Does your child's school use a system that allows parents to see what their homework is?

[fortyfifty]

And if so, what system do they use?

Used to use Edmodo. Just moved to Show My HomeWork which is an app.

We use Show my homework at the school i work in. The downside being pupils can tick things off when not actually completed depending on the format its set in.
We also use epraise but only internally.
Parents have no access to behaviour and attendance data unless we choose to share it with them.

My sons school uses Show my homework. I get weekly updates about what homework he should be doing. Downside I find is when he has cooking and the list of ingredients are on there, only because I forget to look into the app. Otherwise I find it very a very useful reminder tool.

Yes they use show my homework.

One of mine uses Show My Homework but its really intended for students rather than parents, DD is dyslexic and used to struggle to get her homework written into her old paper planner at the end of a lesson when everyone is in a rush so its brilliant for her. We also have a separate parents app with reports, school letters, calendar etc.

One DS's school uses Show my Homework, the other uses Google Classroom, and a paper planner.

Other than dutifully signing the planner (when I remember), I haven't actually looked online since the first couple of weeks in Year 7 for either of them.

One parent I know is constantly all over WhatsApp trying to work out teacher's lesson plans etc - child is in Year 11, and it appears that she micro-manages everything. I don't know how she has the time or energy.

Yes, Show My Homework

DSs school use something called Connect. I have my own login and can access all homework, resources and also see attendance, detentions and rewards.

It can be a disadvantage if DS thinks I’m checking and he gets lazy assuming I’ll remind him. I realised this early on and he now knows it is his responsibility to keep on top.

The best thing about it is that they have upgraded it this year (he’s Y10) and there are lots of revision resources on there.

Yes, Class Charts, me and DS both use the app.

The school I work at uses show my homework for both students and parents to see.

My kids school uses Google classroom but like yours, they don't have the parent bit activated. So it's for students only.

They were quite clear that they had though long and hard about it and they wanted students to be responsible for themselves and independent. So they chose not to have a parent bit. It is a selective school though so the vast majority are hardworking bright students who are likely to do their homework!

No, my dd has a homework journal and she has to write it down

No, they have a planner and they're supposed to write it down. They spend a lot of time on WhatsApp, asking one another what the homework is from what I can see.

I wish they did have an app - would be much better!

SMHW here too, no other data apart from homework on it though. Can access it via the web or an app, the app can notify you when homework is set.

Firefly here too, but no parent login, and DS has been told by school not to give parents his login. On the basis that it's his homework, not ours. He talks to us a bit about what he's got and what he's doing, but he's basically responsible for doing it and marking it as 'done', checking emails from teachers etc. We have a separate app for reports, parent emails etc. System seems to work well.

SMHW here too and SIMS parent for achievements, timetables, reports etc.

Works well. Kids (Y11 & Y8) know what to do, as do I but I let them get on and trust they do it. The school issue sanctions if it's not completed so they know it's up to them. Their school do ask that any revisions type HW is completed with notes/mindmap/flash cards etc as proof they have actually sat down and done it rather than just checking it off as completed.

DD’s school uses firefly. She has a log-in we don’t but we know her password and check together with her if we feel she has an issue coping (potential SEN which means she struggles with time management).

@Holidayz, I wonder if our children are at the same school! We have the same, smhw for homework and sims for achievements, behaviour and reports. I like that I can keep up to date and check his homework. Its also really good for the kids to be independent and have control over their homework and can tick it off themselves when they have completed it. They can also contact the teachers on there if there is something they don't understand.

@Ariana30

They go to a school in solihull, West mids.

Thanks Lougle

I can see why people are saying 'thank goodness my child's school doesn't - they need to learn responsibility themselves'

But my DD is at a school that schedules 12 pieces of homework per week so it would be useful for me to have an overview for my DD as she is not naturally organised - despite all our best efforts - and there's an awful lot of angst generated by homework. I have another DD who was the opposite end of the scale and attended the school before Google classroom and coped fine with writing in a planner or whatsapp coordinating with friends if she was missing info. However, 6th forms and universities use VLEs so it is not unusual for students to have a digital plan of their assignments, in the teacher's own words as they get into further and higher education.

My preference would be that they don't get half as much homework as they do!

I don't think it's helicopter parenting to have an idea of what homework your child has, and having access to her Classroom saves all the 'Have you got homework?' 'No' 'Are you sure...' debate. For a child like mine, who struggles with completing homework, we can skip straight to 'ok, you've got 3 pieces of homework due by Wednesday, what's your plan?'

Having said that, DD3 will attend the same school in September, and currently I only see her homework if she struggles. She's super organised, likes homework and is incredibly independent, so I suspect that I'll have very little input with hers.

They can also contact the teachers on there if there is something they don't understand.
That's a good feature, but only if school culture is right.

I've worked in schools where I'd set a week to do homework and then would get queries from students and parents at 10pm the night before it's due, followed by snotty emails and messages from parents saying their child is exempt from any sanction for homework as I had failed to help them.

The idea of starting homework with reasonable time to go, asking for help with a reasonable timeframe, or just attempting homework and applying common sense seemed to go out the window. It became an all too convenient way to blame teachers for their child's refusal to take responsibility. It was awful.

At my current school, even with that feature students still tend to find us at break/lunch or ask questions in person and I've only ever had questions through the system that can be responded to in good time (I tell my students that I'll respond online within 2 working days). Unsurprisingly, it means they use their initiative more and there's much fewer issues.

DS1's school uses SMHW but he does his homework at school (has SN EHCP etc and it's timetabled)

DS2's school don't use any kind of online system for homework, so it's bits of paper or just written in his planner. I occasionally get an email that I'm then to pass on to him to do for IT. He doesn't get much homework as yet (Yr8).

Lola I think that's a learning curve for children. DD2 suggested that she might message her teacher to ask a question the night before homework was due. I told her that ship had sailed. I think that sometimes, children think that however they leave someone is how they stay until the next time they see them! They don't think about the fact that they aren't the only thing that a person thinks of.

It is a learning curve for children, if their parents are sensible and supportive.

It's not a learning curve if the parent then backs the child and tells them they don't have to do their homework because the teacher hasn't been an on call personal tutor the night before homework is due.

My DS school uses show my homework