The school day doesn’t end when the last bell rings. Students usually head home with more assignments to complete, but is the homework designed to spark creativity or is it just mindless repetition?
Many educators in the northwest suburbs believe that the answer too often is the latter. Instead, they say, children need to supplement their school work with assignments that will foster creative thought and relate more closely to real life. And to that end, they say, homework and curriculum trends are moving in more thought-provoking directions.
“Homework isn’t the time when students do new learning; this is when they apply and practice what they have learned. And it’s also a time for parental involvement,” said Fred Schroeder, assistant superintendent for curriculum in Schaumburg-based School District 54.
“But today’s curriculum is much more demanding, and in turn the homework requires that children think more,” he said. “We are keeping much of the old stuff, like some of the drill and practice, but we are teaching children to apply what they are learning to the real world.”
An example of that, he explained, is spelling. Rather than memorizing a list of randomly selected words, children are now asked to study words that come from their readers, math books or their own writing.
Also, more teachers are assigning homework that allows children to consider how to solve a problem rather than placing the emphasis on one correct solution, Schroeder added. Then the kids return to class to share their different answers and their reasoning.
Traditional math instruction, for example, stressed memorization, drill and practice, asking that children focus on finding a total rather than what the numbers mean. New methods require children to use math as a way to reason, emphasizing hands-on activity and real-life applications.
“There’s a real shift away from the one-answer mentality. It’s difficult for some students, and it requires more thinking, but it’s preparing them for the future,” said Bill White, principal at Ridge Circle Elementary School in Streamwood, which is part of Elgin-based School District U-46.
These new views of homework’s role in schooling, and the demands it entails, affect more than the children, though.
“We’re asking more of parents, and we need to continue training our teachers so they are prepared,” Schroeder said. “We talk a lot about partnerships; well, this is a partnership between schools and families, giving value and worth to what is being taught.”
“The trend is toward a higher level of thinking and getting parents involved,” White said. “It really is a transition and a very exciting time in education.”
White said the goals of this educational reform are to prepare children for the future by teaching them to apply what they learn in school and what they do for homework to real-life situations.
This hands-on approach is just fine by Michael Loranca of Crystal Lake. He’s a 7th grader who just learned everything he ever wanted to know about pumpkins during an assignment that combined science, math and language arts.
“It was fun,” said Michael, 12. “I learned something, so I think that’s great.”
What Michael and his classmates learned was how to estimate a pumpkin’s volume by lowering it gently into a bucket of water and measuring the liquid that spilled out. During the pumpkin project, students also estimated the number of seeds the vegetables contained, researched them at the school library and wrote five-sentence paragraphs about them.
“It was a fun project written by my colleague Ann Min. It was an example of our ongoing attempt at interdisciplinary education, which helps students see that when they study science or math or language arts, it’s not just one subject they are working on but all of them,” said Fran Hicks, Loranca’s life sciences teacher at North Junior High School in Crystal Lake. “What this teaches them is how in life all areas of study relate to one another and also that all the wonderful discoveries they make in science are useless unless they can relate them back to people through words and sentences.”
“Kids learn best by manipulating materials, whether it’s a pumpkin or batteries or lightbulbs; kids learn best by doing,” said Thomas Thompson, assistant professor of curriculum and instruction at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb.
“Years ago the approach was to read and to answer questions, but now there’s an emphasis on what we call `hands-on, minds-on science.’ The shift is to do hands-on kinds of things and get parents involved at home,” Thompson said. “Parents and children cooking together, for example, can be a wonderful way of learning.
“A parent can have a major role in teaching, and that’s true in all areas of learning. Not everything can be done at school, nor should it all be done at school. Learning should take place at home as well.”
Marmitt said she and her son do cook together. Although the 12-year-old doesn’t make entire meals, he helps with measuring and estimating the amount of ingredients they will need. Marmitt added that she also assists her son with his homework and that if he is having difficulty, she discusses the problems with his teachers.
Most educators agree that communication is the key in solving homework problems, but some parents find approaching their children’s teachers intimidating, while others feel that even broaching the subject crosses the lines of parental involvement, that school matters should be left to the teachers.
Because she found that most parents want to be helpful with homework but have many questions about the subject, the principal at one northwest suburban school arranged for an expert to discuss that topic at the beginning of the school year.
“Parents who came last year said it was wonderful, so we did it again this year,” said Catherine Karlsen, principal of St. Thomas of Villanova Catholic Elementary School in Palatine. “I get so many questions from parents. Thay ask, `How do I get my kids to do their homework? How do I keep them from crying when they get difficult assignments?’ Parents on the whole don’t understand why homework is given, so I thought this seminar would be helpful.”
Karlsen called the Huntington Learning Center in Buffalo Grove and asked for a speaker to address these issues. And according to Pat Cowles, the center’s regional director, this approach was wise because when it comes to homework, parents do need direction.
“In general, parents want to know what their role is,” Cowles said. “They want to know how much help is too much help, and how little help is not enough.”
Cowles said it’s important for parents to stress the significance of homework by providing a time and a work area where homework can be done. She added that if a child is really struggling, it’s imperative for the parent to get to the root of the problem by discussing the issue with his teacher.
Teachers, for their part, are experimenting with ways to communicate with parents. Whereas years ago notes from school signified trouble, today they can bear good news as well.
At McHenry Junior High School, for example, teachers send postcards home with students when the kids do something exemplary.
“We call them `Good News Cards,’ and we started using them this year,” said Steven Phillips, administrative assistant at the junior high. Teachers try to make sure each student gets one at some time during the year. “It’s a short-term thing, but it helps the kids because it’s important for them to be recognized for doing something good. It’s necessary to recognize all students. We want to make them feel good about themselves.”
The junior high’s 8th-grade language arts and reading teacher, Davina King, agreed. That’s why she hands out about one or two postcards each week.
“I’ve had nothing but positive responses about them. I even got a letter from one parent who said how good the idea was,” King said. “The students are proud of what they have done when they receive these cards. The word gets around, and other kids find out. It makes them really proud, and that’s our goal: to help kids feel good about themselves.”
