THE GREAT DEBATE
Every week it seems like a new study shows up that either says to provide more homework to students, or that too much homework is hurting them. Regardless of if you think homework is necessary or you think that it is counterproductive to our students and their learning, I think its time we just lay everything out and I’m going to just say right here and now that homework vs. no homework is the wrong argument and the wrong debate in the first place.
WHAT WE SHOULD BE ASKING OURSELVES:
The real question isn’t whether homework should exist or not but rather “Why are we assigning work to be completed outside of class?” By answering this question we can decide if the work should be assigned in the first place (or not). One simple rule of thumb I like to follow is: if the work follows the learning path started in class and continues the journey from the classroom and takes MINIMAL time (yeah, over 1hr of work is ridiculous for any course that’s not in college), then this is probably an ok assignment that makes sense.
However, If the work is simply “additional” or “busy work” it should be placed either within the context of the class during instruction or not included at all.
STRUGGLE IS IMPORTANT…Make sure you don’t miss it!
If the ultimate goal for every assignment is to create an avenue for learning, then struggle is an important part of the process. Homework should be “practice” and review, or the continuation of already understood concepts that were started in class. Homework should NOT be content that will cause immense struggle for students.
When your students struggle, it can be a great coaching opportunity, but if they don’t get the help when they need it, it can cause frustration and misconceptions. When students struggle in your classroom, you can identify their needs and help them. When a student struggles outside of your classroom, they’re left with only that frustration. Re-visiting that same struggle a day or two later, when reviewing homework, is dramatically less effective.
How I Assign Homework (Or don’t):
In my classroom I DO NOT “assign” any homework. Students take ownership of that part of their learning. A clear Mastery Learning pathway is set for each student and students work at their own pace through the content. If they start to get behind, or need to catch up, or just want to get ahead, they will simply take the work home. This increases ownership and causes homework to be more meaningful. Because the work is part of the pre-established learning journey, it’s not “busy work.” That homework becomes work that progresses them within the mastery based system I use.
Regardless of which side of this debate you end up on, let’s stop focusing on the homework versus non-homework. Instead, let’s focus on what matters: The quality of the content, experiences, and learning opportunities we provide for our students.
What’s your policy for homework? I’d love to hear about it: shoot me an email
