No kid really likes doing homework. It’s the most tiring thing to do at the end of a long day at school, especially when you just want to relax or play with your friends. Unfortunately, educational institutions nowadays seem to be piling on schoolwork.
This concerned mom noticed that her first-grade son was at his breaking point because of the amount of classwork he received on his second day of school. Her heartfelt post resonated with many, and people began questioning why we need such a system at all.
More info: Facebook
Cassi Nelson posted a picture of her son in tears while he was completing all the homework he got
Image credits: Cassi Nelson
She said that even after the first-grader returned from school after 4 p.m. he had to sit and complete another hour of classwork
Image credits: Jena Backus / Pexels (not the actual photo)
She noticed how her son was bursting with so much energy and just wanted to go out and play, but instead, he was in tears because he kept getting distracted and couldn’t finish his work
Image credits: Cassi Nelson
The mom ranted about how research shows that homework is unnecessary, she also said she couldn’t understand how little kids are expected to do more work after all their school hours
Schoolwork is important because it helps kids practice the concepts they learned during the day. However, the National Education Association has specified that first-grade students should do 10 minutes of homework daily. Those 10 minutes should be then multiplied by the student’s grade level. Which means that a 6th grader should have an hour of schoolwork to do.
Based on Cassi’s post, schools are clearly not following this time limit. The National Center for Education Statistics observed that high school students spend nearly 6.8 hours doing homework every week. This is a shocking amount of time that children could instead use for relaxation, play, or spending time with their family and friends.
Understandably, teachers and educational institutions might believe that more assignments can lead to better learning. However, a study found that after four hours of homework per week, the additional time invested has almost no impact on a student’s performance. That goes to show that giving kids more schoolwork is not actually helping them beyond a certain point.
To get an educator’s perspective on this situation, Bored Panda contacted Trevor Muir, a teacher, speaker, and author who has gained international recognition for his innovative teaching methods and informative content. He uses his podcast, The Epic Classroom, to help educators create a more memorable and transformational classroom.
Trevor told us that: “Homework is a relic of the past, something that has been done simply because it was part of teachers’ upbringing. I believe that students should be given little, if any, homework. Like adults, kids need free time away from school and academic work. Research shows that homework has minimal impact on student learning, so it should not be taking up kids' time outside of school.”
“This is especially true for elementary students. While I'm fine with teachers suggesting practice or reading at home, I don't think it should be required or expected. Similarly, I don't think teachers should be expected to take work home with them, and the same should apply to their students,” he added.
As Cassi also mentioned in her post, her son could have been playing or spending time with his family, but instead, he was struggling through four pages of schoolwork. Research finds that many children find homework too stressful and time-consuming, which is probably why the first-grader was in tears.
Image credits: Drazen Zigic / Freepik (not the actual photo)
Cassi ended her heartfelt post by asking if institutions could “cancel so much unnecessary homework. Especially for the younger kids.” Even though it’s easy to understand why she brought up that point, changing an entire system requires a lot of effort and time.
Trevor shared that “Teachers should provide enough time in class for students to complete all their work. If a reasonable amount of time is given, and students use that time wisely, then nothing should need to be brought home. If students do not use that time wisely, then the work can become homework. However, I believe that 7.5 to 8 hours of school per day is enough.”
In case it’s becoming troublesome, experts state that concerned parents can make a small difference by first determining how much time their kids are actually spending on homework. Parents need to observe whether the child is getting distracted while working or using a device during their study time. Once they’ve figured out the actual time spent on classwork, they can then approach the school teacher.
Parents should share their concerns about the school’s homework policies without being overly confrontational toward the class teacher. Teachers can help create individualized plans or collaborate with the parents to help take pressure off their students.
The first step is for parents to realize the impact that too much schoolwork can have on their young children. Cassi shared this experience to draw folks' attention toward practices that need to change. Her observation resonated with many people, and the viral post got 20k reactions, 91k shares, and many comments calling for less or no homework.
Many teachers responded to the post and shared how they promote learning without saddling children with too many assignments
