Independent research and reading impressions... What should I do with my summer vacation homework!
?
August 3 18:45
The long-awaited summer vacation.
While we are excited about what to do and where to go to play, there are also headaches for children and parents.
That's right, "summer vacation homework".
Why do you have homework during summer vacation?
Isn't the burden on parents heavy?
I tried to cover various things related to "summer vacation homework".
(Reporters of the Network News Department Hiroki Matsumoto Mariko Noda Ayumi Yanagisawa)
table of contents
Post from one mom: “It's just too hard!”
"Why can't children do their summer vacation homework on their own?"
news post
The other day, information was received from a mother in her 30s living in Osaka Prefecture on NHK's news post.
A woman who lives with her son, who is in the sixth grade of elementary school, and her husband.
Every year, she complains about her son's summer vacation homework.
"For six years from the first grade, I've been working on summer vacation homework. I thought it was a little too hard!"
My son, who is in the 6th grade of elementary school, has a wide range of homework for this summer vacation.
◎Arithmetic, Japanese, and English printouts
◎Jump-rope training
◎Summer vacation newspaper (turn your news into a newspaper)
◎Reading report
◎
Recorder
practice
◎
Calligraphy
Research, make a piggy bank, one from a picture with a fixed theme
Printouts are the same as regular homework, so even a child can do it on their own. Even the things you can't beat.
It is said that he felt that these things were imposed because parents set up and help.
Both women work, and there is a limit to watching my son's homework all day long.
“When I was in the 1st and 2nd grades, I thought I needed to help out, but I didn’t think I had to help out until the 6th grade. I think it would be nice if it was a homework with a specific content."
Eh, are there so many?
In the wake of the post, I looked into the summer vacation homework of the children of the interview team.
Here is the homework list that our two elementary school children brought home the day before vacation.
For example, my first grade daughter's homework.
1. Picture diary (1 sheet)
2. Review drill (Japanese language and arithmetic)
3. Reading aloud (every day)
4. Addition and subtraction calculation cards (every day)
5. Observation of morning glory brought back from school
6. Reading impressions after summer vacation Notes to write at school
7. Reading record
8. Keyboard harmonica practice
9. Free research or free craft
I was dizzy looking at the amount, but when I turned it over, the homework list continued all the way to the back.
In the 4th grade, the level will be even higher.
The number of review drills has increased to two, and assignments for practicing kanji and discussing disaster prevention at home have also been added.
It seems a bit difficult for one person to do all this.
Still, her older sister is working on it little by little with the help of her neighbors.
On the other hand, my sister who is in the first grade.
I completed the drills and reading using the study time of the school children, but the record of "reading aloud and calculation cards" that I was supposed to do at home every day stopped on July 28. Entering August.
Even if I say, "Let's do it," when I get home, I have other things I want to play or do, so I pretend I didn't hear.
It may be fine to just watch over them, but I end up thinking at an adult pace, or thinking that I want to make things better, and I end up intervening.
Did we have so much homework when we were elementary school students...?
I wonder how everyone is doing
Worries and gimon only deepen.
which one is the burden?
What kind of summer vacation homework is a burden on parents?
This is the result of a survey conducted by a company that develops an application that allows schedule adjustments necessary for group activities such as PTA and club activities, asking 651 users with elementary school children about their summer vacation homework.
In response to the question, "Which summer vacation homework do you tend to leave until the end?"
Reading report 43.3% Independent
research 40.1%
Summer vacation diary 21.0%
After all, it seems that the type of homework that simply solves problems can be completed early.
Also, what is the answer to the question, "What kind of homework do parents help with during summer vacation?"
Independent research 44.4%
Handicraft 29.6%
Reading report 29.3%
And the result of the direct question, "Do you think summer vacation homework is necessary for children?"
I think it's necessary 65.7% I think it's necessary, but I
think the content should be changed 30.1% I think
it's unnecessary 4.1%
The majority of parents thought that summer vacation homework was necessary.
when did it start?
So when did "summer vacation homework" actually start?
I asked a person in charge of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.
Curriculum Division, Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
: "We also looked into it, but it is not clear when summer vacation homework started. Furthermore, it is not clear when summer vacation itself started. No. In 1881, 141 years ago, the phrase ``summer holiday'' was found in the elementary school teaching rules of the 14th year of the Meiji era. ”
Surprisingly, it is not clear when and who started the summer vacation homework.
However, it does appear to be very old.
This is a summer vacation homework in Miyazaki prefecture in Meiji 43, 112 years ago.
In addition to arithmetic and kanji dictation, I was able to write a diary, etc., and it seems that there will not be much change from now.
It seems that the children of the Meiji era were also working on their homework while suppressing their desire to play.
Isn't summer vacation a "holiday"?
In the past and now, parents and children alike have troublesome summer vacation homework.
Masaru Okazaki, a former teacher who taught at an elementary school in Nagoya City for 47 years and also edits a childcare magazine, asked questions about summer vacation homework.
Then, suddenly, a shocking statement came out.
Masaru Okazaki
"Summer vacation is not a 'holiday' for children in the first place."
Eh... is that so?
According to Mr. Okazaki, what is generally referred to as "summer vacation" is the "summer holiday" in Article 29 of the School Education Law Enforcement Ordinance.
A holiday is simply a day when no classes are held at school, and is different from a vacation.
Mr. Masaru Okazaki
“The concept of summer holidays seems to have been adopted in the Meiji era. Then, since it is positioned as a holiday between semesters, it has become a style to continue studying traditionally in the form of homework.”
When I was in elementary school, the interview team seriously thought, "Why do you have homework even though it's 'holiday'?"
It turns out that there was a deep relationship between the origin of summer vacation and homework in the first place.
So why has there been an increase in the number of complicated homework assignments that cannot be done without the help of parents?
I asked more questions.
Mr. Okazaki also says that he feels that recently there has been an increase in the number of “homework assignments that each person has to work on using their own creativity.”
In the background of this, it seems that schools are being asked to "emphasize children's individuality and foster creativity and the ability to think and learn on their own" in the course of educational reform.
Mr. Okazaki points out that "circumstances differ depending on the region," but that there may be changes in the school's perception of homework and the environment in which children learn.
Mr. Masaru Okazaki
: Some parents have requested that their children give a lot of homework so that they can study during the summer vacation. There are also teachers, and on the other hand, in areas where junior high school exams are popular, there are schools that have cram schools, so there are schools that do as little homework as possible
. It's time to develop a sense of self, but with fewer environments to acquire the basic skills that lead to creativity, it's difficult to be told to "do things freely on your own." I'm going to need someone to help me out."
The background to the decision to abolish summer vacation homework
Some elementary schools have abolished uniform "summer vacation homework".
At Kashiwa-no-ha Elementary School in Kashiwa City, Chiba Prefecture, a consultation from a parent prompted them to think about summer vacation homework.
Masako Kashimura, Principal of Kashiwa-no-ha Elementary School
: "In this area, there are many children who take entrance exams, and parents of children who have to do both homework at cram school and at school complained that school homework was a burden. increase"
Summer vacation is an important time for children to freely work on what they want to do, and I want them to participate in local events and volunteer activities and gain a lot of experience that they cannot get from learning at a desk.
It is said that the school decided to abolish summer vacation homework about five years ago after repeated discussions with parents and local communities.
However, the school does not do anything.
For the essays and arts and crafts works completed by the children during the summer vacation, we introduce information about exhibitions and encourage active submissions. During the interviews, we share information about the areas that the students were not good at in the first semester, and we do our best to encourage them to work hard at home during the summer vacation.
It's been about 5 years since we've been working on it.
In addition to being favorably received by parents and local communities, it has been well received for reducing the burden on teachers.
Kashiwa-no-ha Elementary School Principal Masako Kashimura
“Some children are able to concentrate on cram school, others are able to participate in local events, and some children focus on their own research and studies. The understanding and cooperation of parents and the community is essential, but I think there were many times when it seemed that summer vacation homework was abolished.”
It's hard, but it's also meaningful
There are many people on social media who lament that "summer vacation homework is your parents' homework!"
"When I was checking my daughter's summer vacation homework and told her, 'You got 3 questions wrong,' my wife said, 'It's amazing that you only got 3 questions wrong!' I realized firsthand that even if the result is the same, the difference in the way you communicate can motivate the other person.”
The woman who posted that "my child's homework is too hard!", which triggered the interview, also said that she made a new discovery by looking at her summer vacation homework.
The woman who submitted the post:
“I had a homework assignment to play the recorder. I thought it was a boy and I wasn’t very good with my hands, but it turned out better than I imagined, and I was really happy that I could do it!” I was very grateful for that.”
the answer is hard
It is difficult for children to do everything by themselves, and there is a limit to what parents can do to help.
While some schools have taken the plunge and completely abolished it, there are also voices on the Internet that say that there are things that can be learned from homework.
Homework for summer vacation seems to be not easy.
Then, what do you think about the side that has continued to give out homework?
I asked the mother of one of the reporters who worked as a public junior high school teacher for over 30 years.
“Summer vacation homework, I think, was originally meant to make summer vacation life more regular. Nowadays, there are many temptations such as smartphones, TVs, and games, and some children don’t do anything without homework
. Personally, I think it would be nice if the summer vacation homework was something like free research.It would be nice if I could do something that I couldn't do in my normal
school life.Summer vacation homework is also good for teachers .
It's hard because I have to check my homework after summer is
over.It's hard to answer summer vacation homework."
Mr. Masaru Okazaki, a former teacher who taught at an elementary school in Nagoya City for 47 years and also edits a childcare magazine, also gave us this message.
Ms. Okazaki:
"Even though it's summer vacation, parents are always busy. It's hard to do your homework well, so if you're really having trouble with your homework, I think it's okay to ask for help outside your home. Or, if you're going to stick to the principle of one-of-a-kind luxury, you can do something that your child will be happy with and have a good time together
. I think."
The hot summer continues, with both parents and children facing summer vacation homework.
I ended the interview with the hope that the summer vacation would be one in which the children can grow through their homework.
Appendix ・ "Amazing free research guide" made by a cloud researcher
Thank you for reading this far.
Finally, as an appendix, I will introduce information that will be reliable in facing "free research", which can be said to be the "last boss" among the many summer vacation homework.
Last summer, a post by a researcher about how to engage in "scientific independent research" became a hot topic on social media.
The name is also "surprising free research guide".
(The guide is attached at the end of this article.) It was
put together by Mr. Kentaro Araki, a cloud expert and a researcher at the Meteorological Research Institute of the Japan Meteorological Agency.
Last April, Araki published a book for children about the weather.
The children who read it consulted him, saying, "I'd like to conduct independent research on weather and clouds. What should I do?" It seems that I did.
Mr. Kentaro Araki
``When you talk about free research, I think that it often ends with making something or collecting something. I made this work because I want people to know that scientific research is a lot of fun.
The guide introduces the steps used by professional researchers.
It is said that if you follow this procedure, you will be able to conduct research on science that is "insanely interesting."
(1) Choose an area of interest
(2) Find a "question"
(3) Investigate the question and form a "hypothesis"
(4) Take lots of pictures and proceed with the research
(5) Analyze the data
(6) Summarize independent research
In addition, for each step, detailed instructions such as how to find questions, how to formulate hypotheses, and how to proceed with research are described, and there is also a memo column that you can write directly.
Dr. Araki believes that the "process" is important in advancing research, and says that even if something does not go well, there is no need to regard it as a failure.
Mr. Kentaro Araki
“Even if an experiment or observation doesn't go well, or doesn't go according to the hypothesis, it's not a failure. I think it is important even after becoming an adult to think of it as a step that leads to the next step, instead of being depressed.I would like you to experience such a process.
I also have this message for those who are worried about free research during summer vacation.
Mr. Araki:
The theme can be anything familiar or interesting. Experiments and observations are fun to do, so I recommend it. As for the theme, there are many ways to do it, such as investigating the ecosystem by focusing on the place where the insect was taken, or by focusing on the structure of the insect's body. I am also involved in a special exhibition that introduces weather and weather knowledge in the hope that it will be helpful for independent research during summer vacation. I think".