The Dark Side of American Achievement Culture At the start of the semester each year, students of all ages are asked the same questions. What kinds of classes are you enrolled in? I am in five AP classes. And? I am also playing varsity volleyball. And? I go to music lessons every Wednesday and Saturday for violin. Well, how about community service? There must come a point when society needs to step back and really focus on the damage that words have on the young mind, and on the fact that children are simply incapable of juggling all of these demands, both physically and mentally. Instead of expecting so much out of a child when they are already involved with plenty of (and in most cases, too many) activities, it should cross the mind to offer …show more content…
However, parents need to educate themselves about the fact that homework is not going to make their child any smarter. Parents go from helping their child with homework to even completing the homework themselves. If the teacher is using homework as a gauge for understanding, that is simply not going to work. When it comes to homework load, teachers must review the options of homework and evaluate what is developmentally appropriate, what their students can handle, and what the goal or point of the homework actually is. In reality, school is in session for seven hours a day, and that should be plenty of enough time to impart the knowledge students need to learn. There is so much more to a child’s life than what is happening in …show more content…
All over the country, parents are fighting this issue and many schools have already taken action. “One-third of colleges in America have eliminated the SAT or modified its use. There is even a school in Wyoming that has abolished homework for K-5” (Levs). However, for society to follow these bold footsteps, the first task is to make people realize that stress on children due to overscheduling is a very serious problem and that the well-being and economic future of the US depends on addressing this issue. Secondly, there is no quick solution. What overwhelms people the most is the complexity of the problem and the need for a complete turnaround of society’s expectations. One college professor comments, “We have an opportunity to change how we conceive being successful, and it takes bravery. I mean, you’re swimming against pop culture” (Abeles). So, instead of ignoring the diversity amongst children by directing the focus toward the narrow group of high-achievers, express the importance of individuality. A bell curve illustrates that “smart” has many different meanings: children who are academically smart, those who are incredibly creative, and those who are totally
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Show MoreMany students who feel the pressure to succeed at the high school level have an unhealthy amount of stress. Students who feel this have been cheating, pulling all nighters, becoming depressed, and seeking relief in drug use, and self mutilation. On average in a recent study at Illinois high school students spend 3.07 hours of homework each night on just homework not including extra curricular activities(Jerushapope,2). Also in this high school students reported getting 6.8 hours of sleep each night, but 34.6% reported getting 6 or fewer hours of sleep(Jerushapope,2). Most high school students spend 2 hours of extra curricular activity each night thats not including homework so after those activities you have to come home and do homework and then you will not have a lot of time to sleep. Also most kids do not get a lot of time to spend with their parents during the weeknights. Some kids cannot even make it to the dinner table because they have so much homework and that is not healthy for the parents and their childs relationship. In ...
According to research done by the University of Michigan, elementary school students in 1981 spent forty-four minutes a week on homework. Sixteen years later 9-12 year olds had an increase of almost two more hours a week (Ratnesar 313). A 1983 government report, A Nation at Risk, caught the attention of the American Education System. The article explained the failings of the American school. It explained how education is declining, and teachers need to get tough on their students again. This prompted...
Although the living conditions of children are getting lot better than when we were kids, the children study more time than we did. The pupils have to get up at earlier than 7 o 'clock to make sure they won’t be late for school. Not only have that, these pupils still had to participate in various after school program, and a lot of variety of training during the weekends. The most pressure is homework. As a summer school teacher, I always can hear kids say that the teacher gave them too much work, had to spend two hours a day to compete the homework, and have no time to play. Is it too much pressure for the kids? That is the question for most of the parents. What should the parents as should do to let these children relax and do not have that much pressure? The author of Help Children Form Good Study Habit, Erika A.Patall points out those parents should not help children do their homework because they need their own practice. Not only that, the author of The
According to Marzano and Pickering (2007) in an article titled the Case for and Against Homework, homework can be useful and very insurmountable when employed effectively. “Three import issues are the appropriate use of homework at various grade levels; the optimum amount of time students should spend on homework; and the most effective forms of parent involvement” (Pg. 76).
Has homework ever weighed you down? If not now then when you were a kid? That’s how many children feel every day of the week. Many students at Round Valley school have been getting an outrageous amount of homework everyday. For example 46.2% of students that were surveyed believe that homework does not help them at all and that it is just busy work that keeps them from playing outside and having fun. I believe that Round valley students should not get homework because they don’t have time to sleep, they have trouble focusing and they have lots of anxiety.
In conclusion, I have to say that homework should truly be banned from all schools around the world. When this happens, teachers will start to feel respected during class time, parents will be able to bond and get together with their precious family for once, and students? They will be living the true meaning of a school life. Sure, homework can teach children good study habits, organization, and responsibility. But face it. You and I know it’s just more than that. Homework is just downright misery.
Khristina Janer, a mother from Illinois, says, “I don’t feel like a parent. I feel like a drill sergeant!” when making her kids finish their homework after an extended period of time (Wallace). Many studies show the effectiveness of homework and all of the benefits it can do for us; the problem is: teachers are making kids do too much homework when they get home from school. The teachers don’t take in the environmental factors that could be harming any student 's ability to get a task done. Teachers automatically believe that kids are irresponsible or unmotivated when they don’t succeed in finishing their homework. When kids are given this much, or this difficult of, homework, sleep is being sacrificed. Even when they are doing all of their
Have you ever wanted to just shred up your homework or throw it out the window and have no consequences? Kids are assigned daily homework from the time they start kindergarten at the ripe young age of five. Is it really necessary? Does it even help better learning or even higher test scores? The amount of homework we do wastes time, money, paper, and trees because it’s practically the exact same thing we did in class that day. Homework causes kid’s and teen’s frustration, tiredness, little time for other activities and possibly even a loss of interest in their education. It also keeps everyone up; it has kids and teens staying up until they finish it, the parents trying to help them and the teachers grading it. So, I think that homework is a waste and kids and teens should choose whether they want to do their homework for extra credit and practice or not.
Two pages of reading homework, twenty math problems, a page of science homework, and vocabulary. The average elementary school student is spending 25-30 minutes on a homework load similar to this every night. This may seem like a reasonable amount of time for a middle or high school student, but for a 6-11 year old child it can be overwhelming. Elementary students should not be responsible for doing homework because it can heighten stress, decrease the students interest in learning, and negatively affect the health of the child.
One of the biggest staples of the educational community, as well as the biggest fear of any high school student, is the assignment of homework for students to complete. Homework has become such a central part of our educational society that kindergarten students at the age of four and five are being assigned homework by their teachers. Everyone who has ever experienced the American educational system is more than familiar with homework, and just how annoying it can be. Asking just about any student if the homework given to them helps them learn will result in the answer, no. I do not believe that to be the case however. I think there is an underlying problem in the idea of homework, and that it starts in the classroom. Often times, and I can
The fact of going back to school means much for kids as they are excited of seeing again their friends, looking forward to have new experiences and it is also mean the resumption of homework which children have to do at home in the evening with great dismay for some of them, surrounded by their parents who try to help as much as they can. The pertinence of homework makes a general consensus even if kids don’t always agree with the way of giving them. After questioning some children under the age of 10, 3rd and 4th graders, I always obtain the same type of answer as the following: “It is quite demanding, it always is more difficult than what we did in class, it is not as easy
These activities, not homework will ensure that our children are happy and competitive in a highly competitive world.” (Bennett and Kalish). Homework may cause more harm to students and children at such an early age rather than having a positive effect. Others claim that homework regulation is a serious matter that should have parents more aware of this issue. If teachers would either regulate the amount of homework they assign, then students would actually be able to enjoy their school years before entering the working
Having a social and family life is very important to the development of a child. Excessive homework can take away from family time and even disrupt any routine that has been established and developed in the home. These issues can lead to conflict between parent and child. It can become a struggle when the parent becomes aggressive and just wants the work done, and the child/student getting upset because there is a certain way it has to be done. Helping a student with homework can be difficult for parents who are not teachers and maybe not well educated. The older the child becomes, the harder the work becomes. “According to a 2004 study published in "Current Issues in Education," homework can greatly increase family stress. The study found that stress, frustration, and conflicts over homework are particularly pronounced in families with a child who is struggling academically.”
We all know the downfall of homework: the frustration and exhaustion, family conflict, time loss, and decreasing interest in learning. No study has ever demonstrated any academic achievement linked to assigning homework. There is also no support to the fact that homework provides nonacademic benefits at any age. Here are a few examples: building character, promoting self-discipline, or teaching good work habits. All teachers who assign homework want to believe that the gain outweighs the pain. Although, there is no evidence of that and they must rely on faith (“Homework: No Proven Benefits”, pg. 1). Michellea, a mother of a middle school student, says that some work can reinforce certain skills, but hours of homework are unhealthy and unproductive. Mominseattle agrees. She contemplates that such a heavy load can result in potential drawbacks to the students. Hours of homework a night plus a full day of school can be just as much work as an adult at a full-time job. She believes students should enjoy their childhood, as short as it already is. MagnetMom complains about how her daughter’s homework takes away her beneficial sleep. With busy families, like hers, they have many after school activities, so when they get home, they do not have time for too much homework. She says ...
In today’s time homework is something that most schools find necessary to pile onto their students,