"Excuse me, Sir, what film is this?" "It's a film about homework..." "homework assignment." "What school do you go to?" "Shahid Massoumi." "Have you done your homework?" " Yes." "Sure?" " Sure." "Good." "Go to school now, we're coming too." "Excuse me, Sir..." "sorry to bother you." "Can I help you?" "Sir, take our picture!" "Is that a children's movie, Sir?" "Mr. Safavi, take a picture of these children." "Excuse me, is it a feature film?" "No, it's a documentary, I guess." "You can't tell until the film's made." "Excuse us, we have to start shooting." "Excuse me, Sir, what is this film?" "It's about homework." "What school do you go to?" "Shahid Massoumi." "It's about homework..." "Have you done yours?" "Yes." "My homework's better than theirs." "Off you go to school then." "Goodbye, Sir." " Salaam." "Excuse me, Sir." "I'm interested in films and I'm familiar with your work, Mr. Kiarostami." "Thank you." "I've seen one of your films too, on TV." "it was filmed at school... in class." "'The First Graders'?" "Is it on the same theme?" "Well, the theme isn't clear yet because I don't work from a script." "It's based on impressions..." "I've only started today." "To tell you the truth, I came across a problem... when I was helping my own child with his homework." "Homework's supposed to be for kids but adults are even more involved." "So I tought I'd bring a camera over and see what's happening here." "See if it's only my child's problem, my own problem... or the educational system's." "So we'll be observing other parents and children and hearing their views." "In fact, to give you the right answer..." "I'd say it's not a movie in the usual sense." "It's a research project." "You could say it's a visual study of pupils homework assignments." "Well, good luck to you." "Islam is victorious!" "Down with the East and the West!" "Say your prayer." "O Allah!" "Bless Mohammed and his household!" "In the name of God the Merciful, the Compassionate." "In the name of God the Merciful, the Compassionate." "By the declining day, Lo!" "man is in a state of loss." "Save those who believe and do good works." "And exhort one another to truth." "And exhort one another to endurance..." "One and two and three and four." "Two and three and four and five, The warriors are victorious." "Three and four and five and six, Saddam's followers are doomed." "One and two and three and four, Two and three and four and five." "Three and four and five and six, Saddam's followers are doomed." "Moslems are victorious." "The first Imam?" " Is Ali." "Lion-hearted one?" " Is Ali." "Conqueros of Kheibar?" " Is Ali." "The first Imam?" " Is Ali." "Religious leader?" " Is Ali." "Guardian of religion?" " Is Ali." "What was your name?" "What?" "Adjust the light a little." "That's fine now." " Right, let's start." "Sound!" "Camera!" "Well, why don't you do your homework in time?" "My brother always says..." "My mum's out working... and I always tell my brother to write his dictation." "Then I read his dictation to him and write mine as well." "You have to do it all yourself?" "Is there no one to help you?" "My sister got married." "There's only me and my older brother..." "Why doesn't your older brother do it?" "My older brother's working." "There's just the two of us at home." "So who reads your dictation to you then?" "I take it to my sister's house." "Does she live nearby?" " Her house is near Pars." "Who looks after your brother then?" "My mum and dad are back home by then." "Couldn't your mum and dad read your dictation to you?" "My dad's busy with his plants and all that and my mum's busy cooking." "I see." "So your sister has to read your dictation to you?" "Isn't your sister busy?" " No." " Dosen't she do the cooking?" "She does the cooking at night and I go to her every afternoon." "So you go to her place and then return home." "Why haven't you done your homework?" "I do it most of the time." "Perhaps, but sometimes you don't." "Why?" "Once in a while, like on Fridays, our teacher..." "She gives us a lot of homework..." "She give us three assignments... for the same lesson." "And a lot of dictation and maths." "And you don't have enough time?" "Can you dad read and write?" "What about your mother?" " No." "Who helps you with your lessons at home?" "It's me... and our landlady." " How?" "When I have a dictation, I go to our landlady and she reads it out to me..." "Not the landlady... her daughters read it out to me." "Her daughters do that?" " Yes." "What time do you finish your homework?" "I don't know." "You mean it takes a long time?" " Well, a little." "What do you do apart from homework?" "Does your mother make you run errands?" "Writing dictation..." "Learning Farsi..." "No, I mean housework." " Housework?" "I don't know what housework is." " You don't?" "Do you ever go to buy bread?" "No, only when we run out of bread." "So you don't go when there's bread at home?" "How about buying other things?" "Fruit... yes, I buy fruit." "Do you get punished when you don't do your homework well?" "They punish me when I don't do my homework well." "Who?" "Our teacher." "How about at school, at home, your parents?" "My parents beat me up." "How do they beat you up?" "I don't know." "How can you not know how you get beaten up?" "Belt..." " With a belt." "How do they know you didn't do well if they can't read or write?" "When I show them my notebooks, they say it's bad." "But they're not educated." "How do they find out it's bad?" "Because it's big." "So big is bad?" "What if you buy big fruit?" "Do they beat you up?" "No." "How about praise?" "Do they ever encourage you?" "No." " Never?" " No." "But they do punish you." " Punish, yes." "What was that?" " Punishment, yes." "But they're never praised you?" "How about at school?" "At school?" "At school, no." "Not even at school?" "A good-marks card?" " I didn't get one." "But you're a good pupil, your teacher says so." "I'm bad at dictation." "Maybe they don't read it out well enough, your landlady's daughters." "If your teacher was away, you wouldn't have homework..." "Who'd give me sample lines to copy?" "You wouldn't have to copy anything, you'd watch TV instead." "Honestly, which do you like best, cartoons or homework?" "Homework." "Tell me about your favourite cartoons." "I like..." "I like Pinocchio." "What else?" " I like The Bear Family." "The Bear Family." "Which do you like best, homework or The Bear Family?" "When I finish my homework..." " And if you don't finish it?" "I do my homework..." "I watch TV in the evening." "There's no Bear Family on TV in the evening, only the news." "Don't you watch the news?" "I go to bed when the news is on." "You go to bed." "Good boy!" "Have you ever got a twenty?" " No." "Do your parents know what a twenty is?" "How about your landlady?" " Our landlady... yes." "If you got a good grade..." "a twenty..." "How would you expect to be rewarded?" "What do you wish them to buy you?" "Cookies." "Sorry?" " Cookies." "You like cookies?" "And if you got a twenty?" "Two cookies." "Two cookies?" "What if you got three twenties?" "What was that?" "More cookies." "How many cookies?" " Three." "Three?" "So what would you like if you got twenty in all subjects?" "In all subjects?" "Maybe a cookie shop?" "Can your dad read?" " No." "What about your mother?" "My mother's studying at the Literacy Movement centre." "She's studying." "Does she help you with your lessons, then?" "She can't read yet." "I help her with her lessons now." "You help her with her lessons..." "that's nice." "So who helps you?" " My sister." "Does she punish you?" "Do you know what punishment is?" "What is it?" " Beating up." "Do you know what praise is?" "It means applause." " Sorry?" "People cheer you." "What does award mean?" " Award means..." "I don't know." "Don't you?" "Last night I wanted to do my maths homework... but suddenly my mum told me to go to bed." "You had to study maths at night?" "I finished my homework late." "Did you work late?" " Very late." "Did you watch cartoons too?" "Cartoons... no." " Why not?" "I was doing my homework..." "I wrote a dictation too..." "it was two pages long." "That took a long time." "So you couldn't watch cartoons." "Did you want to?" " Yes." "Sometimes our teacher gives us a little homework and sometimes a lot." "So she gave you a lot?" "I don't know how long it took..." "Yes, sometimes it's a lot and sometimes it's a little." "Sometimes my mum gets cross." "How?" "Like..." "Like when we have a party and I haven't finished my homework." "I ask her to wait till I finish... and then she gets a bit cross." "She gets cross, does she?" " Yes." "Couldn't you take your homework to the party and do it there?" "There are lot of kids." "So you couldn't, could you?" "The kids tear up my notebooks." "We had a test." " In what?" " Social studies." "Did you do well?" "I had trouble with two questions but I finally answered them." "What were the questions?" "Do you remember any of them?" "One was "fill in the blanks"." "What's "fill in the blanks"?" "Like: "Children are 'blank' entrusted to their parents..." ""...and they must strive to 'blank' them"." "The answer is:" ""Children are a gift from God entrusted to their parents..." ""...and they must strive to care for them"." "You're a good pupil but you're weak in maths." "Who helps you?" " I go to my brother's house." "Does he help you with your maths?" "Yes, but he's not very nice." "I have to do something for him whenever he helps me." "Like get his notebooks, make him tea and so on." "Does your dad know modern maths?" "Can he help you?" "My dad..." "He could have helped once... but he can't do the multiplications and divisions we do today... so I have to ask my teacher." "Why not your brother?" "How old is he?" "Eighteen." "Why didn't you ask him?" "First when I was writing, he said it was wrong... and when I asked how it should be, he didn't answer." "Charlie Chaplin movies." " You like Charlie Chaplin?" "How about Pinocchio?" " I like Pinocchio too." "But your mum says you watch TV before finishing your homework." "There's too much." " Too much what?" "Too much homework." " Too much homework or cartoons?" "Homework." "She says you didn't finish it even after the news." "Well, I couldn't... there's so much homework that... that I have to study until midnight." "You study until midnight?" " Yes." "What's better, homework or cartoons?" "Both, cartoons and homework." "Which do you like best?" "Which do you enjoy most?" "Homework." " Homework is more fun?" "Look at me!" "Are you telling the truth?" "Yes." "Since homework's more fun, are you ready to give up watching cartoons?" "Yes..." " So you'll give that up?" " Cartoons are fun too." "What was your dream about?" "It was about Long Nose." " You dreamt of Long Nose?" "Do you dream about homework?" "About exams?" "Do you dream about homework?" " I do." " How?" "I dream of getting a fourteen." "Really?" "Do you feel happy then?" " No." "Why not, is fourteen a bad grade?" " Yes." "Who says fourteen is bad?" "I don't like getting fourteen" " What do you like?" "Twenty." "Have you ever got a twenty?" " Yes." "How were you treated when you got a twenty?" "Alright." " What do you you meant "alright"?" "It's obvious they would..." "They praised me, they said it's good." "Why leave your homework until after cartoons?" "The other day I did study..." "but I forgot everything in class." "When you forget your lessons, when you're absent-minded..." "How do you expect to be treated?" "What should they do so you don't forget?" "Do you know?" " It's fine the way it is." "What would you like as a reward?" "Anything." "Like what?" "I don't know." "What about punishment?" "I don't like punishment..." " What was that?" "I don't like being punished, I'd rather work well." "Who reads your dictation at home?" " My brother." "What does he do if you don't do it well?" "What if you do a bad dictation?" "He beats me up." " What?" "He beats me up." "Why didn't you do your homework?" "Because my uncle's family came to visit." "So what happened?" "I couldn't do my homework." "How long did they stay?" "Until ten." "How long did it take you to do your homework?" "Until eleven." " Eleven p.m.?" "Weren't you sleepy?" "Did you watch a cartoons?" "Wich cartoons?" "Don't you remember?" " No." "Doesn't your mum get cross when you don't do your homework?" "Your dad, any of them?" " Yes, they get cross with me." "What did you say when they got cross with you last night?" "I said we had guests." "And you can't do homework with guests there." "How often do you have guests or visit people in a week?" "I don't know." "What happens when you go visiting?" "I can't study." "Do you have a lot of homework?" " A lot." "You see, we've got a little baby who doesn't go to school." "She comes in and bites my back when I'm trying to do homework." "So you can't finish your homework in time?" "What other reasons are there?" "I don't know." "Sometimes my mum soaks me with water." "She soaks you?" "Do you like cartoons?" "Yes." " How much?" "A bit, but I like homework more than cartoons." "You prefer homework?" "Yes, because I'm learning." "Has your mum ever punished you for not doing your homework in time?" "Yes." " How?" "Our baby is very naughty..." "She comes in and throws my pencils and the points get broken... then my mum blames me and says I sharpen my pencils too often." "Does your mum punish you?" " Yes." " How?" "She beats me up and says:" ""Don't you ever do that again!"" "She doesn't beat me with a belt." "She only says: "Don't do it again!"" ""This is a bad thing to do" or "Do your homework earlier"" "Why would she use a belt?" "I don't know." "She has my dad's belt." "He doesn't wear a belt very often." "He's a bit fat around here..." "and doesn't like to wear a belt." "And my mum sometimes takes the belt and hides it somewhere... to beat me up if I get naughty." "Once she had hidden the belt somewhere and... and a few days later, when she wanted to beat me up... she realised the belt wasn't there." "Who had taken in?" " My mum..." "I don't know who." "So your dad doesn't need a belt." " Yes, because he's got a big belly." "So your mum uses the belt for punishment..." "Yes, all his belts get lost." "He's lost more than ten belts..." "he buys and loses, buys and loses." "Once we were moving house and we found a few belts." "They were all found at once." " Yes, but I wasn't beaten up." "Besides, I helped them too and hadn't started school yet." "Do you wish he were thin and had to wear a belt... so there were no belts available at home?" "He's fat, so he doesn't need a belt, right?" "I don't know why..." "He's fat... he feels comfortable that way." "Most people call him Mr. Chubby." "I'm talking about his belt." "Now that he's fat and doesn't buy belts..." "So what's the belt for?" "For punishment?" "My dad bought the belt to beat us with... and suddenly he couldn't find it." "Did your mum hide it?" "My mum hid it and in the end we realised it had been lost for days." "When you grow up and have children... and your child doesn't do his homework... will you punish him with a belt?" "No." " Why?" "Speak up so we can hear you." "My dad didn't beat me up and I wouldn't beat them either." "Wouldn't beat who?" " My children." "Your children?" "You won't beat them?" "What if your dad had beaten you?" "I'd beat him too." " You'd beat your son?" "It's not his fault... your dad shouldn't have beaten you up." "Well, I would beat him up." "You said you're the class monitor." " Yes." "Why did you become a moinitor?" "I'm a good pupil, they asked me to be a monitor and I accepted." "Do they also praise you at home for being a good pupil?" "How do they encourage you?" "For instance, my dad buys me things." "And my mum buys me notebooks or something... drawing books, colouring pencils, trousers or shirts." "And punishment?" "How have you been punished?" "Well, they slap me in the face..." "slap me in the face." "Who does?" " My dad." "Do you think it's right?" "No... for my dad?" " Yes." "Does he do the right thing?" " Yes." "Why do you think so?" "Because we make him lose his temper." "How many times does he slap you?" "Five or six times." "Five or six... do you think that's enough or not?" "That's enough." " No more than that?" " No." "What about less?" " Not less, no." "So how many slaps would you give your son if he were naughty?" "Seven." " Seven times?" "So it's five from your dad and seven from you?" "When my dad tells us to be quiet and we don't he gets mad... then he gets up and slaps us seven times." "Seven times?" " Yes." "Now, if you're tell your son..." "what will you call him?" "I'll name him Hossein... and if it's a girl, I'll call her Sara." "How many times will you slap Hossein if he's not quiet?" "Dad's gone to the war..." "He's at the front." "My mum always tells us to go downstairs..." "What's downstairs?" " My aunt's flat." "When we're at my aunt's, I don't get round to doing my homework." "Mum knows you have homework?" " What?" "Do you tell your mum you have homework?" "I say that..." "I have homework." "And she still tells you to go to your aunt's?" "Yes... no, my aunt forces us to go there." "Why don't you do your homework at your aunt's?" "We take our books, but her children keep bothering us." "Who helps you with your lessons at home?" "My mum, or my dad before he went away... or my cousins." "Do they read your dictation?" "Yeah, but badly." "What's "badly"?" "I mean, they can't." "They can't read well?" " They just read too fast." "They don't give you enough time?" "Yes." " Why do they do that?" "Well, I can't write fast." "I try to write well, nice handwriting, but they say that I should write fast." "So they're in a hurry?" " Yes." "What does your mum do?" "Other than reading your dictation to you?" "She sometimes does the washing and, what do you call it?" "The dishes." "Well, Mr. Keramati, what do you think about encouragement?" "Encouragement!" "Do you think rewards are effective?" "How?" " They make you a good pupil." "How about punishment?" " What?" "Punishment, no." "Why not?" " It makes kids even more stubborn." "What makes them stubborn?" "I mean, when you beat up the kid... he gets stubborn and doesn't do his homework." "Then beating is useless." "A little yes... a little no." "Who helps you with your homework at home?" "My sister." " Your sister..." "How about your dad?" "Why not?" "Because he can't read or write." "And your mother?" " She can't either." "Only my sister." "Your sister?" " And my brother." "Has she ever punished you?" " Who?" "Your sister." "Has she ever punished you?" "When?" " Do you know what punishment is?" "What is it?" " It's beating up." " What?" " It's beating up." "What's encouragement?" "I don't know." "Think..." "You don't know what praise is?" "What's punishment?" "It's getting beaten up." "Do you know what punishment is?" " Beating someone." "What's encouragement?" " Encouragement means well done!" "Who reads your dictation?" "My sister." "What happened to your face?" " My sister did that." "How?" "She did it... we quarrelled..." "and my sister scratched me." "Who helps you with your lessons?" "Who reads you dictation?" "My sister." "Your sister?" "Can your dad read and write?" "My dad, no." "Do you know what punishment is?" "Punishment... yes." " What does that mean?" "Being beaten up." "What does encouragement mean?" "Do you know?" "Is your dad literate?" " No." "So who helps you with your lessons?" "My sister." "Does she punish you if you're not prepared?" "What's punishment?" "It's being beaten up." "And what's encouragement?" " I don't know." "You don't?" " No." "What does it mean?" "It means that you get beaten up when you're naughty." "What's encouragement?" "It's being treated well." "It means they beat you up." "What does praise mean?" "It means they applaud you." "Were you ever punished?" " Yes." " How?" "It's very simple." "How?" "Well, they just beat you up." "What do you want to be?" "A Committee engineer." "Why do you want to be a Committee engineer?" "For instance... to arrest the drug addicts and bad people..." "To arrest people who accuse people or steal..." "[No translation]" "What was it you wanted to be?" " A Committee engineer." "Do you like to be praised?" "Yes." " What about punishment?" " No." "Who do you think must be punished?" "Bad boys." " For doing what?" "For instance, if they don't listen to their mum and dad or if they don't listen to what the teacher says or if they don't listen to what the headmaster says." "Then..." " They must be punished." "Alireza Hassani." " Mr. Hassani..." "Your teacher said you haven't done your homework." "Why?" "I learnt a poem by heart..." "it's a song." "What song?" "To sing at school on the 21st of this month." "Can you sing it for us?" "Do you know it by heart?" "Let's hear it, then." "So you don't know it by heart?" "O caravan, don't be at a run, the traveller is my beloved one." "The throbbing heart of mine goes away with die dear one." "O camel driver, drive at leisure, not like a deer." "As the love of that dear, my soul goes not near." "She walks away proudly, leaving me behind so lonely." "Ask me about her no more, from the sight goes the dear soul." "She's left me lonely and hurt, in melancholy and regret." "As if her absence stings me to the bone." "O caravan, don't be at a run, the traveller is my beloved one." "That beating heart of mine leaves me with the dear one." "Did you say that you're the lead singer?" " Yes." "How come they made you lead singer?" "One of the kids brought a poem." "The teacher wanted to know who sang best." "My voice was the best of all, so they chose me." "On the third day of shooting... we received 526 out of 856 questionnaires... which had been sent to parents... asking how pupils did their homework." "More than 37% of the parents... couldn't help their children with their homework due to illiteracy." "Of the literate parents... a large percentage was too tense, exhausted, busy or impatient." "Many parents had been asking the teachers... to excuse them from the resposibility... of helping their children with their homework." "Through these questionnaires, we got to know those pupils... whose difficulties were due to special circumstances." "What's wrong with your face?" "My face..." "I fell down." " Fell down?" "Who helps you with your lessons at home?" "My lessons?" "My mum helps me with my lessons." "My grades aren't bad." "Your teacher says that you've been improving recently." "Is that right?" " Yes." "What do you have to do to improve?" "Study every day... every day." "To do this... to study..." "to get twenties." "To get twenties..." "What are you going to be?" "An engineer." "How many brothers and sisters do you have?" "Counting me, there are five boys..." "also five girls." "Five boys and five girls..." "anyone else?" "I think there are eleven of us." "Don't you know how many?" "I know, but two of them are married." "And three of them aren't married and one them is..." "She's fifteen..." "Who helps you with your homework?" "My sister, my brother, my dad and my mum." "Your dad said you don't finish your homework until after the cartoons." "Sometimes I don't finish it before cartoons." "He says Gholamreza seldom finishes homework before the news." "Why?" " Not the 9 o'clock news, he means the sports news at 7." "The sports news, like last night..." "when they played in the water." "Did you watch that?" "Did you like it?" "Yes." "And cartoons, do you like them?" " Cartoons?" "There's a bear and a fox... and the fox plays a trick on the bear... and then the hunter comes and takes the bear... and this... this fox... then these two mice free it and they all go off together." "What else do you like?" "Cinema, films..." " You like that." "We go to the cinema every Thursday." "What was the last film you saw?" "The last one I saw... it was a film, but I don't know its name... but it was very interesting." "They fight in a boat." "They fight in a boat..." "is that a good thing?" "The Iranians are sitting in a boat... then two Iraqis come and want to capture them." "Then one them goes to keep watch." "And one gets smart and says:" ""you can't beat me!"" "And he pushed one of them..." "he had a friend over there... then he did this and cut the man's head off and threw him into the sea." "Did you like it?" " Yes." "Then the place where he..." " Wait, listen..." "You like fighting in films?" "I like it if it's in the war." "Do you like it at home too?" " At home, no." "Do people fight in your home?" "At home, the people downstairs..." "They fight with their sister." " Who are they?" "My stepmother... both of them." "They're both your stepmothers?" " Yes." "First the woman downstairs..." "she's the first wife." "He married her first?" "And then your mother?" "Are they friendly?" " With my mother?" "It's not bad." "Don't they fight each other?" " No." "Never?" "Sometimes they kid around, they tease each other." "They argue too." "With each other?" " Yes." "And does it upset you?" "My mum beats her up..." "but..." "She beats her up?" " Yes." "And you're glad your mum is stronger than her." "The people downstairs have a boy who's done his military service." "My dad takes their side and my grandpa takes my mother's side." "My grandpa is stronger than all of them." "He's even stronger than my dad." "There was a fight the other day." "Then the first wife's father came." "Her son came and beat my mum and - that's my cousin..." "And he picked him up." "He's the strongest and he works at the Committee too." "Then he went and beat up my brother who was beating up my mum." "So he beat him up..." "and you were pleased?" "So do you like these fights or not?" "I don't." " What do you like?" "Nothing." "I'm not old enough to fight yet." "Will you fight when you grow up?" "No." "Don't they fight at the front?" "The fight at the front is different..." "it's war." "What's the difference?" "The difference is that we must kill." "If takes an hour to write two pages..." "I write two pages..." "I copy numbers and... and then the cartoons start." "Then you watch cartoons?" " Yes." "Do you like cartoons?" " No." "Why do you watch it then?" "Cartoons?" "No..." "I mean, my little brother watches a lot." "So it's your little brother who doesn't do his homework." "But you ought to do yours." "What do you do after cartoons?" "After cartoons... my mum makes me write three more pages." "What does your dad do?" " My dad works at the store." "Isn't he at home?" " No." "Then who reads your dictation to you?" "Dictation?" "My dad comes home at night..." "I mean, at noon, and reads it out to me." "Have your mum and dad ever punished you?" "How?" "He gets the belt and beats me up." "Does he praise you?" "Do you know what praise is?" " No." "Has he ever given you a reward?" "He hasn't?" "Do you help with the housework?" "What do you do?" "My mum asks me to get the bread-basket... and I go and get it." "What else?" "Then she wants me to wash the cups and I go and wash them." "She asks me to get the kerosene so I go and get it." "What else does she ask?" "She tells me to go... to go... to go and get the dishes for her so she can wash them... then I go and get them and she washes them." "What else?" "Then in the moming... at night, she wants me to go and get the food, so I go and get it." "What does your mum do?" "My mum... nothing..." "she's ill." "Your mum's ill?" "Sorry?" " I don't want to be punished." "You don't?" " No." " How about encouragement?" "I like it." "Is your dad literate?" "Yes." "What about your mum?" "No." "So who helps you with your homework?" "I do my homework... as soon as I get home." "Why does it take you so long to finish it?" "Until bedtime..." " There's too much homework." "When does your dad come home?" "7 o'clock in the evening." "And then he helps you with your lessons?" "Yes." "Can he do your maths problems?" "My maths problems?" "Yes." "Who reads your dictation to you?" "My sister." "Does she punish you?" "Once in a while." "Does she beat you up?" " Yes." "Why didn't you do your homework last night?" "I couldn't." " What?" "I couldn't." " Why?" "Speak up so I can hear you." " My brother annoyed me." "How did he annoy you?" " He didn't let me write." "He didn't let you?" "How old is your brother?" "Nine." " Nine?" "Is he older than you?" "Didn't you tell your mum to make him stop upsetting you?" "Why?" "Did you do your maths problems?" "You haven't done maths either?" "Who reads your dictation to you?" "My sister or my brother." "Your sister or..." " My brother." "How about your mother?" " No." " Why?" "I don't know." " Is she literate?" " No." "Who reads dictation better, your sister or your brother?" "What?" " My sister." "Your sister..." "and who is kinder?" "Who?" " My sister." "Doesn't your dad read your dictation for you?" "Why?" "Why doesn't he?" "My dad can't..." " Why?" "He works for the bus company." "What does he do?" " He works for the bus-line..." "We didn't hear you." " Dad works on buses." "So he can't read your dictation to you." "I see... you can go." "My child doesn't go to this school but I live around here." "I've come to discuss transferring him to this school." "I heard you're making a film about homework... and I thought I'd come and discuss some problems with you." "Please do." "I've lived for many years in foreign countries... first studying and then working." "I've observed the educational systems in other countries." "In many countries, America and Canada for example... there's no such thing as homework." "In countries where they still have homework... the emphasis is mostly on the children's creativity." "For instance, in England they mostly work on drawing, handicrafts... geography, composition and other such subjects." "They don't say: "For good handwriting you must write, write and write!"" "The pupils are taught the rules of good handwriting... because there are, of course, rules and methods." "But once you learn them, you acquire the skill." "In Japan, where the traditional system of hard work has been in effect... the rate of suicide among children increased." "For a while now, they've been revising the system, creating new ones... as the old system isn't effective any more." "As we can see, with this system our kids are under great pressure." "Teachers seem to know how to tackle the problem and live with it." "But when the kids get home, they have to deal with us, home teachers... and we have no idea what to do." "We haven't been trained to deal with it." "What we actually do is dump our own frustrations on the children... and we end up with an indignant, surly and defensive generation... susceptible to every possible mental problem." "With such pressure and unhappiness imposed on our kids... we'll end up with a generation lacking in any creativity." "[No translation] ...capable only of copying." "We need to move on into the 20th century... or we'll end up with nothing." "We should use whatever resources we have to do something about it." "The Ministry of Education, in my opinion... ought to change the current system." "This system belongs in the Middle Ages... yet our education authorities still uphold it." "Teachers must think differently however hard it might be for them." "Kids must be made to us their imagination... but not beyond their capacity." "I believe parents should leave the children to themselves at home." "It's basically wrong for parents to force their kids to do homework... because kids tend to react to such pressure." "By building up natural resistance against the education system." "We don't know their maths or literature." "Modern education systems have been put into practice... but we're overworking these kids under unnecessary pressure." "I believe that children must be allowed to be naughty, to rebel... and develop their own ways of resisting these rules and regulations." "After all, we can't expect our kids... to accept everything without question." "Another point I wanted to make... relates to the special circumstances which most kids have to face." "There's a new system of teaching maths, literature and so forth..." "Parents are not familiar with it." "It's completely new." "The government's established new teacher training colleges... to train teachers in the new methods." "But at parent-teacher meetings... the parents are asked whether they help the children with their lessons." "The child comes home confused, asking questions and expecting help." "The parents, who aren't familiar with the new methods... try teaching the child the old way... and it all ends up in arguments." "Part of the responsibility is dumped on older brothers or sisters... and that makes the problem worse." "For instance, I'm in my room, I hear them arguing and go in to intervene." "I ask: "What's going on?"" "My elder son says he's trying to help his brother with his homework." "The younger boy says it's wrong, that's not what the teacher told him." "I look at it and get neither the boys' nor the teacher's method." "The point is:" "if I'm supposed to be qualified to teach my children at home... then what's the teacher training college for?" "If that's not the case... they should send me on a training course... so I know what to do." "Are there any questions?" " Yes." "I want to ask whether you and your wife have disagreements... concerning your children." "A lot." "I believe that the child's grade is excellent... if it's just a little above a pass." "The idea that the child must get twenty in every subject is nonsense." "However, my wife insists... that the child must be top pupil and reach top level in every subject." "My child has a talent for music and art... even for maths, but not for subjects which require memorising, like History." "In addition, all subjects, even literature... are taught with a religious perspective." "Now, apart from his difficulty in memorising information... he has trouble copying the same lesson several times." "His teacher wants them to copy each complicated word twice." "It really seems as if they want to suppress all the child's imagination." "I went to his school... asked them to revise the method, find better ways to teach maths..." "I strongly feel that children must develop a personality." "We have to give him as much as we can..." "The 21st century is going to be different." "Right now, on the other side of the globe... children start working with computers from the earliest age." "They deal with emotional and mental problems." "What I'm getting at... refers to the proverb of the Indian telling the British... not to give him the fish out of the river... but rather teach him how to catch it." "We shouldn't give our children the fish." "We should teach them how to catch it." "We must teach them how to think." "But with our system of education... the children might learn everything, though I doubt it... but they certainly won't learn how to think." "Pinocchio..." "I said: only Pinocchio." "Only Pinocchio?" " Yes." "Do you watch other programmes?" " No." "No." "Did you like the show last night?" " It was fine." "Your mother says you're very cheeky." "Is that right?" "Yes." "I don't like it." " Don't like what?" "Being cheeky." "What do you do, then?" "I just sit there because I can't do anything... unless the teacher writes the example lines in my notebook... so I can copy them at home." "My sister now lives at my uncle's... so she can't write the example line for me." "Who helps you with arithmetic and other lessons?" "My older brother does..." "Abbas Abedy..." "He helps me with my lessons." "Is he nice or harsh?" " He's harsh." " How?" "He beats me up..." "This brother of mine... he's in second grade and I'm in first." "So a second grader is teaching a first grader... and what's more, he's harsh too." "Is there no one else to help you?" "Your mum?" "My mum's illiterate." "How about your dad?" " My dad?" "So is my dad." "Are you punished when you don't do your homework in time?" "Yes..." "Who punishes you?" " My teacher." "Does anyone punish you at home?" "My mum." "How?" "With a belt." "What does she do with it?" " She beats me up." "What do you want to be?" "A pilot." "Why?" "To kill Saddam." "Saddam is cruel, because he destroys houses..." "He ruins them." "And if Saddam is dead by then, what will you be?" "The ones with a heart that doesn't work..." "Who?" "People who have heart trouble... people who go to the hospital, who get ill... who have to lie down and have an operation." "You want to operate on them?" " Yes." "So you want to be a physician." " Yes." "A pilot and a physician, both." "Islam is victorious!" "Down with the East and the West!" "We're not going to hurt you." "Why'are you crying?" "What is it?" " My friend's gone." "What?" " My friend's gone." "Your friend?" " Yes." "That's no reason to cry, is it?" "Tell my friend to come back." "Ask your fnend to come back?" " Yes." "You mean Molaie?" " Yes." "Molaie!" "You stay here, stay here..." "Why do you cry when Molaie's not here?" "We're not nasty to you." "I want my friend." "You want your friend?" " Yes." "You'll see him when you leave." "Tell him to come back." "Who?" " Molaie." "You want Molaie to come?" " Yes, please." "You want to go?" " Yes!" " Go, then." "Molaie, why was your friend, Madjid, crying?" "They were scolding the bad boys in the first grade." "So now he's frightened." "Who's been scolding them?" " Our teacher." "Has he been a bad boy?" "He hasn't been studying well and he's been naughty too." "How does she scold the bad boys?" "She beats them with a ruler." "We can't hear you." " She beats them with a ruler." "How?" "Once the teacher beat him and the ruler broke." "Speak up." " The ruler got broken... so the teacher said that she'd use a cane from now on." "So now he's frightened." " Is he always like this?" "How?" " What grade are you in?" " Second grade." "Is he in your class?" " Yes." "So that's why Madji's frightened..." " Yes." "But we weren't going to hurt him, we don't have any rulers here." "I don't know why he's frightened." "He's always frightened." "Is it the same in class?" "He's frightened when the bell rings... he starts crying." "Or when the kids are called out for punishment." "Sometimes he cries during break too." "So it's not our fault?" " No." "We have no rulers, so why is he scared of us?" "I don't know." "Say it again, I didn't hear you." "He thought you have a ruler hidden here somewhere... and you'd bring him in and beat him up after you closed the door." "But you don't think so?" " No." "Aren't you scared?" " No." " That's good." "In respect to his teacher's report... claiming he's not working enough at school and is lagging behind... and also mentioning the possiblity of his bein retarded... we became very concerned." "We tried to help him with his lessons but without success." "The problem was that we weren't familiar with the new methods... and, as a result, we got confused." "All we did was transfer the stress onto the child." "At school, of course, he was one of the problem pupils... and when he came home in the evening... we put him under pressure to improve." "But he wasn't responsive, perhaps because of his mental state... but also his lack of interest in studying... due to our inability to explain the lesson with the proper information... and help him understand it." "Consequently, his tension and anxiety gradually increased... to the extent that he probably came to consider me as an aggressor." "Since I didn't want our arguments to affect the other children..." "I would take him into another room and perhaps close the door." "That, obviously, made him even more anxious." "Of course I did nothing to hurt him in that room... except help him with his lessons... or repeat the sentences to him loudly." "Yet the child's mind was elsewhere." "He kept expecting the door to open... and for someone to come in and rescue him... free him from captivity." "Yes, here he desperately needed his friend to be with him to feel secure." "Who protects him at home?" "Who gives him this sense of security?" "His mother." " She protects him?" "Too much, in fact." "If I try to work with him a bit longer she tells me to stop... either because his hands are sweating or he's too tired." "Well, considering the way your son behaved in this film... don't you think his mother's right?" "He was so anxious he couldn't understand anything we said to him." "This must be the case, undoubtedly." "But we finally had to come to the conclusion... that my method didn't work... but that his mother's emotional protective method didn't work either." "Either way, the child was getting nowhere." "He was still confused." " So have you found a solution?" "Basically, I believe that the solution must be found at school." "Time, subjects and number of pupils must be organised in such a way... that pupils won't need to study out of school... and we won't need to teach the kids at home." "Of course, homework can still be done at home... but the actual learning should be done at school." "Then there won't be any problem." "We don't know how to teach and can't be expected to do it." "Madjid, come and stand here." "Can Molaie stay there?" "Aren't you frightened?" "Molaie, you stand behind him..." "You stay there and keep an eye on Madjid because he's afraid of us." "But why are you afraid of us?" "I'm not afraid." "And if Molaie goes out?" "Won't you be afraid then?" "Molaie, you can go now." "Aren't you afraid any more?" "So why were you afraid of us before?" "My mind was somewhere else." "And that's why you were scared." " Right." "What were you afraid of?" " Nothing." "Did you think we would hurt you?" "I didn't know." "What did you think we'd do to you?" " Nothing." "We weren't going to hurt you." "So if Molaie goes now, you won't be afraid?" "Can I tell Molaie to go to his class?" "No." "Yes, yes." "I'm sorry, I'm sorry." "I'm sorry..." "Shall I call Molaie back?" " Yes." "Stay here..." "I'll call Molaie back." " All right." "Molaie!" "Djahan, bring Molaie back here." "Stay here, alright?" "Djahan!" "Send Molaie back." "Molaie, stand behind him..." "Is it alright with Molaie here?" "Molaie, move up here..." "a little further... right..." "Right, Molaie's here now." "So you aren't you afraid now?" "But our religion class is about to start." "What class?" " Religion." "Do you know the answers?" " No." "None of them?" " No." " Why not?" "Didn't you prepare for the lesson?" " I did." "Molaie, do you know the answers?" " No." "You don't either?" "Do you know the questions?" "I... no..." "Is that why you want to go?" " Yes." "Alright, Molaie can go now." "You'll join him later" "No, I go first and then he goes." "You want to go first?" " Yes." "Tell me why you're afraid of us and I'll let you go first." "Just tell me." "I don't want to miss religion class." "Ask your classmates later." "Come near... nearer..." " I..." "Say one of your religion lessons." "Do you know any?" "Do you remember any?" "I can recite: "O Lord"" " Alright." "O Lord!" "O thou, Lord of beautiful stars." "O thou, Lord of colourful cosmos." "O thou, who created Venus." "Thou who created the moon and the sun." "All the mountains, hills, oceans." "The beautiful and colourful trees." "Beautiful wings for the butterfly." "Nests for the birds." "Happiness, games, strength." "Eyes for us to see." "Snow and rain, heat and cold." "We're all created by Thee, O Lord." "You granted all I wished for." "Fill our hearts with happiness and joy." "Script, editing and director:" "Abbas Kiarostami" "Producer:" "Alireza Zarien" "Research:" "Sholeh Dolatabadi" "Camera." "Irai Safavi and Ali-Ashgar Mirai" "Sound:" "Ahmed Asgari" "Music:" "Mohammed-Reza Aligholi" "This film was made in February 1987 in Shahid Hassoumi School" "For the Institute for the Intellectual Development... of Children and Young Adults"