The Case For—or Against—Homework

I have a big question for you parents whose kids go to Eagle Rock schools. I'm thinking about mixing things up and sending my son, my second child, to a nearby charter. There's lots that intrigues me about it, especially for my son who shows some early signs of a learning disability. But here's my big issue with the school: No homework. They don't send home any work for the kids.

I have a daughter in a top-ranked elementary school—and she has at least 30 minutes of homework a night. And when it's diorama season, we are working on that dinosaur scene for two weeks straight and happily so.

I am aware of one of the major arguments against homework—that it takes away from a child's reading time and free time, and that homework doesn't necessarily help children learn more. But I don't buy it.

Homework has helped my daughter work out problems she can't master in class. It has taught her responsibility. It has also given me a view into what she learning—and the time that I spend helping my daughter to homework is time for us to hang out together, too. The homework process has also helped make my daughter an independent learner. In kindergarten, she needed me to hover. Now she sits right down and gets to work—she only calls me when she's really stuck.

I think homework is a positive thing. My daughter's teacher says that the best schools cover so much material that they need parents to be involved and to continue the learning at home. When I see my daughter's homework, I know what experiences—weekend trips, books, dinner table chats—might support her class work. And I worry about missing that view into my son's academic life if I do end up sending him to this homework-shorn charter school.

What do you think, Eagle Rock parents? Is homework a positive or a negative thing for your child—and why?

— Unsure Eagle Rock Dad