Canadian parents win legal battle against homework

Discussion in 'Off-Topic Discussions' started by BlueMason, Nov 20, 2009.

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  1. BlueMason

    BlueMason Audaces fortuna juvat

  2. John Bear

    John Bear Senior Member

  3. Ted Heiks

    Ted Heiks Moderator and Distinguished Senior Member

    Isn't homework unconstitutional because it constitutes cruel and unusual punishment?
     
  4. sentinel

    sentinel New Member

    From the newspaper article, "It's hard to get a weeping child to take in math problems. They are tired. They shouldn't be working a second shift."

    Tired? Working a second shift? All I can say is their children must be real dweebs if they cry about doing homework. Just wait until the get to high school and spending 4+ hours every night on homework, assignments, essays, and other related activities. However, I am not surprised to read the parents are lawyers. :rolleyes:
     
  5. Ian Anderson

    Ian Anderson Active Member

    I went to "high" school in the UK (then it was called secondary school) for 5 years. I never had homework (except for reading which I would have done anyway); instead it was incorporated into each class period - perhaps an hour lesson followed by an hour doing work (writing essays, doing math questions, etc.).

    Most time was spent in math and English classes but also had all other traditional classes. One afternoon a week was set aside for electives (I did machine shop, archeology, and more math). As I have mentioned previously the information I studied in geography is the same as I am now studying in Geology 100 level classes (but applied to the USA rather than the UK).

    The only exams that mattered were the GCE exams held in May/June time frame each year. These exams were uniform across the UK and were designated as ordinary or advanced level. The advanced level GCEs are quite often accepted for credit by US colleges (and are usually prerequisites for university entry which helps explain why three year bachelor degrees exist in the UK).

    This system (which may now be history) worked well for me and my friends.
     
  6. sentinel

    sentinel New Member

    You were certainly fortunate to have time during the school day to complete "homework" in class. This is how it should be in all schools and all grades for the material assignments covered in class.

    We had 5-6 courses every day which meant 3 1-hour classes in the morning, 1-hour lunch break, and another 3 1-hour classes in the afternoon. The school day started at 08:00AM and finished at 3:30PM. The missing 30 minutes was time spent walking between classes; 5 minutes between each class.
     
  7. ideafx

    ideafx New Member

    Homework? That's what study hall is for.

    I took extra classes in high school (graduated with 30 credits), yet I always had a study hall. In fact, I'd say about 75% of my homework was completed in study hall.

    I'm not exactly sure how a student would learn mathematics without doing homework. I've always found lectures interesting in certain subjects, but I could never retain the information well enough to pass the course simply from lectures alone.

    Most learning is done outside the classroom. It's the hard work that the teacher doesn't see that earns you an A.
     
  8. mattbrent

    mattbrent Well-Known Member

    There are some administrators who believe that homework is detrimental to students and overly unfair. Their ideals are based on the concept that some students, mostly those who are economically disadvantaged, do not have parental support to help them with homework. Those same students are often responsible for caring for younger siblings while their parents work 2nd or 3rd jobs and therefore they do not have time for homework.

    While I could see this as a possibility, I think it's a bit of a stretch. Homework is supposed to be about practice and additional learning. It's not supposed to be stupid busy work that teachers assign just for the hell of it.

    My philosophy is that I only assign homework when I can start it off in class. I want to make sure the students understand the assignment so they will be able to do it when they get home. If I don't have time to start it off in class, I'll wait until the next day to assign it. Of course, in teaching history there's some flexibility there, whereas math teachers might not have the same luxory.

    -Matt
     
  9. imalcolm

    imalcolm New Member

  10. cjsdowg

    cjsdowg New Member

    As a Teacher my mother and father hated the amount of home work some teachers would give. However, they would never suggest doing with home out right . Let's face it, most kids to no want to study and home works them do that amoung other things .
     
  11. edowave

    edowave Active Member

    I think it was 60 Minutes that aired a show a while ago about a school system that totally did away with homework. All work had to be completed at school.

    When the reporter asked why they no longer assigned homework, the teacher replied, "If they can't do it after spending 8 hours a day here at school, there is no way they are going to do it in one or two hours at home." I thought that was a great point.
     
  12. StevenKing

    StevenKing Active Member

    If the homework goes....

    As an educator who laments giving homework [my first year was teaching math...], I find reason to differ with the consensus.

    Most of the kids with whom I interact do not have the ability to reason critically. The most basic concepts, as in "What does one do to make twice as many cookies," seems to allude them that simply multiplying one's ingredients by two will provide the answer.

    Cogent thought escapes much of the "responses" that are given to various questions. Sadly, it seems that literacy is sweepingly a thing of the past.

    Every school will have its exceptions, or maybe the students with whom I have interacted in TN, KY, and now NC, are just that special.

    If we do away with homework we will hold many back. It's social darwinism at its finest: those that can - will; and those who can't - won't. Otherwise, our attempts at reform will need to "dumb down" college, as well.

    I commend Charles Murray's Real Education: Four Simple Truths for Bringing America's Schools Back to Reality to those interested.
     

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