If there are teachers out there reading this please answer. Why so much homework? Families need time too.?

Question

Many kids grades go down because of their homework not being done. Why must kids have so much homework? In school all day and then their evenings are spent with their nose in the books. Kids need family time too. Some also have responsibilities at home. Some are from single parent families. If a person has more than 1 child it is so stressful to try to help. After working all day it is hard to come home after working, get dinner, do laundry, some of us are also still in "school". We are trying our best to be competent, caring & patient parents. Could we have your cooperation and be more considerate of us too.

This question is in regard to elementary students. Of course not all do but as we prepare dinner we are incorporating math etc.

Should a 9-10 yr. old need to be spending 3-4 hrs. sitting doing homework.

Answer 1

I'm a retired teacher with 30 years experience. I never gave homework! But not so much because of the reasons you gave, but because, I believe:

1) I teach at school; parents teach at home.
2) You cannot give anything other than "busy" work, or repetition, when you give homework.
3) So many kids do not bother doing their homework, at least in the inner city where I was.
4) It's hard enough to get kids to do their work in class! How do you expect me to get them to do it at home?
5) If you try to teach something new in your homework, then the kids who do their homework might or might not understand it, so how can I help them then? And because so many don't do there homework, I end up teaching the same thing again in class, thus boring the "good" kids who did their homework! It's unfair; you end up "punishing" kids who did their work at home, because you just have to do it all over again in class.
6) I strongly believe that schools are NOT responsible for what goes on outside the classroom, and to require that teachers give out homework, and many do, and then punish the TEACHER who doesn't give out homework....well, my gosh, is there ANY LIMIT on how much you expect out of TEACHERS???? We are literally being OVERWHELMED by the responsibilities of our job, and people STILL demand more and more from us. There is a LIMIT on how much I can do in one day! Remember, I already have 160 kids EACH DAY.
7) Let kids be kids while they can! THIS IS NOT COLLEGE! They will soon grow up. Kids are special, and different from adults. It is a special time for all people, something you can only experience ONE TIME. TEACHERS! stop being so overbearing by requiring all of the kids time.
8) The only course which SHOULD have homework is math. Because so much depends on repetition in that subject. Any other subject -- with the possible exception of "reading" assignments.
9) Schools are as much about socialization as they are about education. But there are things beyond are control.
10) Kids cheat. How can a teacher give them credit, when most homework is done by people copying other peoples homework? You might be surprised how many kids cheat nowadays! And to make matters worse, MOST homework is done while the teacher is talking, for example, lecturing. So they use that time to either do their homework or copy somebody's paper, instead of listening to the teacher explain the new lesson. That's a VERY big problem. So when you're kid comes home and says he already did his homework, it may well be the truth: he did it when he should have been listening to his TEACHER.

I'll say this: The average teacher only "lasts" 4 years, because it is such an overwhelming, stressful, complex job. They just give up and say it is impossible. Someday you will have a shortage of teachers, and it won't be because of the money, it will be because society has made teachers responsible for everybody and everything under the sun. It is becoming an "impossible" job. Parents should stop coming in and blaming teachers for everything wrong with their own kid! That happens much to often! And it only makes the teachers' job more frustrating and difficult.

Look at it this way: If you had a 40 hour per week job, say in assembly where you make some simple parts, and your employer told you to take home some supplies and make a couple hundred more parts on your own time, without getting paid, would you do it?

Answer 2

I'm not a teacher either, but I heard on a talk radio show the other day, the listeners got a chance to talk, and they said teachers only teach 3 1/2 hours during the school day. So if your child is being taught just 3 1/2 hours couldn't they get some of their school work done in their study halls, or on the bus? Learning is very important and so are the grades, and it's my understanding that America's schools are failing, the kids aren't up to par. I don't know what the answer is. Maybe "family time" is "study time". You study when they do.

Answer 3

I am an American teacher at an international school in Taiwan. Here, parents are constantly asking for more homework. It is a normal part of student culture to go to school all day, then go to 2 hours of a special English school or "cram" school (for test prep) and then one hour of music lessons. Then, at around 8pm, the sit down and do 3 hours of homework.
I'll admit, this is a little too intense, and the emotional and social maturity level of a lot of Asians is low because of a lack of social interactions. Yet, at the same time, i like that they place such an importance on education.
About 90percent of my students complete all their homework daily.
I believe most Americans need to put more of a stress on education, but find more of a "middle ground" between most Asian and American systems.

Answer 4

Just how much homework is too much? The ability to do school work and study outside of school is essential for students who want to go on to college. Unfortunately, many students are so disruptive in the classroom that it is difficult for them, and their classmates, to learn, or for the teacher to teach them adequately. In high school, homework should average at least 3-4 hours a day. Your child gets out of school around 3 o'clock giving him 6-7 hours to do homework and socialize before going to bed at 9:00 -10:pm. Yes, a good night of sleep is essential to doing well in school.

When you have kids, part of your parental responsibility is to teach them good work habits. Too much time spent 'playing' and not learning, will lead to your kid having the sort of low paying job that will mean working long hours just to pay the bills. If you want your child to have time for his/her family, encourage studying. Stop helping your child feel as if he/she is right, and the teacher is wrong. Making your child feel antagonistic to school hurts your child in the long run.

Answer 5

Too much is not good, I agree. But how do you want people to learn things if they don't have homework? What's more, your kids should be able to do their homework on their own, and you should only help them in case they really don't get it. that's the whole point: so that they figure things out ON THEIR OWN!

How about mathematics: if you don't do exercises, you won't improve. Etc...

Answer 6

I am not a teacher but I agree. I mean we already spend 8 hours of our day 5 days a week in school. We need time to do what we want to do.

Answer 7

Wow, I was just watching something on the news about "too much homework" that is ridiculous. Also, studies have found that too much homework does not improve their learning abilities or even make them smarter........

Answer 8

Kid's grades are going down because they get EASY answers here!