Homework

Two Toronto professors have come up with the idea that homework from grades 1 to 6 may is of little value and may lead to stress in the family.

I am not a professor, but I do have some questions about their study.

First, look at the photo that is with the article from the Toronto Star (http://www.thestar.com/article/302001). I don’t know what school these kids go to, but I have never seen any student in grades one to six bring home a pile of books like you see between the two. Look at the pose of the girl. What does it say? How about the papers strewn out in front of them? Is this typical of how they do homework? The photo seems to have been set up to support the story idea, not the reality.

Before you ditch homework, I ask you to consider these questions.

· What will the time that would be spent on homework be replaced with? If it is reading, quality family time or time spent outdoors playing, then I can agree. If it means more time in front of the computer or television, often unsupervised, is this a better alternative to homework?
· If a student knows that there is never going to be any homework, what incentive will he have to complete the work in class? From my experience as an occasional teacher, kids will work harder in class if they know what I am giving them is homework if not completed.
· If you are going to ditch homework, then are you going to give teachers a break? What do I mean? Years ago, parents would never think of going on vacation at any time with their children except when there was no school. Too many take off during the school year and expect the teacher to help their offspring catch up when they return. This is not fair. Where I live, you might as well not teach on Fridays in the winter. Parents have no problem pulling their kids out of classes for hockey and ringette tournaments. Some organizing committees even schedule games on Fridays. What message are we sending our children about an education?
· How many people complain about doing work, regardless of their age? If I have the option of saying something negative and getting out of doing homework or being silent and having to work, what option am I likely to pick? High school students complain about doing homework. One man’s daughter would rather play. Guess what? I would rather sit on a beach than do work around the home. Maybe I should get rid of housework.
· How many teachers were interviewed for the study?
· How much of a strain does it put on marriages? The article makes it sound like kids getting homework is a serious cause for divorce. Give me a break!

Of course, I may be totally wrong about what the article says. Maybe I just haven’t done my homework in reading the study. Why should I, though? It may be disruptive for my home, creating power struggles and arguments.