PolySciGuy

Hey there, first some background info, I am a 16 year old kid interested in politics. I go to school in WA. I had this idea come to me after reading this article. The gist of it being that too much homework is bad because it:

1) Takes kids that love to learn and makes them hate it. Because of the public school system I hate math! WAY too much mind-numbing repetition.

2) Takes kids that don't get it and forces them to learn it THE WRONG WAY, so the next day in class they have to unlearn and relearn the right way

My personal experience shows me how unnecessary homework is for me. My average overall grade ranges from A to C, but in all of the C classes, I have 100%-90% test scores and a vastly lower homework percentage (because I simply don't do it)

So you may have already guessed my idea, but since we are now forced to do a "senior project" a community project that shows we are ready to move on past high school, i though this would be a good one. Put together an initiative to make a "Homework Waiver" this would be a document that had to be signed by a Counselor, Parent, and the Student and it would drop the homework scores for the student as long as the student maintains a B or higher in the class as soon as the grade drops below that mark, the student must do homework (they can reapply if they can bring their grade above a B again including homework)

So thats basically it. I was just wondering how the forum would take that. Opinions on prospective teachers and/or additions/modifications would be especially valued

talloulou

As a parent I can tell you I'd no more sign a waiver stating my kid didn't need to do homework than I'd sign a waiver saying he/she didn't need to clean his room. When you're a kid you got one job in my opinion and that's school. And I'm not going to sign any kind of contracts allowing my kids to half a$$ their way through school. The minute a parent stops taking school seriously the kids will no longer respect the importance of school at all. If my kid tells me the homework is too easy my response would be, "Great! When your done I can find some harder $hit for you to do if you'd like!" If the homework is too boring...., "The sooner you quit complaining about it and do it the sooner you can move on to something more exciting!" If the homework is too hard I'd help and if the homework was beyond me, which I don't doubt it eventually will be, I'll hire a tutor. End of story.

When you compare our kids with kids from other parts of the world it's hard not to worry about future generations and their ability to compete on a global scale. If anything they probably need more homework.

talloulou

Also by the way, did you actually read the article? I'll admit I didn't finish it all the way through. From the very get go they seemed to be arguing that kids in homes with parents who support homework will be able to do the homework while kids in homes where parents aren't supportive of homework will be stressed by the work load. Thus the kids who need the homework the most, the ones with harsher home environments, will benefit the least by the homework given as apparently they can't get it done properly in their home! Thus, claims the article, the gap widens. Well if the gap is widening that means the kids doing the homework in a home environment that supports the homework are doing better!

Also the article mentions that in Japan there is less homework given when compared to the US but the kids test better. But what they don't mention is that kids in Japan have a longer school day and they attend school for more days in a year than our kids! Also Japanese schools focus on education. American schools focus on a wide array of crap that Japanese teachers simply don't waste time on. Schools in the US in many ways act as "parents" and the children are cared for in numerous ways that go above and beyond education. In other words while kids in Japan attend school in uniforms for more days and longer days they are not only getting extra time it is all very focused time. Time focused on learning. In comparison our kids wear whatever they want to school, waste tons of time on self esteem, tolerance, feelings, ect... Our kids need homework 'cause the kids are not in school often enough and when they are there the teachers are distracted by so many other things that it is a miracle if any actual math or reading is done.

Japan produces average self esteem students who know much more than our students. We produce kids who think they're great and don't have a f-ucking clue about anything.

PolySciGuy

Now, you do make some good points, but none of them have actually debunked my proposed waiver in any way. So don't sign it for you kid! All that I know is that MY teachers use homework as a "sit down shut up" thing. There are some teachers that use homework as a potent tool, that actually quantifies learning, but the vast majority uses it as a barrier between the kids and actual comprehension! The best teachers I have ever had, never checked homework, they assigned it but left it up for you to do or not do.

Now you may think that I am just a lazy teenager who is whining about my nonexistant workload, but i assure you that is not the case. If you think homework teaches responsibility, your right, it teaches you to meet a deadline because that way you will get the grade/paycheck. It is all extrinsic motivation. With a waived homework assignment, kids who don't get it might still do the homework in order to pass the test. That is instrinsic motivation, they know that they have to do the work in order to get the long term reward. THAT is what it is all about in my opinion.

Furthermore i am not proposing that homework no longer be assigned, because I believe it holds a real benefit for some kids.

So here is the kicker, would you vote to make this waiver happen?

talloulou

Absolutely not because in my opinion our public schools cater far too much to the lowest common denominator. Allowing kids to just "waive" their homework will promote the idea that homework is not important. Most won't do it and most lazy parents won't care. It will become "optioinal." The result will be that the top of the class has to sit around even longer waiting for the others to catch up. The smart kids with parents who make school a priority will not reach the heights they could because the entire class will be slowed down.

Monkey Mind

So what you're saying is that you are naturally talented, but you don't possess the discipline to complete a task which you don't enjoy. Clearly there is something still to be learned by doing your homework.

My advice is to quit bitching and do the work. Instead of mediocre grades (for you), aim for straight 100% scores, then use that as a springboard to transfer to a school or program that is more challenging.


To answer your original question: No, I would not vote to support a homework waiver.

OKgrannie

Pick another project. Homework assignments are strictly up to the teacher's discretion. If the teacher is doing a bad job, such as assigning too much homework, administrators will let him know. It seems you believe you are too clever to waste your time doing boring homework...here's something you need to understand: When you have graduated to a real job, it won't be exciting all the time either. There is no job that doesn't have its boring moments. If students knew what they needed to learn, and knew how to learn what they needed, we wouldn't need to spend all that money on schools, so just buckle down and do it.

__________________
The greatest danger to liberty lurks in the insidious encroachment by men of zeal, well-meaning but without understanding.---Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis

PolySciGuy

so what most of you are saying is that BECAUSE, homework is boring, tedious, etc. is the reason why we should do it? I understand that jobs have boring parts (i work part-time at Toys R Us, I know all about boring) but they all have some sort of reason. Homework's purpose is memorization through repetition or simply reading something to know the information, so if i have already completed the purpose, why go through the motions? I would hate filing reports or standing at a cash register or restocking shelves if they served no meaning, but they do! The end result can only be accomplished through the work in the real world, if there were an easier way, everyone would do that instead. Basically what I am saying here is I understand the importance of knuckling down and just doing it, but only when that is the only way to accomplish the task at hand.

Eager to see your responses.

PolySciGuy

Furthermore, I honestly don't think any of you know how hard it is to find a good teacher! Throughout my schooling career i have had 3 teachers that I will remember fondly forever. They all assigned homework, none of them counted it in a grade score. The worst teachers I ever had assigned homework and sat back waiting for the kids to learn from the book themselves. Because I got it, I had to become a surrogate teacher for a lot of other kids, so on top of teaching, i had to do the work myself. I understand most of this is due to other problems with the education system, however, if those problems were fixed I would be more than happy to do the appropriate level of homework.

Perhaps a refinement of terms would be appropriate. I have no problem with homework, BUSY work is what I hate.

Also, I may be wrong, but it seems that a lot of you oppose a lack of homework, because you had to go through the same thing. Even though I don't have kids, I think that one of the goals should be an understanding of the changing times.

OKgrannie

Please..we have all been there, done that. We have all had good teachers and bad teachers, and some of us have been good or bad teachers. If you were qualified to judge what is busy work and what is necessary home work, you would be the teacher instead of the student. The teacher is the AUTHORITY, so you must follow directions even if you think you know better, just as when you graduate to a real job, you must follow the boss's directions even if you think you know more. You will go farther if you just do it without whining.