The issue of homework is one that can divide educators and parents. Before assigning homework, an educator must carefully consider the efficacy of the assignment, the abilities of the students, and the reason for assigning it. The considerations in this article are from both a parental and primary educator’s viewpoint, and there are certainly valid reasons both for and against homework.
According to Wikipedia, homework “refers to tasks assigned to students by their teachers to be completed mostly outside of school.” Within this one statement there are some valid questions that arise.
1. Does homework need to be able to be completed independently by students or should it be with parental assistance?
While parental assistance is always welcome, in reality many of our students live in households where parental help is not always readily available. As well, family time is becoming so disjointed that it seems that sacred time ought to be better spent interacting with each other as a family unit rather than struggling over homework.
This is not to say that parents should never help their child. It is saying that educators must be cognizant of teaching their lessons so thoroughly that parental help becomes mostly unnecessary. Some teachers go as far as requiring parental help with homework, and that does not breed positive feelings towards the school. Instead, it makes parents feel that the teacher is not doing his or her job and is expecting the parents to pick up the pieces. This leads to the next question…
2. What is the purpose of homework?
The purpose of homework, I believe, is practice. It is not supposed to be designed to teach something new. Rather it is to practice skills that have been previously taught in the classroom. The idea of homework, in and of itself, breeds negative feelings for many students and parents. They come home from school tired and are often frustrated by the school day. Many children are involved in other activities that are equally important to their social and emotional well-being, and too much homework (homework without a real purpose) can take away from those other activities.
Another purpose of homework that is often cited is to begin to build responsibility. However, is it truly our role, as educators, to have to do that through homework? Are there not other ways we can build this trait in our students? Having said this, I do believe a small amount (10-15 minutes) of meaningful practice some evenings is a good thing, but homework should require students to be active meaning makers, and if the work doesn’t lend itself to that, don’t give it.
3. Isn’t homework critical for grades?
No. Homework can be used within grades as a full mark for attempting it, but actual grades should come from the student’s performance in the classroom. I know I would not want to be graded every time I practiced something, and research shows it can take up to 28 exposures to a new concept for students to solidify the material. I do “mark” homework, but “grades” come from both subjective and objective observations and formal assessments within the classroom. Perhaps homework ought to be shared more in class, and not graded by the teacher with little to no discussion amongst the students.
4. If we are raising standards, doesn’t that mean students will have to work harder?
Yes, but so should educators. This does not equate more homework – it equates innovative ways of delivering content, understanding how children learn best, holding students accountable for their progress at school, and being sure we teach in meaningful ways that allow students to make connections and scaffold on previously held knowledge. By no means does this equate forcing students to do more work at home. In contrast, their day should be so filled with meaningful learning experiences that their time at home is best left for individual pursuits and family-oriented activities.
Preconceived notions of what homework is, should be, and the purpose of it will always be a difficult topic. Educators can do much with changing attitudes if we deeply consider how we utilize homework, the effects it has on our students and their families, and if homework lends itself to deeper understanding of a subject.
Leave a Reply