Selden, NY – Even though he’s just a fifth grader, 11-year-old Ben Berrafato is challenging – seriously challenging – one of this country’s most enduring and widely held beliefs: The belief that kids need homework.
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“Where has it been proven, in these many centuries of this work, that it has been good for anyone?” Ben said.
Ben’s crusade against homework began with a simple assignment, For English class at New Lane Elementary in Selden, N.Y., Ben had to write about something he was passionate about – and since Ben hates homework he wrote about that. And he did so quite creatively.
Part of his essay reads: “Homework is assigned to students like me without our permission. Thus, homework is slavery. Slavery was abolished with the passing of the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. So every school in America has been illegally run for the past 143 years.”
On a whim, Ben sent a copy of his essay to the New York Daily News.
“And I got like this humongous section of the op-ed page,” he said.
It then circulated on the Internet, Ben started doing talk shows, and a monster was born.
“School should stay at school,” he said. “When it is brought home in a backpack, it causes problems.”
For teachers and school administrators, Ben’s whole argument borders on blasphemy. Certainly most would dismiss it as wishful propaganda – if not for the simple fact that the kid may be right.
“He’s really onto something here,” said Nancy Kalish, who co-authored a book called “The Case Against Homework.”
“As he pointed out, there is almost zero connection, correlation between homework and any type of achievement in elementary school,” Kalish said.
In researching his essay, Kalish says Ben really did his homework, so to speak, citing the very latest studies.
“Kids who do 60 to 90 minutes of homework in middle school and over two hours in high school actually do worse than average in standardized tests,” his essay read.
How far is Ben going to take it?
“As far as I can,” he said. “As far as possible.””I have a petition and I’m going to try and get a law abolishing homework,” he said.
Ben plans to send the signatures to Congress.
He says just about everybody’s been supportive. Except … his principal.
“You know, a famous historian once said, ‘I may not agree with what you say, but I’ll defend to the death you’re right to say it,'” the principal said. “You know who that was? I believe it was Patrick Henry. I could be wrong. I learned that a long time ago in homework and I’ve forgotten it.”
Ben says she just proved his point right there.
“If you’re going to do homework then forget what it is, then why even do it?” Ben asked.
Of course, now he’s probably got homework and detention.
“It’s an interesting thought,” the principal said.
Not that it would deter him anyway. To paraphrase what Patrick Henry actually said: Give me liberty from homework or give him … extra credit, at least
he’s a kid tell him to bud out
We should all support this movement. Our kids come home from yeshiva at 6 PM & have a double homework load. It is also a great strain on the parents who have 4, 5 or 8 kids to deal with. The yeshivas should set aside 1/2 hour IN SCHOOL for Limudei Kodesh homework , as well as secular studies, so that kids can do homework WITHOUT PARENTS HELP OR INTERVENTION.
as a mother of 4 little kids I can honostly say that besides studying for a test homework is just a waste of time for the mother being that i dont have old enough kids to do the homework wirh the little one
so what he is a kid he has a point. homework never made an effect on me either i knew it or i didnt
#1 – Are you trying to say that you approve of spending hours every night doing homework. If you have multiple children and each child has an hour of homework you will find yourself up half the night trying to teach your children what they should have learned in school. Secondly, why is the boy’s age relevant to the discussion. If he is right then he is right!
our (frum) children spend such long hours ay school and then they still have to do homework. The time in Cheder should be enough, I always try to learn with my kinderlach but some weeks the only time I have is on Shabbos.
This should be the case in all the Bais Yakov schools as well especially in the high schools. These girls shlep everyday to and from school a 50 lb backpack full of all sorts of books and notes that has to be done for homework and aside for the fact that they can’t help out with any of the housework and all the tensions it causes, it’s also dangerus in the long term what all that Shlepping will do for their backs so it’s time all the schools get together and stop all this nonsence because I don’t think Sarah Shnerer had this in mind when she started the Bais Yakov system
and so, the end of the good old, USA.
Now Obama’s will pass a law that a kid must cannot be told to do homework. So any hope for a future we can have from an educated generation will be lost.
Also, homework which is a help to keeping kids off those dumb mindnumbing computer games and off the streets is being taken from parents.
Homework is the parents job usually more then the students!!!
kid makes a vaild point. and so does everyone else the work the schools give to children is way to much. after a 7 to 11 hour day in school depeneding on the school. that should be the end of it.
where was this hero when I was growing up?!
Way to go Ben. Keep on forging ahead and you’ll have done us all a great favor.
There is absolutely NO reason for homework. If the teachers feels that the children need a little extra reveiw on the subject matter, then they should institute a practice that in the beginning of every class they reveiw what was learnt in the previous class. More than that is not necessary. We parents do not get a salary for teaching our kids after school hours (or for doing their homework for that matter) and if the kids don’t know what they learnt from school, then what the heck are they doing there for so many hours? Of course if a child is having a difficult time with the learning, then he needs extra help, but even that should be done during school hours. It is very important for the child to feel that his home is a bastion of warmth and acceptance and to bring the pressures of school in is just not fair. And to encourage a closer relationship between the parents and children (mainly boys and their fathers)- they could always learn something easy and interesting that appeals to the child and is not accompanied by any pressures, or causually review what has been learnt in school as a fun experience and not as homework that has to be signed, which automatically makes any kid nervous.
the chutzpa of a kid to get up in public and voice his opioin
only in the usa
about homework
its all for the teachers, they don’t really teach [because they don’t know how to]
they give home work so the parents should teach it
then the kids get good marks, and the teacher takes the credit!
its a outrage
it must be stooped now!!
maybe a “little” limude kodesh for the boys? maybe?
English etc? out the door
go ben!
i think home work should be called parentall torture! it is the time of day that all my children get home from school crancky and tired from a LONG hard day of school. the reason they are in school is to learn! there should be a difference in learning and living i feel that there is no way they can live a normal life and play outside when they get home from school if the second they walk through the door they are bogged down with homework! also when yeshivas give their boys reports (book, sceince…) they are giving the parents a nice project to do which may be quit interesting but i assure you we went to school and did our fare share of reports! I PROMISE we could live without more! and their older sisters end up doing the report in addition to all her hmwk! so please do the mothers a toiva- we pay tuition so that you should educate them and help them learn if we wanted to learn and educate ourselfs we would do that also!!
Never mind homework, school as we know it should be abolished. The entire system from A to Z is messed up. Children should be home schooled with the help of the INTERNET! Parents should organize children from their neighborhood to get together for social interaction, choosing who their children associate with.
This would prevent bullying and competition. Anyone reading this knows that everything can be learned online. We would have lots of money to marry our children if we never paid a dollar in tuition. There would be no more dinners, etc.
Boys could be taught in groups by a private tutor. A Rebbe that would at least get paid! Things need to change, and they will, eventually.
homework takes away from quality time spent with the kids it really tenses up the atmosphere in teh house when we know there is homework still to be done!
if i wanted my kids to be a robot and be spitting back info all the time i would lock him up its ridiculous
The thing I resent most about homework is that VERY OFTEN I feel I am teaching the subject matter. Homework, if anything, should be a review and most of the time my children need to be taught the material, especially in Science and Social Studies. After a whole day of yeshiva and Bais Yaakov, 2-3 hours more in elementary school is just too much. Maybe this will start a movement of parents to limit it. I understand that they are already doing it in Prospect Park Girls School.
This really only ends up being homework for the parents!!!!!!!!!!!
certain skills cannot be learned without repetitive work.
For instance, homework assignments where you have to do 25 or even 50 math problems are essential for learning math effectively. These are skills you learn in class, but that you will only really internalize by using those skills in a repetitive manner with different types of problems.
same with many science questions (especially with a mathematical background).
therefore, those who say homework is just a review, don’t realize how important homework is in some subjects for actually learning that subject.
Can anyone PROVE homework is bad, or does not have a positive affect???
It is absolutely ridiculous to listen to a kid to rule on this or any matter.
“Homework is assigned to students like me without our permission. Thus, homework is slavery. ”
maybe we should ask permission from our kids if they want to go to school.
This is from the Wikipedia:
Teaching and homework effectiveness:
Student learning improves when homework serves a clear purpose and is matched to both the skills of each individual student and to the current topics being taught in class. Feedback improves the effectiveness of homework, especially when given in a timely manner (within 24 hours). Effective feedback improves student learning by correcting misunderstanding, validating process, and highlighting errors in thinking. Embedded comments provide much better feedback than a mere grade at the top of the paper. Homework must be concentrated to be effective: mastering takes days or weeks of practice. Fifty-percent mastery may be achieved after 4 practice sessions, but it takes 28 practice sessions to achieve approximately the eighty-percent mastery level.[13]
Another way teachers can be more effective is by alerting parents to their students’ homework, giving parents a chance to become familiar with the material and their child’s progress. This also encourages parents to become involved in the homework process.[14] Messages tend to get lost in transit or even altered when using “pupil post” (passing verbal messages or written notes back and forth using the student as courier), and therefore direct communication is much more effective and prevents frustration all around. Methods available for directly reporting homework assignments (to both students and their parents) include the phone, email, and centralized web-pages.
Criticism
There is a growing number of teachers, parents, and students that advocate the abolishment, or at least a limit to the amount, of homework. The main reason is the belief that students also learn from activities in life other than textbooks and workbooks found in classrooms. A whole day in class and most of the night reading school books that are related to the subject in school leaves a student out of touch, without free time, and unable to get exercise or pursue extracurricular activities. Talents and interest of the student often cannot be nurtured in a classroom setting with teachers focused only on a specific subject.
Moreover, there is a considerable body of research supporting the idea that homework is of little educational value, and that for young children (i.e. under 14) it actually has a negative effect on learning.[15] [16]
why are all the parents whining?they are not the ones in school for 8-12 hours a day. big deal set aside an hour or two to do homework with your kids.if you forgot how it feels to be a kid dont talk about it
Homework is suppose to get the children to catch up with the limited time of lessons a teacher can give a class room of 22-25 kids. (i am talking about heimishe yeshives)
The boys only get 1 1/2 hours of teaching which half hour the teachers tries to get the attention of the classroom. I work every day minimum 9-10 hours in a warehouse shlepping boxes but i am very proud to sit down with my 2 girls and boy to help them out with their homework..First it freshens up my mind to get off the calculator and the kids get very good marks on their tests compared to the rest of the class….
It is a brave idea of the kid to deal with an issue he hates to work on in this way. I agree with the child only partly thre is to much homework. Very often intodays generations both parents are working by the time the kid arrives home from school and he has no one to help him or feels the loneliness of the home. Perhaps homework should be an option for extra credit. What I can’t stand even more is eighteen teachers the highschoolers have in a week. Most teachers don’t even know all their students and all of them give homework without cheking what the other teacher is doing about it. These are big girls often they are the eldest of 7 or 8 children beneath them and most of the time everybody stays up all hours to do homework and chat with friends on the phone. A family member of mine had a title HOMEWORK VERSUS HOUSEWORK. She was so busy writing about it that she had absolutely 0 time to help her unbelievable busy mother. However I do love the point she made and that is that It is more important to do the mitzva of KIBUD AV VAIM. Yes we all had a great laugh and then we moved on with life. There fore the kid has a point but since when do children write bills about (childrens bill of rights?} That is u
homework Versus Housework is the question Especially for our high school girls Especially when they have at 15 teachers in a week.
Sounds like the kid is a spoiled prima donna!
Children need responsibility. Homework teaches responsibility. Parents need to BACK OFF and let kids be responsible for their own work. Try tough love instead of coddling. Or are you afraid Shaindy’s wrong answer is a reflection on you.
I’m a Rebbi in a Yeshiva & I can count on one hand how many times I gave h.w. For longer than 10 minutes! Review, especially limudei kodesh subjects, is VERY important! But how many Rabbeim and Morahs give sheets with questions that should have been covered in class. Those type of questions are not for the home. Simple pasuk & Rashi, mishna….. review is what’s important. Homework should NEVER take longer than 5-10 minutes!!!!
It is also CHILD LABOR
Homework is very important. It’s called repetition. The statistics given about standarized examinations is false. Anyone who has taken the SATs here knows if English isn’t your native langauge you are given a disadvantage right from the start.
I absolutely loved homework. My parents never had to tell me to do it. And I was a top student. I noticed the kids whom had learning disabilities made every excuse possible to diverge why their homework wasn’t completed.
that homework does not correlate with better grades. Just take an hones look at the recent research and then come to a conclusion about what you hold about homework.
The slavery argument has been used in various legal fields. One that comes to mind is equating the US tax system to slavery- and the argument failed badly. This kid isn’t going to get far with a slavery argument. At least not one based on the 13th amendment.
i think the schools should have the teachers give only twice a week homework not every night and no more then 1 test a week, parents could go nuts between playing time, supper, homework, bedtime , laundry bathing time, quality time with kids, enough is enough twice a week is more than enough homework for these kids that sit in school 8 or 9 hours a day
Home work has become the lazy (or inefficient, unqualified) educational institution’s way of attempting to do what they alone should be doing – educating specific subject material. In school we learn. At home we may learn too, but not regimented by school. Homework should be optional – whether for review of class content or for tests. It should never be a necessary component of the students road to school curriculum.
In the morning I am a rebbi and I give my students 15-20 min. Worth of H.W. To review the day’s lessons. As for the afternoon where I teach secular studies…NO WAY! I give them 10 min. at the end of the day to do their “H.W. In class”! Everyones happy! The kids.the parents and myself. As for #35 he should hide in a mudslide! I B”H have 12 beautiful children KA”H …all had some homework sometimes tooooo much but we made time for all of them WITH LOVE. Even though it wasn’t always easy.
I was at a speech about 26 years ago given by the great tzaddik R’ Yehuda Segal from Manchester and he said”It is Bashert in Himel how much Tzar Giddul Bonim one will have during one’s lifetime…A SMART PERSON DEVIDES IT AMONG 10-12-14 children…AND A FOOL PACKS IN HIS WHOLE PREDESTINED TZAR GIDUL BONIM IN 3 KIDS!!” So good luck with your ?? Kids!
Sounds like a good idea to me, it would have saved me a lot of headache.
But… I couldn’t really give you an oppinion on HW because I don’t thinks I did HW 10 times all through the 15 years of school.
we all agree that “homework” / “review” is appropriate- we also agree on how inappropriately it is given out
(but given the school system-aside from those few great teachers- there is really not much more to expect)
After just finishing 12 years of school, I still feel homework is VERY important. First of all just imagine what the streets would look like if there wasn’t any homework? Would you let your children out to play. I know I wouldn’t. Homework keeps the children busy. Thats why summer vacation was created. To give the children a break from school and homework. Homework keeps the childrens minds stimulated instead of sitting them in front of a 49″ plasma screen.
The amount of homework is a different issue.
he’s right we should not have homework
Okay. This is just plain stupid in my opinion. How does he associate this with slavery? Just because something is assigned to you without your permission doesn’t mean it’s slavery. Homework can help kids understand material better and can also give them practice! Besides, this kid’s not going to have any future (except detention) without doing his homework! I don’t like homework much, but if it’ll give me a future, I’m all for it!
Okay, first of all I am a student and I know exactly how it is to do homework for hours long. I can completely comprehend Ben’s and other kids’ frustration. However, Ben compared slavery to homework, which is not appropriate at all. The country of the United States was built on the backs and sweat of African Americans! Homework no matter how disgusting may be for someone is a way to help students to learn RESPONSABILITY and TIME MANAGEMENT. Homework or any other issues should never be compared to slavery or to the 13 amend. It’s sad that people had taken this so seriously instead of given some RESPECT to those human beings who truly were slaves here in the U.S.