I CAN only remember three pieces of homework from my primary school years.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The first was my Canberra project, which followed the rite of passage excursion to the capital for every Grade 6 Australian kid since Adam was a lad.
Score: B-plus
The second was my assignment on The Drought 1983; I can still see the red and brown bubble writing of my title page. My school peers in Grade 6 had visited the farm I grew up on and of which my dad was the manager.
After feeding the sheep and looking around the farm at drought-proof measures, I will never forget my dad telling about 100 schoolkids gathered in the garden: “Thanks for coming out today. You’ve been a really good mob!”
Score: A-minus
The third was a social science assignment on Portland, Victoria. The only reason I remember it at all was because I had forgotten to hand it in to my Grade 5 teacher. I discovered it neatly folded up in the bottom of my school bag, covered in cake crumbs, about a term later. That forgetfulness had cost me a perfect score on that subject on my school report. (I couldn’t even tell you where Portland was though I did check with Google to see it was still in Victoria!)
Score: Fail
Homework goes in and out of fashion like skinny jeans. I have never bought into boot-cut jeans; I figure if I stick with straight leg or stovepipe Levi’s, I will be in fashion about half of the time.
This week the pros and cons of homework are back in the national spotlight.
A small but growing number of West Australian public schools have banned homework for primary students so they can spend more time relaxing, reading and playing.
Homework goes in and out of fashion like skinny jeans. I have never bought into boot-cut jeans; I figure if I stick with straight leg or stovepipe Levi's, I will be in fashion about half of the time.
At least four schools have introduced official “no homework” policies.
They only ask students to read a little each night, preferably with their parents within earshot.
They argue homework is of no benefit to younger children and can even be detrimental because it gets in the way of important family and recreation time, which allows children to recharge their batteries after a full day of learning at school.
The other camp says homework promotes time management and study skills.
Unfortunately, students don’t have an even playing field when it comes to doing homework.
Many have myriad commitments – sport, recreation and family – before they even get home several nights a week. Yet others live out of town and travel further to school each day.
Like many kids growing up in the country I had an hour-long commute twice a day; I was about halfway along the school bus route and others had an even longer trip than me. I rarely got around to homework much before 5pm. (On the bright side, I would have missed plenty of Home and Away to get it done! I didn’t appreciate that fact at the time!!)
While I could have read homework on the school bus, I had to be desperate or up against a looming deadline to try to write anything down on paper. The bus suspension was shocking and the dirt roads even worse!
To this day I’m grateful for the no-homework policy at my daughters’ school.
Our dog is even more grateful as she likes to walk them both around the block in the afternoon before it gets dark.
Most nights we read together before bed. They are free to use online learning tools like Studyladder though it’s not compulsory.
As a writer, I’m a stickler for spelling and creativity but less a fan of creative spelling, as my girls call it.
When I got them to label ziplock bags packed with dance tights and bits and bobs at the weekend, I asked my youngest to write in permanent marker: Foot thongs.
“F-O-O-T T-,” she begins, as I expected it to all go pear-shaped.
“Thongs. T-H-O-N-G-S,” she ends.
“Far out! Brussels sprout,” I say.
“Can you spell: Brussels sprout?”
“No!” she says.
“Don’t worry,” I say. “No one can!”
“Do you know where Portland is?”
She quickly replies: “That’s your homework, not mine!”
Score: A for creativity