Over the years, homework has been an integral part of students' assessment formation. Class works are not seemed to be enough, hence a lot of teachers feel that students needed to do more when they get home from school.
Today, a lot has changed! There is now opposing liberal voices debating that homework should be cut down drastically or be totally eliminated, while the more conservative group argue on the contrary.
Surprisingly, aside parents and students, teachers are also in the forefront of the campaign that schools must do away with homework
This is a debate you must lend your voice. In this post we are going to look at the pros and cons of dishing out homework for today's students. At the end of the day, we must find a balance.
The Pros
The first benefit of homework is that it allows students and teachers to work more closely together. They can discuss their assignments or any problems that they are having with parts of their textbooks, before or after classes.
The second benefit is that it can bring families closer together as students may ask their parents or siblings for help on their homework. Not only will this help the students get a better understanding of their work with any parts they are stuck on, it will also allow parents to get more involved in their child's educational life.
Thirdly, doing homework will prepare students for the big end tests. If a child does poorly on an assignment then they will learn what is necessary to do well on the next test without being punished. It also provides students with the opportunity to practice at what it takes to be successful in school. Like they say, practice makes perfect.
Doing homework is also a great way to develop responsibilities. By being assigned work one day and knowing that it has to be done by the next day, they will develop a sense of punctuality by turning their work in on time.
And finally it allows parents to see how their children are being educated and they can develop a better idea of how they can help their child.
However, in spite of the above mentioned benefits of homework, some parents, students and even some teachers feel that after 7-8 hours of lessons in school, it is unfair to expect students to come home and work for another three hours.
However, in spite of the above mentioned benefits of homework, some parents, students and even some teachers feel that after 7-8 hours of lessons in school, it is unfair to expect students to come home and work for another three hours.
The Cons
The first reason that children should not be given homework is that they need time to relax and take their minds off work. The pressure of having to complete homework every night is quite daunting for most children and they need time to refresh their minds and bodies.
Secondly, it reduces the amount of time that children could be spending with their families. Family time is especially important to a growing child and without it social problems can crop up and a family unit can be compromised by a lack of time being spent together.
Thirdly, homework can cause conflict between children and parents. Children are expected to do one or two house chores after school, but sometimes it becomes very difficult for such children to cope with the two- house chores and overwhelming homework. This usually leads to clash of interest between parents and their children.
Too much homework can encourage cheating because children end up copying off one another in an attempt to finish all their assignments. They then end up being rewarded for cheating which doesn't benefit them at all.
And finally, a lot of teachers don't often have the time to grade papers properly as they are too busy with designing lesson plans and consulting teaching resources in order to just manage lessons. So by the time students are getting their papers back, the class has moved on to a new topic.
From every side of the argument, it's very clear we can't easily jettison homework as part of our teaching and learning process. We only need to strike a balance!
Schools should design a homework policy in such a way that homework wouldn't be an unnecessary burden for teachers and students. Homework should be given in bits, only to serve the purpose of flipped classroom and formative assessment model.
We have all the time in the world to assess our students while at school. School children should be given the breathing space to learn on their own without that undue pressure of pleasing one sledge master at school.
This is a continuous debate, and until we get it right, the debate continues.
Please add your voice in the comment box.
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