小さな英語教室

Vol. 62 : 前回の続き：主題のさらなる展開と結論

　宿題を何回も忘れた息子の友人（当時中2）が、罰として反省文を書いてこいと教師から言われて書いたエッセーを前回紹介しましたが、今回はその続きです。「社会の悪の根源は宿題にある」などと言う点は笑えもしますが、再度、内容より文章の形式に注目していただきたい。数学者で、日本流に言う「エッセイスト」でもある藤原正彦氏は、『祖国とは国語』（新潮文庫）の中で、「アメリカの大学で教えていたころ、数学の力では日本人学生にはるかに劣るむこうの学生が、論理的思考については実によく訓練されているので驚かされた」と言っていますが、この息子の友人のエッセーは、その良い例かもしれません。

　（ローマ時代の「宿題の歴史」に始まった前回のエッセーから今回はさらに展開して、「宿題は好きなんだけど忘れる理由、そしてその解決方法は…」という結論で終わります）。

　Homework allows schools to cover much more work. Not only does it allow children to expand their knowledge outside of school, but it means that teachers can go through the theory behind the homework more thoroughly during school time. This is especially important in subjects in which there is much theory where you must do a lot of practice of the that theory to learn it eg: math and physics.

　The down side to homework is that it is causing the downfall of society. It is the single and one cause for the chaos and black hole into which our society is falling rapidly. It causes the breakdown of the family for several reasons:

a)　Children have less time to spend 'quality family time' together;

b)　Children are stuck in their rooms, and spend less time outside - this is unhealthy;

c)　Children lose a vital part of their lives working, not growing up, playing, living. There is this attitude that people in third world countries who send their kids off to work at the age of ten is inhuman. Well, it is happening before our eyes in our very own community, because the hard labor starts at seven;

d)　Children sometimes rebel against their family because their parents have not had enough 'quality time' with their children to mould their character;

e)　Parents don't spend 'quality time' with their children by helping them with their homework because, after third grade, the work becomes too hard for parents. They are incapable of helping.

　The collapse of the family leads to the downfall of society as a whole. We can see this all around us, as people commit suicide, murder, adultery, become alcoholic, use drugs, smoke, become homelessness and divorce - this is directly related to the introduction of homework into our society.

　Actually - I am in favor of homework - but not in favor of setting excess amounts of homework. I only 'forget' to do homework when I did not hear it being set, or did not write it down in my diary (which is rare). Even if I don't have much time to do my homework (which I don't), I make extra time, such as waking an hour earlier, or going to bed an hour later. It is unlike me not to do homework, as I don't usually forget. I just do not record it in my memory in the first place. I have had this problem only once before in the 2nd Form, where my Asian Studies teacher just said homework in the middle of a sentence, and if you happened to miss what she said - you missed out. Teachers can help pupils remember homework by announcing the homework to be done at the end of the lesson in a different tone of voice, and writing it on the board. If this becomes a habit, then pupils will have less difficulty in remembering homework. - I guarantee it.