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Homework has been a long-standing tradition in education, believed to reinforce learning and

academic success. However, in recent years, there has been a growing concern about the
effectiveness and impact of homework on students. Alfie Kohn, an American author and lecturer on
education, has been a vocal critic of homework and its role in education. In his book, \"The
Homework Myth,\" Kohn challenges the commonly held beliefs about homework and presents a
compelling argument against its use.

In his book, Kohn argues that homework does not actually improve academic performance and can
even have negative effects on students. He believes that the pressure to complete homework can lead
to stress, anxiety, and a lack of interest in learning. Kohn also argues that homework can widen the
achievement gap between students from different socioeconomic backgrounds, as those with more
resources and support are more likely to complete homework assignments.

One of Kohn's most famous quotes from \"The Homework Myth\" is, \"The more challenging the
task, the more likely it is to promote cheating among students who are under intense pressure to get
good grades.\" This quote highlights the idea that homework can create a competitive and stressful
environment, leading some students to resort to cheating in order to keep up with their peers.

Another quote from Kohn's book that challenges the traditional view on homework is, \"Homework
is a long-standing education tradition that, until recently, has seldom been seriously questioned.\"
This quote sheds light on the fact that homework has been accepted as a norm in education without
much critical examination of its effectiveness.

So, what can be done about the homework dilemma? Kohn suggests that instead of assigning
homework, teachers should focus on creating engaging and meaningful learning experiences in the
classroom. He also encourages parents to question the amount and purpose of their child's homework
and to advocate for less homework if necessary.

If you are a student struggling with the burden of homework, or a parent concerned about its impact
on your child, consider exploring Kohn's perspective further. And if you do find yourself
overwhelmed with homework, remember that there are resources available to help. ⇒ StudyHub.vip
⇔ is a reputable website that offers academic writing assistance, including help with homework
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of homework and focus on truly meaningful learning experiences.

In conclusion, Alfie Kohn's \"The Homework Myth\" challenges the traditional view on homework
and presents a thought-provoking argument against its use. Whether you agree or disagree with his
perspective, it is important to critically examine the role of homework in education and consider
alternative methods of promoting academic success. And if you do find yourself struggling with
homework, don't hesitate to seek help and support from resources like ⇒ StudyHub.vip ⇔.
One does wonder how one is to grade without homework however. Instead, our system considers
things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. Some seem to lack
the basic skills necessary to survive in a prep school environment. Second, the stress that tests create
in young children is particularly intense. We're told that young people receive trophies, praise, and
A's too easily, and suffer from inflated self-esteem and insufficient self-discipline. As a teacher, I'm
not a fan mainly because I'm a parent. What they have is a pile of bricks, and they don't have it for
long. My daughter, although still in high school, is taking a college course at a local community
college. A recent study published in The American Journal of Family Therapy. He breaks the content
into many chunks making it very easy to follow his ideas. Kohn's incisive analysis reveals how a
mistrust of children, a set of misconceptions about learning, and a misguided focus on
competitiveness have all left our kids with less free time and our families with more conflict. Them:
But there isn't enough time to do all that practice and cover the content. What I did feel good about
was the section where Kohn describes how we should rethink homework. None of it shows the
slightest connection between homework and independent thinking. It’s the experience of being
accepted without conditions that helps people develop a healthy confidence in themselves, a belief
that it’s safe to take risks and try new things.”. But in How Children Succeed, Paul Tough argues that
the qualities that matter most have more to do with character: skills like perseverance, curiosity,
conscientiousness, optimism, and self-control. Is learning regarded as a process that's active or
passive. I agree that young children should not have a lot of homework, but I do believe that children
should do work at home. Everyday we bow to its demands and plan our activities around it. Kohn's
complaints about HW: a burden to parents, stress for children, oh, I’m sorry, I thought school was
supposed to be work. And, ultimately, take that conversation to the principal and the district level.
Someone who thinks well of himself is said to have a healthy self-concept and is envied. Instead,
some places have more class time for instruction and support instead of encroaching upon the family.
All parents should read this book and understand the contents. This book helps to answer that
question, and it does so with solid research and with the children's best interests in mind. Every day
we are measured against the yardstick of averages, judged according to how close we come to it or
how far we deviate from it. We should do more for our kids, and we should stop treating them like if
they don't know anything at all! Here is a compilation of my discussions: Me: Why do we need
homework. Textbooks may not include supplemental items i.e. CDs, access codes etc. When 4th
graders in a variety of classroomswere asked what their teachers most wanted them to do, they didn’t
say, “Ask thoughtful questions” or “Make responsible decisions” or Help others.” They said, “Be
quiet, don’t fool around, and get our work done on time. ”.
Is it actually addressing the specific needs of every single student. The predictable results: stress and
conflict, frustration and exhaustion. As a teacher, I'm not a fan mainly because I'm a parent. It also
provides a powerful picture of the positive changes that can occur when we rethink our approach to
homework. While it's good to know I'm not alone (or crazy), it's frustrating not knowing what to do
about it. I don't give much homework, but that is because I don't believe in busy work; however, I
should have given more independent practice this past year, and that's something I intend to rectify
next year. How many parents have their children going to bed at 11:00 at night after just finishing
homework. We give students a brick of information, followed by another brick, followed by another
brick, until they are graduated, at which point we assume they have a house. He cites many sources,
as well as providing a list of those sources and about 40 pages of notes at the end of the text about
the cited research. These tests therefore do not produce an accurate picture of what children can do.
Is it about wrestling with ideas or following directions. This is a good book for any parent, student,
administrator or teacher as it provides a different point of view that questions why we do things even
when all evidence points to the contrary. I feel more empowers and justified in the education choices
I will now make for my children. We break ideas down into tiny pieces that bear no relation to the
whole. I don't have children of my own yet, but almost any mom or dad I talk to with kids in
elementary school will tell me that the homework their child comes home with is more work for the
parent than the kid, and not fun for anyone. Yet at the high school, she is in class for 35 hours a
week and has about 30 hours of homework assigned each week. I thought it made its point way
better than The Case Against Homework. 1 like Like Comment Amy 35 reviews 2 followers June
15, 2015 This book really made me think about my teaching. Someone who thinks well of his
country is called a patriot and is applauded. In some suburban schools, the curriculum is chock-full of
rigorous A.P. courses and the parking lot glitters with pricey SUVs, but one doesn't have to look hard
to find students who are starving themselves, cutting themselves, or medicating themselves, as well
students who are taking out their frustrations on those who sit lower on the social food chain.
American Psycholgist, January 1973: 1-14.) Some homework advocates point to benefit of increased
time on task, but Carole Ames, dean of col. Great title! Worth a read if it strikes your fancy. On one
hand, he does (in his style) provide a fair amount of literature citations, case study, and pedagogical
rationale for his thesis. Personally, I was never a big fan of homework, but I did it because I wanted
good grades and I thought thats what you were supposed to do (an idea Kohn examines at some
length). No longer are kids out playing and bike riding; instead, they're just staring at phones or
laptops, which is primarily for entertainment's sake -- not for anything educational. This item cannot
be shipped to your selected delivery location. Adults surely aren't - we're allowed to relax, watch TV,
read, hang out with friends and do what we like. Pointing to parents who have fought back -- and
schools that have proved educational excellence is possible without homework -- Kohn shows how
we can rethink what happens during and after school in order to rescue our families and our
children's love of learning. Read more. Accessibility, User Agreement, Privacy, Payments Terms of
Use, Cookies, CA Privacy Notice, Your Privacy Choices and AdChoice. Full content visible, double
tap to read brief content. When do we sit down and actually think, well what is the point of
homework and why do we assign it.
Some people's argument in this modern age is that if kids are not given homework (or made to do
something adults deem worthwhile, hard work, grind, setting up their future etc. This seems to be a
good 20-page article (the chapter on Rethinking Homework) surrounded by relentless attacks. I have
watched my daughter do homework from the time she was in kindergarten and wondered at the
point of it all. It also provides a powerful picture of the positive changes that can occur when we
rethink our approach to homework. This is a good book for any parent, student, administrator or
teacher as it provides a different point of view that questions why we do things even when all
evidence points to the contrary. Revved up and irritable, many of these children are diagnosed with
ADHD, bipolar illness, autism, or other disorders, but don't respond well to treatment. In Mindware,
the world-renowned psychologist Richard Nisbett presents these ideas in clear and accessible detail,
offering a tool kit for better thinking and wiser decisions. How to Raise Successful People offers
essential lessons for raising, educating, and managing people to their highest potential. Drawing from
hundreds of studies, Kohn demonstrates that we actually do inferior work when we are enticed with
money, grades, or other incentives—and are apt to lose interest in whatever we were bribed to do.
Kaufman explores the latest research in genetics and neuroscience, as well as evolutionary,
developmental, social, positive, and cognitive psychology, to challenge the conventional wisdom
about the childhood predictors of adult success. Because, in the end, what Kohn wants parents and
teachers to do, if nothing else, is think about this homework issue. I began teaching in Baltimore and
the principal mandated that we assign homework everyday. How much time students should be
spending on HW? NO. No longer are kids out playing and bike riding; instead, they're just staring at
phones or laptops, which is primarily for entertainment's sake -- not for anything educational. Videos
Help others learn more about this product by uploading a video. They need to know that even if they
screw up, you love them. However, has doing hours of homework made any of us better students or
more knowledgeable in the subjects we are learning. As a parent I have come to DETEST homework
and as a teacher I have kept that in mind when I assign any. Anyhow, Brodie's book led me to want
to read about the research on homework. Please try again. Not in a club? Learn more Join or create
book clubs Choose books together Track your books Bring your club to Amazon Book Clubs, start a
new book club and invite your friends to join, or find a club that’s right for you for free. Hope to
spread the word about this completely unnecessary waste of time that all our kids are subjected to.
It's worth a read if only to challenge some of our deepest assumptions about what homework truly
means for education, and on a greater scale, what it means in this country to have a childhood. Kohn
is so passionate and well researched that he can rant at times, and between reading that AND all of
his incredibly thorough citations, it got to be too much. It's widely assumed that parents are both
permissive and overprotective, unable to set limits and afraid to let their kids fail. As a side note, he
embarrasses Robert Marzano by easily dismantling his shoddy scholarship on the subject of HW. 5
likes Like Comment William Lawrence 299 reviews November 14, 2010 Abolish all homework. It
then explains what they mean for your success in school, at a job, in a career, and in your personal
relationships. Reading this section gave me insight into how homework affects a wider range of
families outside of my direct experience. If tasks are given to make the child want to work at home
(to explore and create) I am supportive, but in many instances as Kohn points out homework is given
thoughtlessly to fill time - this I agree is abusive to the child. If this is truly what the science shows,
and it appears to be so (the book is fairly well referenced) then it’s worth considering changing it.
But there are still surely points acquired to meet the pass requirement.
Most of the time it was worksheets that seemed to be little more than an attempt to pound
information through her head. She went from being a student who loved to go to school to one who
cringes at the thought and I suspect homework is one main reason. It includes honest reflection on
what makes ungrading challenging, and testimonials about what makes it transformative. Revved up
and irritable, many of these children are diagnosed with ADHD, bipolar illness, autism, or other
disorders, but don't respond well to treatment. Trying to be number one and trying to do a task well
are two different things. The predictable results: stress and conflict, frustration and exhaustion. After
reading The Homework Myth, I find myself a bit depressed because I am convinced that homework
doesn't help the vast majority of kids and in fact hurts many -- it damages intrinsic motivation, it
puts stress on the parent-child relationship, it makes interesting subjects boring (I'm talking to you,
worksheets!), it takes time away from beneficial activities and it frustrates struggling kids, among
other things. The reason I am depressed, though, is because I don't see an easy way out. Successful
people in the real work world often take work home with them; ask all the biggest CEOs, manaagers,
principals, lawyers, etc. Ok, so let's just assume that screens hold no opportunity for learning,
creativity, connection with other human beings, exploration of values, building problem solving skills,
career opportunities or life experiences (just saying I don't believe any of that and I will defend
screens and video-games to the high heavens and back - not saying they are perfect or never
negative just saying they are valuable. Textbooks may not include supplemental items i.e. CDs,
access codes etc. Kohn comes from far left of center in his writing about education. There's a lot of
research out there suggesting that homework is neither useful or helpful especially in the primary
grades. Furthermore, growing up my family didn't spend much time together, so homework didn't
affect us much. And that is the type of homework that Kohn recommends. Perhaps the assertion that
homework is 'practice for life' is a partial truth: It's really practice for a life spent working in
corporations. I am on board with Kohn that homework should be for older students, and then we
should modify how we think about it (more on that in a minute). Very few people, if any it seems at
times, critically evaluate reasons for and types of HW. Alfie Kohn writes and speaks widely on
human behavior, education, and parenting. A recent study published in The American Journal of
Family Therapy. He is the author of twelve books and hundreds of articles. I do, however, plan on
asking a few questions at parent-teacher conference about the kinds of homework I'm seeing in
Cameron's backpack. He claims counter studies are flawed becaue they're pass fail option. Howard
Gardner refers to curriculum coverage as the single greatest enemy of understanding. I meet with my
child's teachers when such issues arise (fortunately not often) and I work out a way to understand
their (the teachers) homework goals and make them as pleasant as possible for my child. I really
enjoyed that book and it informed my own educational experiences. John Gatto was a teacher in
New York City's public schools for over 30 years and was a New York State Teacher of the Year.
After two major waves of feminism and decades of policy reform, women have made massive
strides in education. While I didn't agree with all of his interpretations and recommendations, I
found a lot of what he said convincing. Independence is useful, but caring attitudes and behaviors
shrivel up in a culture where each person is responsible only for himself.

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