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THE PROBLEM WITH HOMEWORK |
HOMEWORK - A DREADED TASK
A very common attitude that children have towards homework is that homework is something
bad and terrible. Most kids hate and detest homework. They think that they have been
cursed when given homework and they therefore try to avoid it or put it off till as late
as they can afford to do so.
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When your child comes home from school and a
discussion on homework begins, it usually ends up in a fight. Homework and bad grades are
the 2 most common reasons for a fight amongst parents and children at this age. What your
child really needs is for you to motivate and encourage him. You must support his thoughts
and opinions, but yet be firm about getting the homework done. If the homework given, is
well attended to and a nice schedule to do it is maintained, it leads to a happy, normal
and healthy relationship between the child and the parent.
RESPONSIBILITY
As a parent, it is your responsibility to see to it that your child does his homework. In
order to ensure this, there are a few things, which can be done.
¨ Discipline your child and introduce a fixed time in the day which is reserved just for
homework
¨ Make sure that the time selected is convenient both for you as well as your child
¨ If various tasks and assignments have to be done, you can help your child space out the
assignments by allotting a fixed amount of time for each assignment.
¨ After the homework is completed, let your child relax by either going down to play or
going for a walk, or you could even simply let him watch some television.
ACTUAL TIME OF HOMEWORK
At this point of time, care must be taken that your child is in the right frame of mind.
He must be in a relaxed environment and there should be no loud sounds disturbing him. If
your child is impatient and refuses to sit quiet, you could sit with him in the room and
do some of your quiet work be it reading a book or checking bills. This will help teach
your child the importance of doing his work attentively and quietly.
YOUR ROLE AS A PARENT
As a parent, you must encourage your child to do his homework and always motivate and
support him. ¨ You must remind him that homework is necessary and important and that the
time allotted for homework is a fixed time and must be used only for homework ¨ Show
interest by asking him what he has for homework and what was taught at school that day ¨
Once in a while, check up on his work by asking him to recite a poem learnt at school, or
check his spellings and vocabulary. ¨ It is important to ensure that as a parent, you do
not over involve yourself in your child's work or else this will make your child feel
incapable and less competent. ¨ Every once in a while you must give small encouraging
words and praise your child for doing his homework well and on time.
ESSENTIALS OF HOMEWORK
Homework lays down the very base and foundation of a child for future studies. It helps to
increase the child's concentration span and teaches them the importance of studying
independently. For the future, it also increases the mind's alertness and creativity when
it comes to doing work, be it homework or research from journals, encyclopedias or from
the World Wide Web.
CASE STUDY
Past History
Prem, a student of the 2nd
standard was brought by his parents to the child guidance clinic. They reported saying
that Prem did well in oral work, was intelligent, but worksheets in class were left
incomplete. The homework was not supervised at home by the parents as they were working.
He hated writing work and this made him lazier in class.
When spoken to, Prem expresses himself clearly but simply. He is admired for his prowess
at computer and video games. This is assured by his superior eye hand co-ordination. His
parents took notice of his creative side and have enrolled him in a drawing class and they
make sure that he has plenty of models and craft supplies to keep him busy at home and he
also remains interested in books, magazines, board games and card playing. Prem has slowed
down tremendously in writing skills. When questioned he states that the pencil slips from
his hands due to excessive sweating.
Past history reveals that he is a sensitive child, particularly attuned to the
misbehaviour of others and has taken to biting his nails during tense moments. He becomes
impatient with long listening tasks and has trouble absorbing complicated instructions.
He is found to be a perfectionist and should be less critical of himself and more
assertive about his ideas. He hates writing for fear of being ridiculed by his teacher and
being compared to the other students, who do well.
Treatment
Prem will need help with his social and auditory skills to help him in reading and hearing
sounds, that would contribute to his writing skills. Counselling done in various sessions,
using persuasion technique, remedial work in writing skills and persistence in daily work
were encouraged. Parents were asked to supervise his daily work and reward him with praise
and encouragement. |
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