French president pushing homework ban as part of ed reforms

[Dave_Berry]

"How do you think this would go over in the United States? French President François Hollande has said he will end homework as part of a series of reforms to overhaul the country’s education system.

And the reason he wants to ban homework?

He doesn’t think it is fair that some kids get help from their parents at home while children who come from disadvantaged families don’t. It’s an issue that goes well beyond France, and has been part of the reason that some Americans oppose homework too." ...

French president pushing homework ban as part of ed reforms

[Stressn]

For the U.S., it'd more likely be a story in The Onion.

[MaterMia]

I believe I read that French students go to school until late afternoon - like 5:30 PM - if that's true, that may also be a reason.

[atomom]

The article said 8:30-4:30 is usual (some students stay later.) But they only go to school 4 days a week. They are talking about increasing to 4.5 days.

[livesinnewjersey]

This is from the country where it's mandated 5 weeks vacation, + 2 weeks if you work 39 hours a week, + 10 holidays... Oh to be French...

[xiggi]

Banning all homework would never work in the US, but it is a shame that a very workable aternative cannot be implemented because we sold our academic souls to the NEA and AFT.

The alternative? Two to three hours of teachers led study rooms. No teacher takes work home. No kid takes work home.

No more excuses. And no more pretenses of long evenings of work.

But complete utopia.

[compmom]

I would favor eliminating homework through middle school. I have been told by elementary school teachers that homework is really just to keep kids away from tv and other distractions. I think it's healthier for younger kids to have free time, and family life is greatly affected by homework. Kids can read on their own, play, make things....In middle school, so much is going on with young bodies and minds that I would be happy if they just ate and slept!

In high school, there is a lot of reading involved, so that is hard to do in school. However, I do like the idea of the flipped classroom (introduced by Kahn Academy; at least, that is where I first heard it) where kids read the lesson and then do the work in class, and a teacher can help them.

Here in the U.S., everything is about the "race to the top." Start early, cram as much into a day as you can, succeed. I don't think quality of education really results, in the end, and that more down time would help maintain creativity and inner resources that are needed for life.

[xiggi]

Cram as much as one can could be greatly reduced by dropping a lot of the filler time and BS activities.

Again wishful thinking and utopia. Too bad because it would be nice to see how schools stack up when ALL the instruction HAS to come within the four corners of the school and given by ... the teachers. We know that without parental assistance and hired mercenaries, the result would be abysmal, but we cannot hope to rebuild our education system until we really realize how abysmal it is.

[cobrat]

I have been told by elementary school teachers that homework is really just to keep kids away from tv and other distractions.

Ha! I was able to complete my homework with perfect marks while taking in my daily dose of afternoon cartoons like Woody Woodpecker, Bugs Bunny, and the Transformers. And this was while attending a Catholic elementary school as the local public school students' homework was less in quantity and rigor.

If that was the purpose of elementary school homework...it certainly failed with everyone I knew in my NYC neighborhood and among classmates in middle/high school...including the academic superstars. They also had no problems completing elementary school homework while watching the weekday afternoon cartoons.

[Marsian]

compmom -- I totally agree!

[CTScoutmom]

Like it's really going to make a difference? So you don't have formal assignment. That just frees up more time for the affluent parents to get extra help for their kids! If the homework is meaningful, and supports what is learned in class, and the kids are performing at an appropriate level, parental assistance shouldn't make a difference.

[geeps20]

meaningful homework is the key....kids should be spending more time outside, exercising, exploring, being a kid.

[cromette]

Ugh. If I had it to do all over again, I would do everything I could to try and homeschool my kids through elementary and maybe even through junior high.

I hate what's happening in public schools.

It's all "homework".

[zoosermom]

I can't imagine what my son would do without homework. He has a lot of reading assigned and I don't think his education would be complete without it.

Also, maybe he's not as bright as some, because he requires practice in the spelling of words in his foreign language, and in some math topics, as well. He also has writing assignments on a regular basis that I think have improved his writing ability, as well. I guess some kids, like mine, require practice to perfect various academic skills.

[Catria]

I know there's something wrong with how homework is made. Assigning too many is a major problem encountered by so many. And I believe it is OK to assign homework but we have to be careful in how to design homework.

Now, if homework was part of multi-subject projects, homework is better.