Homework Is it Productive?
October 16, 2020
Introduction
This article is about breaking down whether homework is productive or not, by talking to teachers about their opinions vs students’ opinions as well as giving some of my own thoughts about homework.
Student Thoughts
Druw Robison, an 8th grader at Centennial Junior High School, had some thoughts about homework. He says “Only math homework is beneficial because it gives him more practice. He thinks all other homework is not beneficial because he wants to spend his time at home with his family and spend his school time doing school.”He also says “We spend 7 hours a day at school and then go to activities after school just to come home and do pointless homework.”He also talks about when he doesn’t have homework he gets to spend quality time with his family compared to if he has homework he barely gets to see his family.
Next, I interviewed Grace Wilson, an 8th grader at Centennial Junior High School. She had this to say about homework: “homework is only sometimes beneficial but most of the time not.” She also says that homework “takes away time from her family and it is pointless work that is way too hard.”
Teacher Thoughts
Mr. Ziedler, a 7th grade teacher at Centennial Junior High School had these thoughts about homework. He says “He gives out about 10 questions a night to give kids more practice”. He thinks this practice will help kids understand the lessons more.” One con of homework is that “It might take kids away from other activities that kids want to do.” Ziedler says he does give out time to do homework in class because kids might have questions about the homework, he does it so they understand what to do.” Lastly, Mr. Ziedler has these thoughts about whether he thinks kids cheat on homework or not. He said “I think kids cheat a lot, some may cheat every night they have it.”
U.S. Department of Education
According to the “The U.S. Department of Education” they found that “In the early grades, homework can help children develop strong study habits and positive attitudes. From third through sixth grades, small amounts of homework, gradually increased each year, may support improved academic achievement. In seventh grade and beyond, students who complete more homework score better on standardized tests and earn better grades, on average, than students who do less homework.” They gave these reasons why they think homework is helpful.
- It prepares for class the next day;
- They learn to use resources, such as libraries, reference materials, and Web sites;
- They can explore subjects more fully than classroom time permits;
- Extend learning by applying skills they already have to new situations;
- Integrate their learning by applying many different skills to a single task, such as book reports or science projects; and
- Learn to manage time and meet deadlines.
Healthline News
On the other hand, an article written by Healthline news found “In 2013, research conducted at Stanford University found that students in high-achieving communities who spend too much time on homework experience more stress, physical health problems, a lack of balance in their lives, and alienation from society” They also found that “When it came to stress, more than 70 percent of students said they were “often or always stressed over schoolwork,” with 56 percent listing homework as a primary stressor. Less than 1 percent of the students said homework was not a stressor.” When people come home from school they will most likely have an activity or something going on. People should not have to deal with this stress after 7 hours of school everyday.
Conclusion
In conclusion, homework may help some students, but overall work is just building stress in kids. Also, homework is taking up kids time after school after spending 7 hours at school on top of activities.
Information from:
https://www2.ed.gov/parents/academic/help/homework/brochure.html
