According to an article in scotman.com, schoolchildren in Scotland are losing the ability to learn for themselves because they are getting too much help with homework from their parents. The vice-chancellor of Strathclyde University says that schoolwork has become “seriously debased” because students aren’t doing it for themselves. The development manager of the Scottish ParentContinue reading “Scotland Schoolchildren are Getting Too Much Help with Homework”
Author Archives: Sara Bennett
Canadian Parents Not Equipped to Help With Homework
According to a recent poll conducted by Statistics Canada and the Canadian Counsel on Learning, 62 percent of parents don’t have the necessary knowledge to help their children with homework. As reported in The Globe and Mail (registration required), the president of the Canadian Council on Learning stated, “There is a knowledge gap and it’sContinue reading “Canadian Parents Not Equipped to Help With Homework”
After Studying Homework, Teachers at One Canadian Junior High Cut Way Back on their Assignments
A principal from Edmonton, Alberta, asked the teachers at his junior high school to do their own summer reading on whether homework actually works. The result, as reported by Toronto, Canada’s, Globe and Mail: “With their return to the classroom this fall, teachers at the affluent Edmonton school are thinking twice about the pages ofContinue reading “After Studying Homework, Teachers at One Canadian Junior High Cut Way Back on their Assignments”
From a Fourth Grade Teacher
I received the following email from a fourth grade teacher in the Lincoln Consolidated School District near Ann Arbor, Michigan: Last year we had the homework issue come up in an aggressive move from our principal to try and regulated homework across grade levels. It is so over the top! The amount of homework heContinue reading “From a Fourth Grade Teacher”
Guest Blogger: Homework In College Isn’t Useful
Today’s guest blogger is Dorian Davis, the managing editor of Republican Spectacular, who interviewed me for his online journal. During the interview, we began talking about homework at the college level–something I haven’t researched–and I invited him to write an entry. Dorian teaches at Fashion Institute of Technology, is a guest commentor on MTV’s popContinue reading “Guest Blogger: Homework In College Isn’t Useful”
NCLB Leaves Experienced Teachers without Jobs
According to an article in The New York Times, “Despite a Doctorate and Top Students, Unqualified to Teach” (subscription required), experienced teachers are leaving the profession because of No Child Left Behind requirements. Under California law, a teacher must successfully complete a certification program to fulfill the NCLB mandate that there be a “highly qualifiedâ€?Continue reading “NCLB Leaves Experienced Teachers without Jobs”
American Academy of Pediatrics: Children Need More Time to Play
According to a new report released by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and reported in its journal, “free and unstructured play is healthy and – in fact – essential for helping children reach important social, emotional, and cognitive developmental milestones as well as helping them manage stress and become resilient.” The report, “The ImportanceContinue reading “American Academy of Pediatrics: Children Need More Time to Play”
Palo Alto High School Teacher Refuses to Assign Homework
A Palo Alto, California, high school teacher, has stopped assigning homework to his world history and advanced placement economics students, according to an article in sfgate.com, After years of teachers piling it on, there’s a new movement to … Abolish homework. The teacher has found that his students achieve a 94 percent pass rate–a rateContinue reading “Palo Alto High School Teacher Refuses to Assign Homework”
Homework as Muse
I’ve been getting heartbreaking email from students, mostly highschoolers, about the role of homework in their lives. Today, I received a refrigerator magnet poem from Becca, a 17-year-old eleventh grader from Bainbridge Island, Washington: I am not motivated in school make good grades do homework complete work accomplish, study, test College? NO! my love isContinue reading “Homework as Muse”
Parents Mired in Their Children’s Homework
The National Education Association, in conjunction with Leap Frog, released a report last week detailing the results of a poll of parents of children ages 8-13 and a poll of students ages 11-13. Parents say that in an average week, they help their children with homework 2 hours and 45 minutes or more. Fifty-seven percentContinue reading “Parents Mired in Their Children’s Homework”
Stop Homework 