Acton students log a great deal of time doing homework. Is this time well spent?
In March, the documentary Race to Nowhere was shown at the Acton-Boxborough Regional High School. In the audience were approximately 750 parents, students and other interested locals. The film addresses what its director, Vicki Abeles, feels is the current state of affairs for our children: overscheduling, unrealistic demands to perform, lack of adequate sleep, competition in all areas, and intense pressure to position oneself to gain acceptance to prestigious colleges. Within a week of the film’s showing, parent, Alex Horovitz, penned a letter and sent it to all of the Acton schools’ principals and the town’s school committee members. The topic: Homework. In his letter, Horovitz writes, “I am asking that you take the bold step of …
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Audience of 750 attend film screening of popular documentary about teen pressure, stress.
For many teenagers today, the stakes are always high. Homework is relentless. Extracurricular activities like sports and theater are no longer just for fun, consuming hours of kids’ time and demanding that they perform to their highest levels. And a decent night’s sleep has become as elusive—and nearly as valuable—as a winning lottery ticket. The effects of such stress—and whether students can, or should, be expected to handle it—are the issues explored in “Race to Nowhere,” an award-winning documentary about what its website calls the “silent epidemic in our schools”: a culture where teen sleep deprivation is the norm, cheating is increasingly common, and stress has become a form of status. The Film Shown last Tuesday at Acton-Boxborough …
r j
1:08 am on Sunday, December 16, 2012
When I was in school I had home work and some of it was very legitimate and helpful. If the class was going to discuss chapters the teacher didn't sit there while we read, we read it for homework. I spent many nights memorizing vocabulary, practicing math, and all of that was helpful. That being said 10 minutes and night per grade leaves a 12th grader with 2 hrs of homework every night. Add to … more ›