Giving
Children Homework; Pro and Con
There are a lot of discussion as to whether children should be given
homework or not. Is it enough for children having time to study at school or
needing additional time in home for study after school time?
Some people claim that children do enough work in school already.
They also argue that children have their hobbies which they want to do after
school, such as sport or music. A further point they make is that a lot of
homeworks are pointless and does not help the children learn at all.
However, there are also strong arguments against this point of view.
Parents and teachers argue that it is important to find out whether children
can work on their own without the support from the teacher. They say that the evening
is a good time for children to sit down and think about what they have learned
in school.
Furthermore they claim that the school day is too short to get
anything done. It makes sense to send home tasks like independent reading or
further writing task which do not need the teacher support.
I think, on balance, that some homework is good idea but that should
only given at the weekend when children have more time.
Homework
Homework can help students by
complementing and reinforcing classroom learning, fostering good lifelong
learning and study habits, and providing an opportunity for students to be
responsible for their own learning. It can also provide another opportunity for
parents to participate positively in their child’s education.
It is important for everyone to
maintain a sensible balance between school work and play. We believe both
quality of school work and general well-being are improved by regular
participation in a range of both active and relaxing leisure activities.
Types
of Homework
Reading
Reading (progressing from reading
to, reading with, to reading alone) should be part of every student’s homework
everyday. Because of this there should never be a day when a student has 'no
homework'. Reading can be more valuable if parents read as well and discuss
what they are reading with their children.
Practice
exercises
Practice exercises provide students
with the opportunities to apply new knowledge, or to review, revise and
reinforce newly acquired skills, such as:
- completing consolidation
exercises for Mathematics – memorisation of tables
- practising spelling words
- practising words or phrases
learnt in a Language Other Than English
- writing essays and other
creative tasks
- practising and playing musical
instruments
- specific revision for
tests/quizzes
- practising physical education
skills
- revising information/skills
from current or previous topics
Implementation
At the P-4 level homework
expectations in excess of the above may vary from teacher to teacher depending
on the events of the term, week or day. All teachers are more than willing to
discuss any homework issues with parents or parents may also wish to have a
discussion with year level coordinators or the Principal as necessary.
Years
5–10
Implementation
- homework will be noted in the
Student diary – as a general rule students would have homework every
weeknight (Remember that Reading is included in this allotment)
- at least one night per week
should be dedicated to each of English/Maths fact learning activities with
associated “testing” in school. If no specific homework entered, students
should be doing reading/number facts revision etc.
- teachers/parents should sign
the Student diary once per week
- homework could be continuation
of classwork, projects or assignments, essays and research
- there should be coordination
between teachers to avoid excessive workload, for students. If students
are struggling with the workload they should discuss this issue with their
home group teacher
- some homework may be scheduled over
weekends and/or holidays
- it is reasonable for teachers
to set more than 45-90 minutes homework if some or all of it is work that
could have reasonably been finished in class
- teachers should monitor
completion of set homework tasks and let parents know if it is not being
done.
- teacher may require students to
complete unfinished homework at recess/lunchtime in either supervised/non
supervised conditions
- reading should be done every
day
Years
11-12
In Years 11 and 12, homework will
generally increase, and require up to 3 hours per week day, with up to 6 hours
on weekends during peak VCE periods.
A good rule of thumb for Year 12
subjects is that they require 1 hour of homework for every hour of classwork.
At this level students generally should be independent learners. Independent
learners complete homework specified by teachers but also are aware of their
own needs in terms of ongoing review and revision of school work. They
regularly devote significant amounts of time to these self identified needs.
Parents should be clear about the school’s expectations for home study, and
should discuss issues and concerns with their children and the school.
Care should be taken to ensure that
undue pressure is not placed on students at this level, and that a balance is maintained
between the demands of study and recreational pastimes. This can generally be
achieved through good organization and planning, and builds on the effective
study habits developed in earlier years of schooling.
Use
of School diaries
Every student in Years P-12 receives
a diary. If this diary is lost or mistreated (including graffitied) it will
only be replaced at a cost of $10 to the student.
Teachers will make every effort to
have students record the following information in their diaries.
- timetable
- homework timetable
- specific homework
- type and number of work
requirements
- detentions
- special events
It is each student’s responsibility
to put this information into their diaries when asked and if they are away, to
catch up any relevant diary entries.
Expectations
Parents
and caregivers can help their children by:
- encouraging them to take
increasing responsibility for their learning and organization
- observing and acknowledging
their success and asking how their home and class work is progressing
- attending school events,
displays or productions in which their children are involved
- encouraging them to set aside a
regular daily session to read and complete homework
- setting an example by reading
themselves
- contacting the relevant teacher
to discuss any problems their children are having with homework
- helping them to complete
homework by discussing key questions or directing them to resources.
Usually it is better to encourage children to complete homework themselves
- helping them to balance
homework and general home life including watching television, playing
sport and engaging in other leisure or recreational activities
- checking whether homework for
upper primary and secondary students has been set and ensuring they keep a
homework diary
- reading texts set by teachers.
Discussing their child’s response to the texts and asking to see work they
complete in relation to these texts
- provide “educational” material
for kids – books, computer games, other games, watch TV shows and discuss
- discussing homework in their
first language, where English is not the main language spoken at home, and
linking it to their previous experiences.
Teachers
can help their students by:
- setting regular homework to
help students establish a home study routine
- setting varied, challenging and
meaningful tasks related to class work that are appropriate to the
students’ learning needs
- giving students enough time to
complete homework, taking into account home obligations and
extracurricular activities
- assessing homework and providing
timely and practical feedback and support
- making effective use of
homework diaries for upper primary and secondary students
- coordinating the allocation of
homework by different teachers in secondary schools
- helping students develop the
organisational and time management skills needed for them to be
responsible for their own learning
- ensuring that students have
good information skills
- ensuring that parents and
caregivers are aware of the school’s homework policy
- developing strategies to
support parents to become active partners in homework
Homework
Issue I have been wondering if homework is necessary. Statement
of issue and Preview I think we should have homework because it helps us to
learn and revise our work.
Homework helps people who aren’t
very smart to remember what they have learned. Homework is really good because
it helps with our education.
Statement of various viewpoints But, many times, doing homework is
not a great idea. I think we shouldn’t have homework because I like to go out
after school to a restaurant or the movies. Sometimes homework is boring and
not important.
I think homework is bad because I
like to play and discuss things with my family.
Postingan
