Grown as I am, I still complain about having to still do homework. It can get exhausting, especially if I had to spend a good part of my day learning at school. As a kid, I enjoyed the tasks. As I grew older. They became burdensome, but I had to do them.
Becoming a child educator, I saw the significant role that it plays in a students life to aid them. But on the side, I saw the loops in the activity. Faults that seem to be ovsridibt abd defeating the aim of the task.
In this part of the world, homework is like a culture in the educational system. Almost every day of the school week, during holidays even, kids are given activities to take home to keep them engaged, in order that they stay reminded of their subjects. Honestly, homework is just a normal part of our school culture that it's hard to imagine school life without it. I think part of the fact that we still have so
nuch homework is that it's just expected. Say a kid goes home without homework, the parent questions why that is so. They complain. Some might go to the extent of calling and querying the teacher. They'd rather that the kid spends the time at home studying than just doing something else like playing and having a more balanced life. Education matters a lot around here, thar almost nothing comes close.
But basically, homework is there to help you study and retain the topics. Sometimes, just listening to a teacher lecture for hours a day just won't cut it. You've probably heard the adage that it's better to study in short bursts rather than doing it all at once. Getting homework means you'll be forced to look at the subject outside of class and, therefore, have a better chance of actually retaining the information or skill. Students need to understand the subjects away from class.
Personally, I don't think homework is a bad idea, but I think we need to severely limit how much homework can be given. I mean, it's terrible, yet common practice that after a student spends hours in school, they're bombarded with so much work to take home and to finish up in little time. Makes you wonder if anyone has considered how the other areas or the student's life fares. Around here, especially for students in primary schools, I've mostly felt like it's not just about making the students give some time to study at home but about them finishing up with filling their workbooks.
As a home educator, I always felt for the kids I tutored and aided. Most of them closed from school by 3 pm or 4 pm. They'd get home, barely spend 20-30mins eating and freshening up before they make their ways to mine for study. And boy, did we spend most of our time rushing through homework. Before you'd say jack, it was nightfall, and they'd all have to rush home and hit their beds. The cycle continued. I try my best to ensure that we incorporated other activities into our schedule so we could meet a balance cause I felt the whole working was dysfunctional.
It's unfair that after an 8-hour school day (plus whatever extracurriculars), kids then come home and sit down for 3+ hours and continue working. We wouldn't accept that as working adults, so why do we find it acceptable for our students? Homework should be limited to either just completing classwork or a short assignment that they can work on throughout the week.
Homework helps, so it shouldn't be scrapped off. There should just be some consideration and adjustments made to the system.
Thanks for gracing this post.
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