The news article below says that one Eastern Chinese province is planning to stop teachers from assigning homework to be preformed via smartphone apps.
According to the article, the restriction stems, in part, from the soaring rates of nearsightedness in China, blamed partly on small screen usage.
Please read the article before you comment, but what do you think of this plan?
How does it affect Flipped Learning and other CALL/MALL instructional designs?
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2019/02/18/recommended-screen-time-kids-china-ban-homework-apps/2904031002/
Homework s a very contentious issue in the UK overall - some commentators argue that it is meaningless as you cannot really determine who has completed it (parent or child). There is further argument that follow up lessons should be planned so as not to be reliant upon prior homework - as this accounts for home work being uncompleted, completed wrong or for students /pupils who have missed the previous lesson.
That said, there is clear evidence that homework can be used to extend, and even reinforce, learning.
There is an interesting piece here: (Missed) opportunities for teaching and learning with digital resources: what and why
Evers, K; Golding, J; Grima, G; (2018) (Missed) opportunities for teaching and learning with digital resources: what and why. In: Golding, J and Bretscher, N and Crisan, C and Geraniou, E and Hodgen, J and Morgan, C, (eds.) Proceedings of the 9th British Congress of Mathematics Education: BCME9. (pp. pp. 48-55). BSRLM: University of Warwick, UK
The article you highlight though seems to be driving at a reduction from a health perspective of screen overuse rather than a pedagogical one. In that case I would say I disagree with the principal as it is likely that pupils /students will still use screens and digital devices - even if it is not for homework. I would like to see the data that shows that homework is directly the cause for increased rates of myopia.
It feels like I've rambled on here - but anyway, a few thoughts.
I did not think so that . I think that in experimental stage
I think it's not ideal. Knowledge could be limited through the trend.
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