Homework is school work to be done at home before the next school day. Teachers tend to give students homework on a daily basis. Homework should not be given to students because it is hard for students to get their homework done at home.
No one knows what it is life for students when they go home and how difficult it might be to understand the homework, especially since the work is increasing along with curriculum that parents have a hard time understanding to help their child. Then there is a conflict of parents telling their child to do their homework.
Students sit through 6-hours of school and by the end of the day they just want to relax. So I do not blame them for not wanting to do homework every night.
But with the overwhelming of homework and being able to use technology, the students are able to cheat off their friends or the internet. We have the answers right at our finger tips.
I know from experience, that teachers who give homework tend to take forever to grade them because they focus more on the class for that day and not so much the homework. And by the time they give back the homework students are on a next topic and possibly struggling with that.
I know for me that I hated that I had homework. After school I never wanted to do homework, I just wanted to watch T.V and lay down. I wanted to spend time with my family after a long day or just nap. School does not come easy to some people and homework they do not understand may result in giving up.
Homework is supposed to prepare students for the next day or for the end of the year test but by the end of the day if students do not know how to do homework and cannot go over it then it is hard to understand. Never mind taking a test on it. Or it could be the other way, students understand the homework but have a hard time testing.
I disagree. Yes, the amount of homework expected of a middle schooler/high school age child can now be quite overwhelmingly (even for adults), but I do believe 90% of the time this homework serves a larger purpose...for both the student and the teacher.
ReplyDeleteIn a history class, just as an example, the teacher wants the kids to demonstrate that they have retained and applied this knowledge in some practical way; the usual form is in a writing assignment or essay. While some of the knowledge is rote memorization (this is the biggest turnoff for non-history enthusiasts BTW), a majority of it is understanding the larger applications of facts/events. The teacher should be looking the homework with this information in mind; if the students cannot connect these larger concepts, the teacher should reevaluate his/her approach and try relaying the information to students in a different manner. In this way homework is helpful.
But I would also be lying if I didn't say that I've seen homework used as busywork for students; those teachers are irresponsible and students catch on quick when they are given bullshit assignments to do. Ultimately it is the responsibility of the teacher to give appropriate homework assignments.
I have to say I do agree with this. My son is a 15 year old Freshman. At his curriculum night for parents in September, almost all of his teachers told the parents that they no longer felt that homework served much of a purpose - unless it was something that needed to be finished up from class time OR to prepare for an upcoming test. I loved this perspective from the teachers. My son is out the door at 6:45 am and has football practice everyday after school. Whether it's football, soccer, drama..it adds up to a long day. Adding in hours of homework can be detrimental to kids health. They need downtime. Especially teenagers that need a lot of sleep but tend to stay up later.
ReplyDelete"Students sit through 6-hours of school and by the end of the day they just want to relax... After school I never wanted to do homework, I just wanted to watch T.V and lay down."
ReplyDeleteThis is not a reason to cut back on homework. It is a reason to make school less tiresome (perhaps by not forcing teenagers to get up at the crack of dawn). It is a reason to teach students that 6 hours is 2 hours less than they are expected to work each day once they graduate.
"School does not come easy to some people and homework they do not understand may result in giving up."
If some people do not understand homework, the best outcome is not for them to give up but instead get extra assistance in learning the material.
Unfortunately, I also have to disagree. As much as many of us would like to just chill-out and watch T.V. at the end of a long day, adulthood is often about prioritizing the many demands on one's time. Time-management and practicing a work ethic that relies at least partially on self-motivation are essential life skills that are learned by students juggling activities and homework. If a student doesn't understand the material, well, another essential life skill would be learning to ask for help when it's needed - a very underrated skill.
ReplyDeleteThat being said one hopes that teachers show their students equal respect by remembering it IS a learning process - and being completely unavailable to answer questions is unacceptable.
I have to agree that teachers are largely responsible for the quality and demands of homework assignments. The attitude that 'a student needs to spend so many hours of time at home on a class' is a little too frivolous. If an hour of reading is appropriate than so be it, but if a half-hour assignment would serve equally well or better, teachers should have consideration for their students and remember they need sleep.
I do agree with this on some level. Although not fully. Even though most students I know of all ages strongly dislike homework, and I as well dislike it, does not mean it should be completely eliminated. There has been homework implemented in education systems all around the world for dozens to hundreds of years. There is a reason behind it.
ReplyDeleteHomework serves a purpose and that is to educate students beyond the classroom and to enforce that what was learned in class is not forgotten. Homework is practice so that students can get improve at what is being taught in class.
That being said, I don't think students should be given AS MUCH homework as is being given. I cannot speak for all teachers let alone any because I know some give more than others, but I believe a reasonable amount is enough. Too much causes more stress than what is natural and it has to be understood that students have a lot more than just school going on in their lives.
"There has been homework implemented in education systems all around the world for dozens to hundreds of years."
DeleteThis is a fallacious "Appeal to Tradition". Technology has fundamentally changed the teaching profession. A student's ability to learn has changed. So whether homework is still relevant must be questioned.
"I believe a reasonable amount is enough."
The definition of "reasonable" is highly dependent on the individual student. While most students might need 15 minutes of homework to internalize knowledge, there will be some who need 0 minutes and some who will *never* learn the material.
I have to say that I do not agree with this post. I see where you are coming from and I agree that sometimes i have no idea what the homework is about and i struggle doing it, like you i also juts want to go home and relax after a long day of school but i do think there are benefits to giving homework. In most cases homework is a review of what has been done in class that day or what you have been learning over the course of the subject and the homework is to help practice what you are learning. Yes it can be difficult but by the time a test comes the extra practice is helpful. For me I know i do much better on a test if i do the homework and the extra practice rather then just going to class and taking the test. With your argument on some parents not being able to help with homework i agree and think that if anything you should be given enough resources with the homework to look for extra help or at least be given credit for trying and showing that you put some effort into looking for the answer rather then just blowing it off. So what i'm trying to say is that if anything i don't think homework should be gotten rid of but maybe just given less of it and not have as much pressure put on it as there is now.
ReplyDeleteFor me I know i did much better on a test when i did no homework and the extra practice bored me to tears. So by my junior year of high school, I stopped doing homework and accepted "B"s on my report card instead of "A"s.
DeleteMy son was the same way. Unfortunately, some time between 1977 and 2003 the rubric changed how homework was factored into the final grade. He received "F" grades from teachers who followed the rules, and "D-" grades from those few teachers who refused to fail a student who knew the material.
I definitely agree on your opinion of homework in an educational level. But this post does not seem to relate to the common connection we must talk about this summer which is politics. This blog post comes across as an opinion piece about homework rather than the impact it has on the political world we must discuss. You provide a lot of evidence more on a personal level rather then something most people experience while doing homework.
ReplyDelete