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You put way too much faith in kids' desire to learn and their ability to make responsible choices. > Homework should be optional material for self study, evalu

by CivBase 1mo ago

You put way too much faith in kids' desire to learn and their ability to make responsible choices. > Homework should be optional material for self study, evaluated by teachers if you choose to do it but never forced. My wife is a teacher and her school does this. The result is that nobody does homework. The kids who need the extra practice don't get it and they fall into a spiral of failure and apathy. This is especially bad for subjects like math that build on themselves. IMO the better solution is to require and grade shorter homework and provide students with optional, supplementary assignments that can be used to make up for missed credit on homework for the same material. That way students who grasp the material quickly can demonstrate and move on while others who need practice are naturally encouraged to get it without being permanently punished for struggling initially.

dominicq 1mo ago
Homework is no longer useful in the era of AI. Options are: treat kids like they are able to make responsible choices, and accept that much more of them will fail; or, keep the charade of grading AI-"assisted" homework and push kids farther along the track, even though they definitely don't know enough. I much prefer the first. School shouldn't be impossible, but you shouldn't have a charade of schooling. Obviously, extra practice is a good idea.
- CivBase 1mo ago
  It's not necessarily useless. If you make assignments short, provide some time in school to work on it, and do not allow students to use devices with access to general-purpose "AI", then there is a good chance most students will do the work like they're supposed to. Some will still cheat, but it's foolish to reorganize everything around the few who stubbornly refuse to learn.
  - paulryanrogers 1mo ago
    > provide some time in school to work on it Assignments students do in class isn't "homework". It's just classwork. All my math classes had both. Perhaps you mean study halls? Those were uncommon until highschool where I grew up. And most of the time people spent there was not studying.
    - CivBase 1mo ago
      It's "homework" in the sense that it is not bound to the class. It is not due during class and if you can't finish it in class, you'll have to complete it out of class. And I mean setting aside some time during the class itself, not a separate "study hall" period. Obviously class time is precious, so I don't expect there to always be enough in-class time to finish assignments. But even having a little in-class time for students to get started - and when the teacher is available for help those in need - would go a long way towards encouraging students to do the work themselves and not cheat. And of course part of my strategy is to make "homework" shorter (5-15 min). That should also reduce the temptation to cheat and increase the likelihood students can even complete them in class.
      - paulryanrogers 1mo ago
        Thanks for elaborating. That does seem worthwhile.

by CivBase 1mo ago

dominicq 1mo ago

Homework is no longer useful in the era of AI. Options are: treat kids like they are able to make responsible choices, and accept that much more of them will fail; or, keep the charade of grading AI-"assisted" homework and push kids farther along the track, even though they definitely don't know enough. I much prefer the first. School shouldn't be impossible, but you shouldn't have a charade of schooling. Obviously, extra practice is a good idea.

CivBase 1mo ago
It's not necessarily useless. If you make assignments short, provide some time in school to work on it, and do not allow students to use devices with access to general-purpose "AI", then there is a good chance most students will do the work like they're supposed to. Some will still cheat, but it's foolish to reorganize everything around the few who stubbornly refuse to learn.
- paulryanrogers 1mo ago
  > provide some time in school to work on it Assignments students do in class isn't "homework". It's just classwork. All my math classes had both. Perhaps you mean study halls? Those were uncommon until highschool where I grew up. And most of the time people spent there was not studying.
  - CivBase 1mo ago
    It's "homework" in the sense that it is not bound to the class. It is not due during class and if you can't finish it in class, you'll have to complete it out of class. And I mean setting aside some time during the class itself, not a separate "study hall" period. Obviously class time is precious, so I don't expect there to always be enough in-class time to finish assignments. But even having a little in-class time for students to get started - and when the teacher is available for help those in need - would go a long way towards encouraging students to do the work themselves and not cheat. And of course part of my strategy is to make "homework" shorter (5-15 min). That should also reduce the temptation to cheat and increase the likelihood students can even complete them in class.
    - paulryanrogers 1mo ago
      Thanks for elaborating. That does seem worthwhile.