20 Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Assign Homework Over The Holidays
I recently read this article at InformED; “a portal for insights in the universe of eLearning and Education Technology”
I recently joined a Facebook group; Teachers and parents against homework. There seems to be a growing movement of both parents and professionals who are concerned with homework and its value. I recently wrote about working with meaningful tasks in class and how it does not feel like homework. See article here. I think my experiences in class connect well with the reasons given in this article. Read the whole article here.
- Students are learning all the time in the 21st century. According to a recent article in MindShift traditional homework will become obsolete in the next decade. Thanks to computers, learning is occurring 24/7.
- More homework doesn’t necessarily equate to higher achievement. Yes, too much homework can actually be a bad thing.The research found homework was more beneficial for older students than younger ones.
- Countries that assign more homework don’t outperform those with less homework. Around the world, countries that assign more homework don’t see to perform any better. A Stanford study found that in counties like Japan, Denmark, and the Czech Republic little homework was assigned and students outperformed students in counties with large amounts of homework such as Greece, Thailand, and Iran. from a world perspective.
- Instead of assigning homework, suggest they read for fun.
- Don’t assign holiday busy work. Most academics agree that busy work does little to increase learning.
- Have students attend a local cultural event.
- Family time is more important during the holidays. Assigning less homework makes it easier for families to have time together.
- For students who travel during the holidays, homework may impede learning on their trip.
- Kids need time to be kids. A recent article from Australia’s Happy Child website, “What is the value of Homework: Research and Reality” considers this issue and explains how children need unstructured play time.
- Some education experts recommend an end to all homework. Etta Kralovec and John Buell, authors of The End of Homework: How Homework Disrupts Families, Overburdens Children, and Limits Learning, controversially suggests that homework may be a form of intrusion on family life, and may increase the drop-out rate in high schools.
- Send a letter to parents explaining why you are not assigning work.