Too Much Homework ?

Homework is an accepted part of children’s coursework, starting as early as first grade. But how much is too much?

Homework -- the traditional bane of a school-age child's existence -- is once again coming under fire. Some influential researchers say homework does little to improve a student's academic abilities. Others believe homework is excessive, and doing more harm than good.

The National PTA suggests children in kindergarten through second grade receive 10-20 minutes of homework each night. In grades three through six, that recommended amount increases to 30-60 minutes nightly. In middle and high school, the amount depends on the number and level of difficulty of classes a student takes.

At the turn of the century, homework was actually outlawed in some areas because it was considered child labor. The theory was to simply let kids be kids. But Sputnik and the space race changed everything. Almost overnight, educators were scrambling to fill the "education gap" with the Soviet Union.

Nine-year-old Andrew has so much homework that his stepmother, a teacher herself, says, “at times it is overwhelming.” Every day, including weekends, the fourth grader has at least 1½ hours of work to do. Some days it takes him two hours or more to finish up. Not surprisingly, this workload has dampened his enthusiasm for school.

A retired school teacher is spreading a message most students would agree with – kids in Alberta have too much homework.
“There’s huge amount of stress on families. And I see homework as the icing on the family stress cake,” said Vera Goodman, a Calgary-based author with more than 30 years of teaching behind her.

Some teachers sometimes overdo the work load. All factors need to be considered and sometimes teachers forget to do that.

And for every parent who thinks there's too much homework, however, there is another who feels her child needs more.