I was speaking with a teacher friend who was at wit’s end. She mentioned that students were complaining about too much homework, and not enough time to get it done. My friend was wracking her brain over this dilemma. She did not feel like she was giving an extraordinary load. She recalled having more homework in her high school years.

Herein lies the problem. What she did not have, and what we as parents did not have were all of the distractions. Cell phones bring incessant texting. The computer brings e-mail and Facebook and MySpace. Not to mention live chat. Picture the phone-ringing non-stop; this is what communication is today. If they don’t answer the text or e-mail immediately, they might as well be dead. Dead to the social media world of friendships!

When I was growing up in my large family, we were off the television during the week. We did not have the VCR option or the TiVo option. Mork and Mindy? I saw re-runs in the summer.

My college-age daughters will block their Facebook during cram time. They change the password to some obscure unmemorable group of letters and numbers. They do whatever it takes not to be distracted.

With the two I have in middle school, they are not permitted free text reign, so that is not an issue. Neither is i-chat. But as recent Facebook users, I have had to put the kibosh on its use during homework time. I hope I am prepping them for what lay ahead. Middle school homework cannot compare to the load that awaits them in high school. College level courses, sports, music, and extracurricular activities will reign supreme, and they will have to learn to balance it all. I am exhausted just thinking about it.

As in life, moderation is key. Cell phones need to be left at the door, and Facebook off, until homework, is completed, or they are on a study break. Think back. Our break would have been the phone, where someone picks up the extension and tells us our time is up, and to get off of the phone!

This is not our time. It is a new age, and we have to find ways to adapt, just as our parents did with the overuse of the telephone.

Our kids learning experience is vastly different than ours. They have access to more, and we need to be more vigilant in staying one step ahead. Social media will only get bigger. If your kids are overburdened, turn off the electronics first! Put on some classical background music. A great education is priceless and forever.  I cannot wait to find out what their kids do to foster distraction!