Do your students spend hours a night doing homework? Mine do. And I hate it- maybe even more than they do. Most of the time they just do it and don't complain. But I'm complaining! I'd so much rather my kids get much needed down-time after school to: play, nap, read, run, swing, dance, twirl, build, create, draw, invent, or design.
Thanks for the great post Melissa. I could not agree more about homework. I feel like so many elements in education the high ground is so often held by those more conservative. Personally, I would love to scrap homework, however it is not always the overall consensus. Also, there are many parents out there who seem to believe that homework is somehow essential to success. In the end, I feel that homework underwrites the relationships that we as teachers continually try and build with students. There is nothing more depressing than the awkward conversation with parents seeming whinging about the failure to submit homework.