By A Staff Reporter
Kathmandu, Oct. 8: Dashain is usually the most cherished holiday for the people of Nepal to travel and meet their families and relatives while celebrating the festival.
As Dashain has already begun, people have started planning for their vacation but the young school children across the country have a sense of burden, they have a lot of homework to complete during the festival.
Dashain is a time for recreation and it provides opportunities for the family members to spend quality time together. But children often have to be busy in their homework as schools tend to encumber them with give the burden of assignments and projects.

Guardians also exert pressure on their wards to complete their homework before they go for travel to meet their families or before the schools resume after the long vacation.
Dr. Minakshi Dahal, an educationist, said as seniors want leisure time for a while, children also require the same. Children can be more creative and can feel fresh while returning to schools if they are not burdened with homework.

The traditional pattern of homework can’t be effective for learning as they can’t do on their own and they seek help from parents, family members, friends or the internet, Dahal said.
Dahal suggested schools to give project-based little tasks to children if they have any obligation to give home assignment.
D.K. Dhungana, co-chair of Private and Boarding Schools’ Association of Nepal (PABSON), has a similar opinion that children can be more creative and they will have concentration in learning later if they get more free time.
However, schools have compulsion to give home assignment as many parents seek it to keep their wards engaged in studies during the long vacation, Dhungana said.

Dhungana further said some schools have already started giving project-based rather than huge burden of homework. However, still many schools are practicing traditional pattern of teaching and learning. Therefore, the PABSON now is campaigning for academic excellence in all schools across the country. PABSON is trying to make all schools aware that tasks should involve critical thinking and hone creativity in children.

Guardians also seem divided regarding the home assignment for children during vacation. Guardians who can spend time with kids and who have a belief that children learn creatively even from out of the course activities are against the idea of giving homework, but the parents who don’t have time to stay with kids and who want children’s engagement even in vacation want homework to keep the children busy.