Homework vs Extra Curriculars

[Horizon]

Since we all battle how to keep boys engaged, while going head-to-head with other, competing interests - I thought I would share this research from Stanford:

 

http://news.stanford.edu/news/2014/march/too-much-homework-031014.html

[h=1]Stanford research shows pitfalls of homework[/h] A Stanford researcher found that students in high-achieving communities who spend too much time on homework experience more stress, physical health problems, a lack of balance and even alienation from society. More than two hours of homework a night may be counterproductive, according to the study.

 

[Engineer61]

May be... but anyone who's tried to matriculate a kid into college lately will soon learn that a "B" on the transcript is an "F" ... and Eagle counts for nothing in your average admissions office.

[Horizon]

May be... but anyone who's tried to matriculate a kid into college lately will soon learn that a "B" on the transcript is an "F" ... and Eagle counts for nothing in your average admissions office.

 

Eagle counts for a point. Senior Patrol leader is known as the head of the club - at least at the local university (my wife was a faculty rep on the admissions requirements team).

 

It is true a B is an F for top schools today as well. However - the stress, anxiety, etc. that is being push on kids is insane.

[skeptic]

It is almost time to throw out grades all together, as they barely mean much anymore. The standard curve, the one where most are average, or in the middle, while about 15% are in the 80-90 percentile or 60-70 percentile, with 10% on the bottom or top, is no longer close to valid. Teachers are almost afraid to give the grades many students deserve. But, if a student can't get into one of the so called better schools, believe it or not, very few people care where the degree came from, as long as it is an accredited school. There is no GPA attached to the diploma, and there are many very good college instructors that work in the so called lesser schools. It is interesting that many students that transfer from junior colleges to regular schools perform better than many that went directly, whether it be "elite school" or a basic state four year program. We worry far too much about these things. And that is much of why so many struggle in the first place, both in high school and college. The concept that everyone can be above average is simply not true. And the results of this kind of thinking is showing in the educational nose dive. It is also showing in the increase in failure in college, because too many go there that never should in the first place, and would not have even been accepted 30 years ago or more when high school students were actually held accountable.

 

We will always have those that rise above, no matter what, but they would do it no matter what system of education and level of accountability they experienced. We see these in the 10%-15% of Eagle candidates that truly stand out above most of them. But, as been noted, an Eagle is an Eagle at the time of receiving it. Those we tend to hold out as examples of great Eagles, ones that achieve great things or set wonderful examples in adult life come from that small percentage noted above for the most part.

 

Part of countries employment issues relate directly to pushing too many to go to college, instead of find a trade or their own special niche. By pushing them to go where they really do not belong, we simply push them to low esteem and other issues. Of course, it would also help if we were to find a way to redirect much of the corporate profit bloat that goes to the top to better pay workers that actually earn the profits, and to hire more to take the pressure off those that are over worked with higher and higher productivity expectations for the same amount of pay.

 

Time to take the rose colored idea glasses off and accept that is very unlikely to happen, even a little, as long as we have our egocentric so called leaders and corporate lords.

[Hal_Crawford]

May be... but anyone who's tried to matriculate a kid into college lately will soon learn that a "B" on the transcript is an "F" ... and Eagle counts for nothing in your average admissions office.

 

Eagle counts for a point. Senior Patrol leader is known as the head of the club - at least at the local university (my wife was a faculty rep on the admissions requirements team).

 

It is true a B is an F for top schools today as well. However - the stress, anxiety, etc. that is being push on kids is insane.

And the A needs to be in an AP course. I was shocked to learn 10 years ago that my alma mater's average GPA for entering freshmen is now in the vicinity of 4.0. This is not because all these freshmen were straight A students in high school; it is because of the bonus points for passing AP exams.

[Cambridgeskip]

It's pretty similar this side of the pond (albeit Queens Scout or Queens Guide DOES count for a lot)

 

The pressure being put on kids to get grades at school is insane. Last summer I nearly wept when I had a couple of 10 year old, yes 10 year olds, pulled out of a camp by their parents because they had to revise for exams. I don't think I had any home work at all when I was 10, let alone too much to spend the weekend getting muddy in the woods.

 

The amount of mental health issues now being suffered by older teenagers over their GCSE and A levels (exams taken at 16 and 18 respectively) is going through the roof. And it's tragic.

[RememberSchiff]

Well it only gets worse later. I've heard that fifty percent of all doctors graduate in the bottom half of their class. I imagine that may be true of other professions.

 

 

[boomerscout]

Well it only gets worse later. I've heard that fifty percent of all doctors graduate in the bottom half of their class. I imagine that may be true of other professions.

 

 

Isn't there a town in Minnesota where everyone is above average?

[Merlyn_LeRoy]

Well it only gets worse later. I've heard that fifty percent of all doctors graduate in the bottom half of their class. I imagine that may be true of other professions.

 

 

Just the children...

[Twocubdad]

Well it only gets worse later. I've heard that fifty percent of all doctors graduate in the bottom half of their class. I imagine that may be true of other professions.

 

 

Merlyn! I've never known you to comment on a topic other than religion. Attaboy!

[Scouter99]

I've got a dad/ASM who's been apologizing for his son's absence at literally everything for 2 years with "sorry, he has homework." Right. And so do the other 40 boys who all managed to get here.

[Sentinel947]

May be... but anyone who's tried to matriculate a kid into college lately will soon learn that a "B" on the transcript is an "F" ... and Eagle counts for nothing in your average admissions office.

Neither does any other extracurricular then. So why do you let your son participate in them? Study, study, study.

[packsaddle]

Will someone please show me some studies or other evidence from authoritative sources (CHE for example) that indicate that a 'B' on a transcript is no better than an 'F'? I'd like to see the basis for that claim.

As for extracurricular activity, OTOH, if you have nothing outside of the classroom that broadens your horizons, you can forget such things as a Rhodes Scholarship, for example. The problem is that these are subjective and therefore difficult to quantify and factor into the admission process. But they do count for something. Eagle Scout is right there with winning the science fair and leading the church choir or being recognized by the community for a service project.

[Torchwood]

I worked in higher ed for a bit, and they are looking for more than grades. They want well-rounded and diverse students. They want Eagle Scouts, they want readers, they want athletes, they want a little of everything.

[Huzzar]

May be... but anyone who's tried to matriculate a kid into college lately will soon learn that a "B" on the transcript is an "F" ... and Eagle counts for nothing in your average admissions office.

Rubbish re Eagle, at least in my neck of the woods.