I WANT MY LIFE BACK
Parents and pupils cry out against homework hell
Homework must fall – or be cut back.
This message flying around East London this week came from parents – not pupils.
Internationally, the trend to do away with tedious and stressful homework tasks is being led by Finland, but in SA schools are starting to cut back, or put more fun into the work.
The problem appears to be with the ponderous structure of the CAPS curriculum which imposes such a heavy workload that teachers can’t finish it in class – and pass the unfinished load in the form of homework.
While the provincial education department came out in favour of the government’s policy, a Facebook post a few days ago by Bettina Middleton about her two daughters being forced to endure a 13-hour schoolday because of homework, unleashed a flurry of supportive posts.
East London parents have called for schools to reduce the amount of homework given to pupils or completely do away with it, saying it was too stressful.
Middleton posted: “Something that is weighing heavily on my mind is the fact that my two girls in Grade 10 have no free time. Every waking hour during term time is filled with either homework or studying for upcoming tests or exams. A typical day is school 7.30am to 2.30pm then sport from 3pm to 5pm, then homework until at least 9pm or 10 pm.”
More than 100 people commented agreeing that homework was too much for pupils to cope with.
Dispatch confirmed a number of the online posts with their authors.
Jolene Jade Hendricks said her daughter was only in Grade 4 and was under “ridiculous” pressure due to the amount of homework. “They are overloaded to the point of frustration,” she said.
Rowena Coetzee-Bosman blamed CAPS), saying it came with too much work for both pupils and teachers and she preferred the previous syllabus, the Outcome Based Education (OBE).
Mandi Roberts whose daughter is in Grade 7 at Gonubie Primary said: “Everything is done in class, even projects. All we've had to do at home is some research for orals and assignments and it has worked wonderfully. They were also asked to spend some of the time that they would have spent doing homework, reading.”
Hudson Park has made big changes to reduce homework.
East London schools were wary of dumping homework altogether, but said they were cutting back.
Deputy principal at Hudson Park Primary, Garth Lumb said in the foundation phase the school used a programme where parents were given the academic concepts covered in class for the week and were provided with creative, engaging, fun activities to do at home with their children.
These included counting coins in their mom’s purse, hopping on one leg while counting in 100’s and even timing themselves setting the dinner table.
In the senior phase, Lumb said the school did not set formal homework, but pupils were expected to finish their work in class, and if not, at home.
Lumb said more homework did not mean better results; it was the quality of the homework which mattered.
“Our focus is on reading and the comwork pletion of incomplete work. Many children who have a study problem, actually have a reading problem. We rather encourage the enjoyment of reading and, through this, children learn to read with comprehension which aids studying.”
Merrifield Preparatory and College executive head, Dr Guy Hartley, said teachers were careful not to overload the pupils.
“Merrifield teachers use homework as a method of reinforcing work done in the classroom, but not at the expense of students’ overall wellbeing.
“Students have busy schedules with sport and extracurricular activities. Extra home- for the sake of it does not necessarily translate into better results.”
However, Hartley said the school was totally against scrapping homework.
Two teachers who spoke to the Dispatch on condition of anonymity said the CAPS curriculum came with too much work but less resources.
“We simply do not have the time, means and material to complete all work in class on time,” said one teacher.
At least two South African schools adopted a no-homework policy. In 2015 Sun Valley Primary in Cape Town adopted Finland’s nohomework policy. Speaking on national radio principal, Gavin Keller, stated: “The no-homework policy worked for the school”.
In April, Eastern Cape private school, Woodridge College and Preparatory School outside Port Elizabeth announced they were following the Finland model and were scrapping homework.
Woodridge pupils only get reading to do, while an afternoon “prep” session would be used more productively with activities such as research, robotics, cultural exploration, revision or consolidation of class work.
Provincial education spokesman Malibongwe Mtima said: “CAPS document stipulate the number of both of formal and informal tasks that need to be covered in a week or month and this varies subject by subject. Homework forms part of the formal tasks which then gives learners an opportunity to strengthen what was learnt in class and give them practise in the comfort of their homes”.
Students have busy schedules with sport and extracurricular activities. Homework for the sake of it, does not necessarily translate into better results