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First, there was the Tiger Mom. Depending on who you were reading, she was either the paragon of Confucian parenting, a wanna-be Drill Instructor, or just plain abusive.
Then came the backlash. Parents far and wide rebelled against the great symbol of overly strict parenting: homework assignments. Apparently, children who were forced to do too much homework were losing out in the creativity race, and would not be able to fulfill their futures as job jugglers.
Now, the inevitable return to normalcy. KJ. Dell’Antonia explains the value of homework on the DoubleX blog: “For my son, the homework often meant that he went from school to sport to homework to bed with no break. For my daughter, with her lighter load, it wasn't the homework itself (which took next to no time and which she sometimes persuaded her 4-year-old brother to do for her), it was getting her to sit down and do it. And it was exactly that process of pushing her to sit down every night and get through that worksheet that reminds me of why she had the homework in the first place.”
It’s a nice coda to the debate.
Then came the backlash. Parents far and wide rebelled against the great symbol of overly strict parenting: homework assignments. Apparently, children who were forced to do too much homework were losing out in the creativity race, and would not be able to fulfill their futures as job jugglers.
Now, the inevitable return to normalcy. KJ. Dell’Antonia explains the value of homework on the DoubleX blog: “For my son, the homework often meant that he went from school to sport to homework to bed with no break. For my daughter, with her lighter load, it wasn't the homework itself (which took next to no time and which she sometimes persuaded her 4-year-old brother to do for her), it was getting her to sit down and do it. And it was exactly that process of pushing her to sit down every night and get through that worksheet that reminds me of why she had the homework in the first place.”
It’s a nice coda to the debate.
1 comment:
If one is not learning to deal with the requirements of life early there is NO creativity. As a performing musician who does a lot of Jazz playing, where does one think that creativity came from?
It comes from developing the tools necessary to have the skills needed to be creative. Education, and all that goes with it, is the tools one attains for his/her "toolbox." That "toolbox" is what makes it possible for one to build a beautiful full life.
Talent is, at most, about 10 percent of being successful at any endeavor. The rest is hard work. It is the DISCIPLINE of learning that is the foundation of creativity. Whether the educational institutions in this country help to engender that foundation is another question.
If one wants to be truly successful and be the best they can be then one has to devote the one thing they have plenty of, TIME and the ability to work hard towards their goals.
Parents who do not ensure that their children are learning the value of hard work and education are only cheating those children. The children will thank them in the long run. Success is a natural high that is only earned by hard work.
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