does Jonathan Swift satirise religious thinking in the novel Gulliver's Travels?' Not a 10 minute task. This is like an A level title not a homework for someone who was working at Level 4 two years ago.

Sorry, just had to rant!

Balletgirl mum, I don't think I ma advocating whatever you suggest. I do agree children need a balance life, look at your DD, because you DD likes dancing, you have support her to dance 2 hours and 1 hour on the journey. That's 3 hours a day in total. Wouldn't this support the opinion that you need to work hard to do what you want to do?

If a child want to be a good scientist , then he need spend time on get his homework properly done, and maybe read relative subjects in depths?

My DS1 is going to an selective independant school as well, he only need an hour to do home work, he play 2 instrument. And he play chess, fencing and tennis besides his school PE and games. He has 9-10 hours sleep every night.I never think he should put all his time in studying.

What I am worrying is, he is now in Y10, and only spend an hour on homework, and don't need to do much revision. Does this mean GCSE is too simple. And as DH is a professor in a Russell University, and we often hear students can't cope, or math is not good enough to his subject etc. This caused me worry.

But never mind, I won't say anythin in this subject anymore.

Autumn - most in grammar don't study hard to get in, they just naturally pass 11+

If a child want to be a good scientist , then he need spend time on get his homework properly done, and maybe read relative subjects in depths?

I actually know a couple of elite scientists...they were both boys who goofed around quite a bit in their youth. (I realise two people is not exactly "big data" and doesn't prove anything.) They are quite clever and creative. One is at the leading edge of human knowledge about how the brain works. He was never very disciplined.

Autumn - most in grammar don't study hard to get in, they just naturally pass 11+

I don't think this is true in London. There is a lot of tutoring, and with the odds of getting in resting on a knife edge, just a few extra points from tutoring can make the difference.

Heigh - there aren't any grammar schools in London

You are wrong.

Sorry, there are 19 grammar schools in London, but all greater London on the very edge ie 10 are in Sutton, and Bromley and bexleyheath which are barely in London, just on the very edge. Hence nobody in actual London doing the competitive tutoring your talking about actually goes to them

In Kent where the most grammar schools are, nobody tutors. They get in on own skill or they don't. Most primaries they move from are overfilled and don't set homework so children aren't used to the work either.
Most of the 11+ exams are multiple choice anyway so you have a 25% chance of passing it blindly by just choosing a,b,c,d at guess

Most London families live zone 4 and out because of the cost of housing. Of the top of my head, Latymer and Ilford Boys, and Woodford County Girls are all in London boroughs.

Isn't London the most competitive area with so many grammar schools and independant schools, that children have to attend not only 1 exam, but a few exams to find a suitable school? Rencently there is a news that a lady spend more than £7k on tution per month to get her son into St Pauls at age 7+.

St. Paul's is a private school though not a grammar. A grammar has to offer places of there is one to anyone who passes test, not those who only get 100%. A private school in comparison can choose anyone got any reason, which is often filtered down to the top 1% due to space.

I have no idea Autumn. I think it is very competitive, and there is a lot of tutoring going on.

I don't think the quantity of homework is as important as the quality of homework. I also think you get diminishing marginal benefits from every extra 20 minutes of homework per night. There comes a point where it gets silly and it becomes a waste of time.

Artandco, you must live in a different UK, your story is so different from what I hear from news and website. Just have a look at 11+ forum, you will see what people do to get into grammar schools. I have to say I don't know from my own experience, as we are not in a grammar school area, so the atmosphere in our primary school is quite relax. But we have started to have some homework from year 3 now. Not much though, 1 piece of work with 15 maths question for a week.

Autumn, we live in London. Children at highly competitive private, where nobody we know tutors and the school really discourage it. Everyone moves on to places like St. Paul's without an extra £7k tutor fee as you mention someone did

Maybe the difference is people who are at state primaries who are trying to "top up" their chidlren's education so that they can access selective secondaries?

"In Kent where the most grammar schools are, nobody tutors."

And yet there seems to be a huge 11+ tutoring industry thriving in Kent.

Despite the fact that apparently nobody tutors.

If a child want to be a good scientist , then he need spend time on get his homework properly done, and maybe read relative subjects in depths?

I agree with 'HeighHo''s anecdotal evidence with regards this statement. Lots of studying increases knowledge as well as proficiency in subjects like maths and languages but does not increase creative, lateral thinking; attributes which are so important for good scientists A DC needs time to mentally 'free-wheel' and not just have their time filled with organised activities.

"In Kent where the most grammar schools are, nobody tutors."

This is one of the funniest things I've read in quite some time.

Of course they're mostly bloody tutored. Our local grammar is trying to discourage it to no avail.

In Kent where the most grammar schools are, nobody tutors.

You just keep telling yourself that. It might become true.

Artandco - In Kent where the most grammar schools are, nobody tutors.

I would love to see what the people on the following forum think of that comment:

www.elevenplusexams.co.uk/forum/11plus/viewforum.php?f=19

Lol nobody tutors.

Ok everyone in our family who live there has never tutored. I have younger siblings and nieces and nephews all at grammar who started within the last few years. None tutor and I'm 100% sure of that. They just sat exam as if it was a normal sat test ( that they don't revise at home for either). Same as myself and other siblings and cousins did before them, same as parents before that.

So, one family in Kent doesn't, and has never, received tuition. Not quite the assertive 'nobody' then

Thank you for all the replies.

I did not intend this to end up being an 11 plus discussion.

To answer some questions. DS does get more than one piece of homework per subject each week. He has German 4 x a week and gets homework every lesson (not revising vocab- they have never had a vocab test yet). Most has to be completed for the next lesson. He has to write 150 words on how Germany helps the environment with green initiatives by Friday.. in German. All students take a MFL GCSE in year 9, so they have 8 lessons a fortnight in either German or French.

Art homework tends to take the longest. One piece took 3 hours last week- and to be honest ended up being a family effort while he was doing pages of History.

DS wants to be a pilot, but when we looked at air cadets, the commitment was 5 hours a week ( not including travelling to and from the unit). We went to the open evening and the opportunities it gives young people are amazing- opportunity to fly, work experience in air traffic control, Dof E Bronze and Silver for free, A Btec in Aviation Studies, gliding licences etc.

My worry is with all this homework, many children will have amazing GCSEs but on their UCAS form all it will say is: I've done homework for the last 7 years, had very little down time, had no outside interests, what an amazing childhood that was!

To add to the mix my father has just been admitted to hospital 3 hours away with heart failure. He is not been given his insulin as 'the ward does not have any'... Arghhh. We have a German exchange student arriving for the week tonight, I work full time and need to shop, make up beds, do an airport pick up etc. So you can imagine the stress levels at home. I won't be helping with bloody art homework this week!

Another victim of a stupid school doing early entry for GCSE

Artandco - Tonbridge School runs courses during the year, at Easter and all through the summer to prepare DC for the 11+. They are chock a block full of DCs who also have tutors.