fbpx
  • HOME
    • About Us
    • Collaborate
    • Featured
  • Moms & Dads
    • Parenting
    • Relationships
    • Family Time
    • Work
      • Career
      • Business
      • Money
  • Fun With
    • Little Kids
    • Big Kids
    • Teenagers
  • Education
    • Local Schools
    • Tuition & Enrichment
    • Students
  • Lifestyle
    • Health & Beauty
    • Food
  • Travel
    • Travel With Kids
    • Travel For Work
    • Staycations
  • Workshops
  • Contact Us
Monday, April 19, 2021
  • Login
Universal Scribbles
  • HOME
    • About Us
    • Collaborate
    • Featured
  • Moms & Dads
    • Parenting
    • Relationships
    • Family Time
    • Work
      • Career
      • Business
      • Money
  • Fun With
    • Little Kids
    • Big Kids
    • Teenagers
  • Education
    • Local Schools
    • Tuition & Enrichment
    • Students
  • Lifestyle
    • Health & Beauty
    • Food
  • Travel
    • Travel With Kids
    • Travel For Work
    • Staycations
  • Workshops
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
  • HOME
    • About Us
    • Collaborate
    • Featured
  • Moms & Dads
    • Parenting
    • Relationships
    • Family Time
    • Work
      • Career
      • Business
      • Money
  • Fun With
    • Little Kids
    • Big Kids
    • Teenagers
  • Education
    • Local Schools
    • Tuition & Enrichment
    • Students
  • Lifestyle
    • Health & Beauty
    • Food
  • Travel
    • Travel With Kids
    • Travel For Work
    • Staycations
  • Workshops
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
No Result
View All Result
Home Students Primary (7 - 12)

The Eternal Homework Battle

byMeiling Wong
inPrimary (7 - 12)
1
0
SHARES
75
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Today, I was at the gym waiting for my daughter to finish her gym class. It’s an hour long class, and armed with my coffee shop coffee, I sat down to do some writing. But I got distracted – at the next table, a battle was in full swing. I stared intently at my laptop and pretend to type in a feeble attempt to hide my eavesdropping on the quarreling mother and son.

A boy (no more than 7 or 8-years-old) was pleading with his mother to not cancel an appointment (perhaps with a playmate or an outing to somewhere fun).

Tearful and obviously very upset, he pleaded desperately with his mother to reinstate points that she had forfeited because he was not doing his homework properly. But mom was a tough cookie. She retorted that if he had done his work properly, she would not have to instate any penalty. The more he begged her to take back her punishment, the firmer was her “NO.”

Boy: “Please, mummy, please. One more chance.”

Mom: “If you finish your homework,I’ll see.”

Boy: “But there’s so much.”

Mom: “It’s 15 words, if you take 10 minutes for 5 words, you’ll be done in half an hour.”

Boy groans: “But mom, I have that and then there’s more (pointing to more worksheets).”

Mom: “Well, if you don’t finish your work, you leave me with no choice. My decision is final.”

Mother and son homework battle

The boy knew he was not going to win. So, resigned to his fate, he starts to do his work – writing furiously and in deep concentration. Meanwhile, mom is still agitated; mumbling and grumbling about the length of time he was taking to do a bit of work (Why do you take 10 hours to do a 10-minute work).

The boy asked the mother to please “stop” (grumbling). That riled the mother even more; she slammed together her things, told the boy she was going to run some errand and walked off in a huff, leaving him to “do” his homework.

In a moment of deja vu, I am reminded of the many times I have used the same bullying tactics to get my son to do his homework? How often had I said those same lines to him. But, it is for his own good right? He has to do all those worksheets in order to excel in school. Which mother wants her child to fail? If she doesn’t push him, who will?

Nevertheless, my heart goes out to the poor boy. After all, the school holidays had just begun (literally 5 days ago) and he has homework?! What happened to play during the holidays? He should be out playing, watching TV, hanging out with friends, anything but studying. He looked like an intelligent boy, surely he can’t have done too badly in class?

Why can’t we see eye to eye?

Anyone who has gone through the Singapore education understands the intense pressure; and yes, it starts from Primary (grade) One. And as Singaporeans, we are proud that our education system, rigid as it may be, has produced excellent scholars and is widely-known for its excellent foundation for further studies. As Asian parents, we want our kids to excel academically, because that’s where the bright future lies (so we’ve been told by our parents and we can’t seem to get it out of our head). We know that schools use grades to weed out the best from the average. So, we pound on the importance of getting good marks into our kids.

Unfortunately, our children, especially those in the lower primary don’t understand and frankly, don’t really care about those dastardly grades. They want to know when they can play with their friends, when they can watch the telly and when is the release of the latest computer game. They can’t understand why they need to do more homework than is necessary. And the moms can’t understand why their kids don’t get the importance of getting GOOD grades.

I don’t really know how the mantra to “prepare our kids for the future” started, but start it did and it took on a life of its own. We start sending our kids to enrichment classes as early as we can (as young as 15 months). And if that’s not sufficient preparation, we have a wide selection of brain training institutions where we can send our kids to ensure that their brains are in optimal state to process and learn in primary school. Training starts as early as 2 months and there is a long waiting list at some institutions.

At the end of the day, our kids may do their extra assignments begrudgingly (they don’t really have a choice). When they get the grades we expect, we are over the moon – see, we are right, those extra worksheets help. But when they don’t get the desired grades, we pile on more work and hire tutors who give them more work (we don’t really have a choice, they’ve got to keep up).

Sometimes I wonder what kind of future we are preparing them for that we have to push them so much in the present. Where do we draw the line between preparation and pushing too far? Are we pushing for their sake or for our own agenda? Perhaps it is our expectation that needs managing. What do you think?

If you like this post, do connect with US on Facebook, Twitter and Instagramor share your thoughts/experiences in the comments below. We will love to hear from you.

Till then, love yourself, love your child, live strong and be free.

You May Also Like These Related Posts:

  • Flexible Work Options For Mums
  • How Much Do You Need To Raise A Child?
  • Schools Offering Integrated Programmes

Share this:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)

You May Also Like:

Tags: Asian ParentsConflict ResolutionEducationExam StressHomeworkParentParent and ChildParent Child RelationshipsParental StrugglesPrimary School
ShareTweetShare
Previous Post

The 15-minute Birthday Party

Next Post

Giveaway: Hot Wheels Wall Tracks [CLOSED]

Related Posts

Great Resume Writing Tips To Score Job Interviews
Primary (7 - 12)

Primary One Registration in Local Schools: Criteria & Strategy (2020)

by Meiling Wong
18/07/2020
Preparing Your Child To Enter Primary One in New School Year!
Empowering Kids

Preparing Your Child To Enter Primary One in New School Year!

by Meiling Wong
18/07/2020
Criteria To Choosing The RIGHT Primary School For Your Child
Education

What Your Child Needs To Know Before Entering Primary One

by Meiling Wong
18/07/2020
Criteria To Choosing The RIGHT Primary School For Your Child
Education

Criteria To Choosing The RIGHT Primary School For Your Child

by Meiling Wong
27/03/2021
International School vs Local Primary School: Which is better?
Education

International School vs Local Primary School: Which is better?

by Meiling Wong
07/04/2021
30+ Movies About Parent-Child Relationships To Watch With Kids
Family Time

30+ Movies About Parent-Child Relationships To Watch With Kids

by Meiling Wong
28/03/2021
Next Post
Giveaway: Hot Wheels Wall Tracks [CLOSED]

Giveaway: Hot Wheels Wall Tracks [CLOSED]

Comments 1

  1. Pingback: PSLE Mindset - Flying Cape Blog

Leave a ReplyCancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

CONNECT WITH US

SEARCH

No Result
View All Result

BEST PARENTING BLOG

US on FACEBOOK

SuperWebTricks Loading...

Be The First To Know

Subscribe to our mailing list to receive monthly updates and exclusive invites!

POPULAR STORIES

  • 11 Introduction Ideas to Begin Your English Compositions

    11 Introduction Ideas to Begin Your English Compositions

    11 shares
    Share 11 Tweet 0
  • Common DSA Questions Asked In Interviews

    13 shares
    Share 13 Tweet 0
  • 30+ Movies About Parent-Child Relationships To Watch With Kids

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • PSLE: How To Score A-star in Composition Writing

    1 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • How Can Parents Help To Prepare For PSLE Oral (English)

    6 shares
    Share 6 Tweet 0
Currently Playing

My little Chef & the Song Cho Bread Maker

My little Chef & the Song Cho Bread Maker

00:05:02

DIY: How to make Fluffy Slime at home!

00:04:03

LEGO Boost Review and Unboxing!

00:05:03
  • Editors & Contributors
  • Media Agencies
  • Seminars & Events
  • Corporate & Academic Workshops
  • Testimonials

Copyrights © 2012 - 2020 All rights reserved by Universal Scribbles.

No Result
View All Result
  • HOME
    • About Us
    • Collaborate
    • Featured
  • Moms & Dads
    • Parenting
    • Relationships
    • Family Time
    • Work
      • Career
      • Business
      • Money
  • Fun With
    • Little Kids
    • Big Kids
    • Teenagers
  • Education
    • Local Schools
    • Tuition & Enrichment
    • Students
  • Lifestyle
    • Health & Beauty
    • Food
  • Travel
    • Travel With Kids
    • Travel For Work
    • Staycations
  • Workshops
  • Contact Us

Copyrights © 2012 - 2020 All rights reserved by Universal Scribbles.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
loadingCancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.