The Homework Battle
This is @edpsychprof's newsletter for those interested in transforming schools to become places where children (and adults) can thrive.
Twitter holds great fascination for me. I haven’t figured it out yet, though I suspect great connections and dialogue can happen there. I did get a little taste of this today though, when in my feed I saw this:
I had just finished editing the chapter on homework in my forthcoming book, and so, even though I was inclined to scroll on by, I replied to Rua’s post:
And then another parent replied back:
That, to me, is the potential for Twitter. To share our struggles, get help, and support each other on the difficult journey that is life. Still, I haven’t made much inroads to the Twitterverse of conversation. Any suggestions?
As I mentioned in my Twitter reply above, I have strong opinions about homework. Sometimes, it helps to think outside the context of schooling to help understand if what is going on K-12 schools is reasonable and, dare I say it, beneficial for kids. I like using sports as an analogy (which makes no sense since I’m one of the least sports-minded people I know), but in this case, I think the workplace is a good example. Do we expect most workers to go home, after an 8 hour day, and keep working? No, not unless there is some big project due or overtime involved. We would think that a company did that was cruel and in violation of labor laws.
Why then do we normalize homework for kids? Research itself shows that it is really not that helpful anyway. In my last newsletter, I promised you a sneak peak of my book….
I know--you’ve probably seen this already! I’ve already leaked the cover on social media, shared it on Facebook page , and put it on my website. But what I haven’t done anywhere else is share any of the book content. So here you go, my wonderful newsletter subscribers (do you know how much I appreciate you? Without you, I’d be “talking to the walls,” as my mom would say). A snippet from my draft chapter on homework:
I would love to hear your thoughts, if only to reinforce that I am not, literally, talking to the walls.
Big hugs,
Michele
I would love to hear your thoughts. Who knows what good we can do together?
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