By JULIA PENCHUK
Assigning students homework over religious holidays has been up for debate among teachers, students, and parents at Jericho schools.
Many students believe that having to do homework on religious holidays prevents them from properly observing. Additionally, students feel that work assigned on holiday breaks stops them from being able to enjoy themselves considering they do work every other school day and on weekends. When asked if she thinks we should have homework during holidays, freshman Carly S. said, “No, because we need our time to do other things besides work that we have throughout every other day, even weekends.” She went on to explain that over her holiday breaks she likes to travel and spend time with her family and friends, but work takes up a good amount of her time.
Freshman Alexia K.-B. doesn’t think homework over holidays is that bad and said, “I do get homework over holidays, but my teachers take into consideration that there is a break so they try not to assign hefty amounts.” However, she believes that holidays should be a time to spend with family and friends.
English teacher Ms. Hederian explained that she thinks having a book to read should be enjoyment and not hard work for students. However, she went on to say that she doesn’t think students should have excessive homework on holidays because this is the time for family bonding.
Jericho High School Principal Ms. Rosenberg explained that she feels the teachers don’t give a lot of homework over holiday breaks. She went on to explain that if a student misses school or homework due to religious reasons the school can not punish them, and the student will receive an excused absence. Ms. Rosenberg says the Board of Education decides which days school will be closed by looking at the demographics of Jericho families.
Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction Barbara Bauer explained how school holidays are chosen. “Nassau BOCES, a group that is made up of the districts in Nassau County, puts out a general calendar that most districts will follow. The districts will develop the calendar depending on days they have in their school year.” She went on to explain that if a new holiday is proposed, the Board of Education discusses it and asks for community input and then determines how it fits in our 186 school days. Finally, the Administration assures that all the teachers are aware of the holidays as they create their assessments.
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