CD Voice | More and harder homework comes with new tech

Years ago, I asked a Singaporean mother how her son in a lackluster neighborhood school could excel in a national exam at the end of his sixth year, which opened up the way for a top middle school and eventually, an Ivy-league university. 

"His teachers were very committed," she said. "Sometimes, they called us about how he could do better even before he arrived home."

My son would be lucky if he had such teachers when his time came, I thought. 

And thanks to technology, I've got a lot more than what I wished for. 

Every day, WeChat keeps me and other parents in the loop about what has been taught in class, where our 7-year-olds stand in quizzes and tests, and homework to be completed even before the bell rings. 

After work, I often count the high and low test scores of my son’s class that are posted on the WeChat group. When he falls on the wrong side of the curve, we can discuss with his teachers online how we could help at home. 

Yet the points are just one of our concerns. As my son entered Primary Two this fall, the internet-enabled engagement with teachers has grown in both volume and intensity, to the point where we wonder if the homework is for the parents, not the children. 

Parents are supposed to check out direct and no-frills instructions for the nightly ritual on Wechat every day, and put their signatures on each assignment when it's done. 

My son's English teacher has asked parents to confirm, in their own handwriting, that their children have read aloud texts with fluency.

For me, the most challenging task comes with video projects that ask parents to film their children reciting, telling a picture story or acting out what they're taught. 

If you don't have a job, working with your child on a creative and clever video clip to be hosted on an educational video site can be a lot of fun, as it will be open to evaluation and comments from both the teacher and their classmates.

Unfortunately, most of us working full-time may not have the time to write a script and record the presentation many times to get it right. Usually children with full-time moms get the most view and praises.

For this Halloween, the video homework was taken to the next level. Parents needed to create PowerPoint slides with texts and pictures about its history and silly and scary antics, before filming the presentation and uploading it.

Education authorities have tried to reduce the study load for children, to less than one hour spent on homework for those in their last years at primary schools. 

But such suggestions might just elicit grimaces from parents bent on giving their children a leg-up. 

The irony is that in a dizzy education rat race, even new technology cannot make life easier for parents, children and their teachers. 

About the broadcaster

Greg Fountain is a copy editor and occasional presenter for China Daily. Before moving to Beijing in January, 2016 he worked for newspapers in the Middle East and UK. He has an M.A in Print Journalism from the University of Sheffield, a B.A in English and History from the University of Reading and a Basic Food Hygiene Certificate from a pub in South Yorkshire.

More 'CD Voice' Stories