The Homework Myth by Alfie Kohn

amother ↓

Tue, Dec 02 2008, 10:29 pm

I was wondering if anybody else on imamother has read this book. The author goes through a review of the literature on the subject of homework and finds that, certainly for early elementary grades, there is absolutely no empirical support for homework having any positive value whatsoever and in fact, may have a negative effect on children. I think that he may have a point.

My first grader has approximately an hour of homework every night. He has to 1) review math flashcards 2) review sight reading word flashcards 3) do miscellaneous homework sheets for limudei chol 4) practice kriah 5)review several psukim in chumash. Over the course of two months, he went from a child who loved school and learning new things to being completely soured, and I can't say that I blame him. He is a 6 year old child who is at school from 7:45 in the morning until he gets off the bus at 4 PM, then he's expected to put in ANOTHER hour at home after he's already had a full 8 hour day "at the office"?!! It's not so great for our family life, either. Next year, I'll have 4 children in elementary school, and I have no idea how we're supposed to manage 4 sets of homework, each of which requires parental involvement and supervision. When do we have supper? When will the kids (gasp) play? When will they take baths? When will I cook dinner? When do we just get to enjoy family time during the week? What if one (or more) of the children actually wanted an extra-curricular activity - a sport, violin, dance, etc.?

I suppose I'd find this easier to swallow if I really believed that their educational achievement will be higher because of all this, but I don't (and my skepticism seems to be supported by Kohn). I had the great good fortune of attending one of the very best prep schools in the U.S., a school which sends over half of its graduates to the Ivies. I had no homework until 5th grade, and the homework given from 5th grade on was meaningful and limited. For example, there were no busy work sheets of math problems, rather the teacher might assign one or two challenging problems. Sometimes the homework would be to "think" about a particular issue or problem or subject. Papers and special projects were assigned with some regularity, but I generally found them to be fun. Somehow the school provided an excellent education and instilled a love of learning without sacrificing the home life and outside interests of its students. Somehow, I managed to go to an Ivy, graduate with high honors, and succeed in my professional life even though I didn't do a lick of homework in first grade (or 2, 3, or 4). Yes, yes, I know that religious schools have to cover more subjects, but there's not THAT much difference. My DS is in school an hour and a half longer than I was, daily, plus Sundays, and some subjects that I had, he does not, so it is really sort of a wash. It seems like an awful lot of pressure for a kid who was still taking an afternoon nap a year ago. If it really is going to take more than 8 hours a day 6 days a week for a kid to learn the curriculum, then maybe we need to rethink the curriculum.

I think his teachers have all the best intentions in the world, but I have to wonder if any of them ever actually considered and researched the issue of whether or not homework in 1st grade is a good idea.

ffbmom

Wed, Dec 03 2008, 4:43 am

I think what Alfie Kohn is talking about it full day programmes, not half day Jewish day schools. I send homework home strictly for practice. We just don't have the time to consolidate the concepts in school. That way the kids get to practice at home. This is especially true for math. No homework should ever be sent home that has not been taught in school. Also, kids need clear guidance as to what is expected for homework. No child should spend one hour doing homework in grade one. What is the school policy? She is going to be burnt out before she begins and then starts to hate school. Please do your child a favour and speak to the teacher and ask her to minimize her load. Instead of doing a whole page in math, she can see if she knows it by doing five questions. I think it is a bit different if a child is struggling at school and needs to practice more with her parents at home in order to keep up with the class.

alpidarkomama

Wed, Dec 03 2008, 5:40 am

I think 8+ hours at school and 1 hour of homework for a 6-year-old is awful. My daughter is 5-1/2. She would absolutely wilt. We learn at home and love it. We can get plenty of kodesh studies done in 1.5 hours and our basic chol (reading/writing/math) done in 45 minutes. Any science, art, etc. we do in addition is icing on the cake. The biggest advantage is we have no wasted time. We can also dwell longer on an idea if she hasn't quite grasped it, or skip right along if she gets it right away. I really don't understand how a teacher can truly teach al pi darko with 15-30 kids in a class.

We generally learn at home 10:00-1:00 any day that papa is at work, with kodesh only on Fridays. If we don't get to everything, we can put it off to the weekend, or just pick it up again on Monda. My oldest (the 5-1/2-year-old) is reading at a 2nd-grade level (English) and is zooming along in kriyah too. Loves parsha study and has a really high retention of all the details. Those good middos get nurtured every moment of the day. We also study tefillah, tznius, mitzvos, melachos, chagim... We have a weekly parsha/music/art class that I offer free to a couple of her friends so we have a little chevra here for 3 hours.

In schools I've taught in before, 15 minutes per night was generally considered appropriate for a 1st grader. IMHO, none is more appropriate. Smile

I think I would feel ill if I were in your position. I know the light would go right out of my daughter. She has so much room to breathe, and follow her own interests after we've covered the basics. And just go play outside and look at the grass. Our lives are busy (with kids 5, 3, 2, & 1), but not crazy busy. Just pleasant.

I really enjoyed Alfie Kohn's Unconditional Parenting (I think that's the right title...) when I read it quite a while ago and it really shaped a lot of my ideas about discipline and complemented a lot of what I'd already been doing as a classroom teacher for many years.

↑ avigailmiriam ↓

Wed, Dec 03 2008, 5:46 am

yy wrote:

Have you read or seen anything by Alfie Kohn? He makes a very persuasive argument, and he is far from the only one to hold his anti-homework view. I think a lot of people feel that kids need to "get used to" homework, but my opinion is that each new school year brings new expectations, and when the time is right for some homework, kids will be fine with it even if they didn't do it in first grade.

And if they have been doing homework since first grade, they may be burnt out and bitter by the time they get to the older grades... when some (not too much) homework could actually be useful.

I have seen Alfie Kohn's work. We do not agree in all respects.

↑ leomom

Wed, Dec 03 2008, 11:09 am

avigailmiriam wrote:

yy wrote:

I have seen Alfie Kohn's work. We do not agree in all respects.

Fair enough! I think that, as in most things, there is a range of valid approaches. As long as a child is thriving and his/her needs (including need for downtime) are being met, it's good.

Based on my children's particular personalities, I've seen how school time plus homework time affects their overall happiness and the mood in our home. That's why I'm a proponent of little to no homework.

Fox ↓

Wed, Dec 03 2008, 1:08 pm

OP, you're singing my song! I'm not familiar with Mr. Kohn's books, but much of the research he presents was widely available when I was in graduate school, and subsequent research has reached similar conclusions.

It is true that there is some benefit to practicing arithmetic/math problems, but even that increase in proficiency is less than you might imagine. Independent projects for older children are, as other posters have said, a different matter.

I cannot tell you how much respect I have lost over the years for teachers and principals in both Jewish and non-Jewish schools who avidly defend homework. Here are some of the excuses I've heard over the years:

"Because of the dual curriculum, students don't have time to practice at school."
Really? Then how do single curriculum schools that have 2-4 hours less per day manage? The local public school near my home runs from 9 a.m. through 2:30 p.m. and offers daily gym and some kind of "elective" on a daily basis. Yet our children are in school from as early as 8:15 a.m. through 4 or 5 p.m. -- the actual instructional hours are roughly the same. I have asked this question repeatedly and have never received a reasonable answer.

"Students need to have lots of homework because they'll have even more in high school."
Why do students need to "get used" to doing homework? Do we make our 4th graders take paid employment so they'll "get used" to the requirements of the workplace? Based on previous imamother threads, that might have been more beneficial for some people! Do we insist our 8th graders pay us rent so that they'll "get used" to being responsible for providing food and shelter? There are plenty of things people might need to "get used" to doing, but homework hardly seems like the most pressing!

"Homework teaches responsibility."
There is no quantitative data to back this claim up, and I've seen virtually no anecdotal data, either. It's probably true if -- and only if -- the homework can be seen by the students to help them learn. Usually, however, the assignments simply seem capricious and more concerned with meeting the requirement of homework than actual learning.

"Lot's of homework keeps kids from getting into trouble."
If this were true, we should see fewer "at-risk" or "off-the-derech" kids among schools that pride themselves on giving heavy homework loads. However, that seems not to be the case.

"Homework is the child's responsibility, not the parents."
So why do my children's schools have official homework "blackout" on evenings scheduled for parent/teacher conferences, fundraising dinners, and other events that take parents away from home en masse. If parents are truly not needed for homework, why would it matter whether they are home or not?

In the final analysis, I'm not sure what bothers me more, the ridiculous homework assignments I have to monitor or the fact that my children's schools think I am really so stupid as to buy into the homework nonsense. On top of that is the relentless drumbeat that we must inculcate our children with respect for their teachers. I agree, but it would be a whole lot easier if the schools didn't pursue policies that can't be justified on any basis whatsoever -- scientific, logical, historical, mesorah, etc.

Ultimately, homework is simply a weapon in the war for status: "Our school is more rigorous than other schools! Look how much homework we give!" Three of my children are extremely diligent about homework; two are less so. But they -- and our family -- have all been korbanos in this sad and pitiful game.

↑ avigailmiriam ↓

Wed, Dec 03 2008, 1:15 pm

Fox wrote:

.
"Students need to have lots of homework because they'll have even more in high school."
Why do students need to "get used" to doing homework? Do we make our 4th graders take paid employment so they'll "get used" to the requirements of the workplace? Based on previous Imamother threads, that might have been more beneficial for some people! Do we insist our 8th graders pay us rent so that they'll "get used" to being responsible for providing food and shelter? There are plenty of things people might need to "get used" to doing, but homework hardly seems like the most pressing!

Well, my parents required me to earn my own spending money from the time I was a kid, ditto for my siblings, so we learned how to work for money. My sisters and brother and I would bid (like a contractor submits bids) for jobs around the household. It was great, we really learned the value of money and it was fun. I started working as a babysitter at 12. I don't think it's a bad thing for kids to learn to work for their own spending money when they're a child.

↑ amother ↓

Wed, Dec 03 2008, 1:23 pm

Hey, I totally relate! Not as a parent, but as a former student - I HAAAAATED homework, never saw the point, but because I was VERY conscientious, had needless stress because of it throughout my childhood. Since I was conditioned from when I was young to relate school with busy-work and drudgery, I lost the ability to truly respect my teachers, even when I was older and maybe could have related to them more maturely. The whole school system just seemed like a war between the teachers (task masters) and the students. And I was a good student. I did my homework and got good grades, but hated and mocked every minute of it.

Now that I am older and out of school, I can honestly say that although I have experienced some deep suffering in life which I never imagined would happen to me, I have never again had to deal with the deadening frustration of an endless stream of repetitive, pointless work. And I wouldn't accept it now - using my adult power, if I had a job that treated me that way, I would quit in a minute.

Oh, and I am also a teacher. And I DO NOT EVER give homework like that - only projects that provoke thought and creativity. Once my principal told me to keep a class of mine busy with busywork (while I did something else I needed to do). I refused on principle and let them do whatever they wanted (they were in highschool, old enough to do this safely and also more productively than if I would have forced some arbitrary task on them).

Repetitive "practice" homework = evil, more or less.

Oh and it did not help me be better at organizing my time later in life. If anything, I had lots of practice procrastinating.

↑ Fox ↓

Wed, Dec 03 2008, 1:24 pm

avigailmiriam wrote:

I think that's great, but working for your parents around the house for spending money is not what I mean by "the workplace" -- I'm making an analogy showing that we are significantly inconsistent when we give homework for the sole purpose of preparing students for . . . more homework!

However, the point you bring up is another reason I despise the homework mill: I realize that boys must be careful of issues of bitul Torah and all teenagers must be careful of tznius issues, but the fact that most frum teenagers have very limited experience in the workplace is a major, major problem. I am not counting babysitting, camp counseling, and other jobs that -- while they may be very demanding -- do not require kids to learn about the basic expectations of employers. I would much prefer my DDs to have practical work experience rather than translating an extra Ramban!

↑ HindaRochel ↓

Wed, Dec 03 2008, 1:33 pm

avigailmiriam wrote:

Fox wrote:

Your parents never bought you presents, treats etc?
My kids have chores; they don't bid. The older ones have also worked for their spending money, but we still get them treats and such. Sometimes the treat is a reward for helping, for example they get themselves a small candy or treat from the Makolet when they go up the hill for me. And a friend wants to trade babysitting for art lessons for my daughter, thought that is completely up to her.

But clothes, food stuff like that is all my obligation.