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The Homework Myth

Why Our Kids Get Too Much of a Bad Thing

Contributors

By Alfie Kohn

Formats and Prices

Price

$19.99

Price

$25.99 CAD

This item is a preorder. Your payment method will be charged immediately, and the product is expected to ship on or around August 14, 2007. This date is subject to change due to shipping delays beyond our control.

Death and taxes come later; what seems inevitable for children is the idea that, after spending the day at school, they must then complete more academic assignments at home. The predictable results: stress and conflict, frustration and exhaustion. Parents respond by reassuring themselves that at least the benefits outweigh the costs. But what if they don’t? In The Homework Myth, nationally known educator and parenting expert Alfie Kohn systematically examines the usual defenses of homework–that it promotes higher achievement, “reinforces” learning, and teaches study skills and responsibility. None of these assumptions, he shows, actually passes the test of research, logic, or experience. So why do we continue to administer this modern cod liver oil — or even demand a larger dose? Kohn’s incisive analysis reveals how a mistrust of children, a set of misconceptions about learning, and a misguided focus on competitiveness have all left our kids with less free time and our families with more conflict. Pointing to parents who have fought back — and schools that have proved educational excellence is possible without homework — Kohn shows how we can rethink what happens during and after school in order to rescue our families and our children’s love of learning.

On Sale
Aug 14, 2007
Page Count
256 pages
ISBN-13
9780738211114

Alfie Kohn

About the Author

Alfie Kohn is the author of fourteen previous books, including Punished by Rewards, The Schools Our Children Deserve, and Unconditional Parenting. He lives in the Boston area.

Learn more about this author