School's out for summer...or is it?

Last month, I wrote about "The Race to Nowhere," a new documentary that exposes the intense pressures that many adolescents face today with mountains of homework, a test-centered school culture, a full slate of extracurricular activities, and desperate expectations about getting into the "best" schools rather than the ones that are the best fit. The documentary has re-ignited a national debate about homework - too much or too little?

In an article earlier this month, The New York Times chronicled the efforts of school systems trying to remake homework amid these concerns. Such efforts have drawn criticism from some teachers and some parents who counter that students must study more, not less, if they are to succeed.  

Most high school students work hard throughout the year, doing their best to make good grades. When summer comes, shouldn't they be entitled to decompress and enjoy themselves in whatever activity they want, like their teachers?  

According to the Times article, the school board in Galloway, N.J. will vote this summer on a proposal to limit weeknight homework to 10 minutes for each year of school — 20 minutes for second graders, and so forth — and ban assignments on weekends, holidays and school vacations.

Teachers at Mango Elementary School in Fontana, Calif., are replacing homework with “goal work” that is specific to individual student’s needs and that can be completed in class or at home at his or her own pace. The Pleasanton School District, north of San Jose, Calif., is proposing this month to cut homework times by nearly half and prohibit weekend assignments in elementary grades because, as one administrator said, “parents want their kids back.”

Ridgewood High School in New Jersey introduced a homework-free winter break in December. Schools in Bleckley County, Ga., have instituted “no homework nights” throughout the year. The Brooklyn School of Inquiry, a gifted and talented program, has made homework optional.

I am not calling for the elimination of homework during summer break, though I believe our kids in Hamilton-Wenham should not have to spend their winter, February and April breaks hunkered down in front of their books and laptops. That's why they are called breaks. As for summer, a few books to read, a short paper, maybe some math problems would be acceptable.

What is not acceptable is students that are forced to begin their summer work as soon as school gets out in June so they can meet their deadlines. I understand that assigning summer work is also about learning time management. But when students have a minimum of five books to read, multiple research papers to research and write and other projects, I think administrators cross the line.

Time management is a valuable skill for kids getting ready to head off to college. Are our kids given time management skills to utilize? Is it something that is actually taught in school? It should be.

The superintendent in Galloway, NJ said the goal of their proposed policy was to make homework “meaningful and manageable,” noting that teachers would have to coordinate assignments so that a student’s total homework would not exceed the time limit. 

Here is hoping that the new superintendent and high school principal in Hamilton-Wenham will address this issue as a priority.   

What do you think? Should we be cutting back on the amount of homework assigned during vacations? Comment here.