Do you think it is a good idea for a teacher to only post homework on the internet?

Question

Sometimes our Internet goes down and my daughter's history teacher puts the homework on the net. If she can't get it, she can't do it and therefore she will lose marks in class. What do you think?

Answer 1

Concerned parents should petition the principal of the school to force this teacher and other teachers to issue homework on paper, as a back up system.

Here's why:

1) Not everyone can afford a computer - many disadvantaged students belong to families on welfare / foodstamps / etc.

2) Computers are subject to the constraints of the networks to which they are subscribed, as was mentioned earlier. Students have no control when a network goes down.

3) Computers run on electricity - if power fails, you're out of luck.

4) If a teacher posts an assignment late in the day / evening, it reduces the amount of time that a student has to respond to that assignment. Homework that is assigned during class allows a student to work on it as soon as opportunity allows.

I suspect that what is happening here is that this teacher, and perhaps other teachers in this school, are burned out and have lost their passion for teaching. They stop writing lesson plans in advance, as is required by most good schools. Since they have no day-to-day plans written down, they don't figure out what the homework is until they get home from school. That's unfair to you, your daughter and the other students in her class.

Try an experiment: at the end of Monday (next Monday) have your daughter ask the history teacher for the homework assignments for the remainder of the week. I'm willing to bet your daughter gets one of two answers: 1) that's not according to protocol so we don't do that in this class, or 2) I give homework out on a daily basis, not weekly.

If I'm right, the teacher may be burned out. Someone should tell him or her to be a man (or a lady) and get out of the profession and make room for another instructor who is willing to do the job correctly and fairly.

In the meantime, you and / or a committee of other parents in your daughter's class should share your concern with the principal. If the principal balks and digs in his / her heels, then you go higher up the food chain - the superintendent. They are sensitive to politics, and are not anxious to blow off parents who vote.

A committee of parents spreads out the concern and magnifies it, so it doesn't focus just on you. Teachers have been known to retaliate - a committee of parents makes it harder for a teacher to single out a child for punishishment.

Also consider touching base with the local PTA - but tread carefully - there's a lot of politics involved with many of these groups.

Answer 2

I think that just because your internet goes down, doesn't mean your phone goes down, too. It should be no problem to call up another kid in her class and ask them what the homework was.
Heck, I bet if you told the teacher what the problem was (it'd be better if YOU tell her and not your daughter, so it doesn't just look like an excuse) she/he might even give you her/his number in case of that problem. Or, make other special arrangements, like stopping by for 30seconds after class and the teacher will tell her the HW. She could even try using the public/school library if this problem is that big.

If she is completely not able to get the homework, YOU should write the teacher a note the night of the problem, explaining the situation. I'm sure the teacher will not take points off, especially if she doesn't miss much else homework-wise.

Answer 3

I would ask for a private conference with the teacher. And I would contact some of your daughters former teachers from last year or the year before and ask them to write letters of recommendation to the new teacher who can't quite believe a girl her age can be doing work at this level. When you go to meet with the teacher, tell her that in your family, education is a high priority, and you demand that your children respect their teachers. Continue by saying you are aware that your daughter has already been called out in class, and you're there to figure out the facts and see how things can be smoothed over so that your daughter has a good and productive year with the teacher. This approach is VERY important, because you don't want the teacher to feel like she's on the defensive. You want to show her that you're on her side (and your daughter's) and your goal is a GOOD educational year between them, not problems. When the teacher explains that she's been teaching X number of years and has never once seen a project like your daughters that hasn't been cheating -- which is more than likely the case -- you should nod empathetically. Then say, "I absolutely understand your concern and believe me, we have a strict NO CHEATING rule in our house. We expect all our children to do their own work and we even supervise their homework very closely to make sure they are doing it. For this particular project, I supervised my daughter by ___ and ___ and ____...." Then say, "I suppose there aren't many parents who go to such lengths, but education is just so important in our family, I feel it's the right thing to do. I assure you, this project is my daughter's work. I know it may be hard for you to believe because you don't see work like this too often, so I've taken the liberty of bringing you some letters from my daughter's former teachers. They will attest to her hard work and dedication to doing well in school." Finish up with, "My daughter really wants to earn your respect. How can we proceed from here? Then listen. Listen carefully. Take notes. Repeat back what you hear the teacher say, as in, "So what I understand you to be saying is _____ -- is that right?" Things should be okay. Maybe the teacher was having a bad day or whatever. Once she meets with you and sees how dedicated you are to education -- and believe me, that's an unfortunate rarity these days!!! -- she will probably be very respectful. There's a chance, though, that it wasn't just one bad day. She might be burned out or bitter about something. She might not be where she needs to be as a teacher. The best you can do is record what she says and give it a little time to see if things work out. If not, and if the problems continue, have another meeting with the teacher, and if there is no satisfaction on your part, go meet with the principal. A principal can't know there's a problem with a teacher unless parents speak up. Good luck -- you're a great mom and your daughter sounds like the kind of student I would have treasured when I was still teaching!

Answer 4

Well, a lot more teachers are using the internet to post homework and assignments these days. So, if your internet goes down frequently, I'd try to get a different internet service provider if possible. Some of the benefits of using the internet is saving paper! But, the teacher should give at least 48 hours for people to access the assignment on the net, incase their internet goes down. That's what my college professors do.
You can take your daughter to your local library to get internet access if it's a lot of marks that she's loosing and your internet is down.
good luck!

Answer 5

In college it is great, but I have a lab I can walk into at anytime to access the Internet. Also my homework is more weekly than daily.

But for lower level education, how can a teacher expect every child to have an Internet connection? At my hometown, not everyone even had a computer.

As a help for you, often the library will have free Internet access. I think that creating any physical difficulties of learning is wrong. It is hard enough without adding to the difficulties.

Answer 6

I think it's a lousy idea. It's a nice addition but to count on the internet alone is silly. Sometimes kids get stuck somewhere, and have their backpack, and should be able to do homework. And not every family has the internet or "friendly" ways to share it among siblings.

Answer 7

Definitely not. The primary place to issue homework is in the classroom, and posting it online should be considered secondary. If this is a "problem" for the teacher, I think you should ask him to print out his homework post for his students, at least for those who ask for one.

If he does not agree to that, then I'm sure a chat with the principle will straighten that issue out. Try talking to the teacher first though or sending a note with your child.

Answer 8

I don't agree with it, but the web has gotten increasingly accessible. If she does it earlier in the day, she could work on it in her public library. However, you should definitely make the teacher aware of your situation, because it is unfair to assume that everyone has service in their home.

Answer 9

I think it is a horrible idea -- what a crappy assumption that every child has a computer (unless the school supplied them). I would have that teacher in front of the principal immediately.

Answer 10

well not everyone even has the Internet, so its probably best to let them know what they need to complete on a syllabus piece of paper and it should be given to the student and the parent.