Being a student myself for most of the 70s and 80s and a mother of a recent high-school graduate, I

empathize with the argument that homework assignments are often random and can take unrealistic
amounts of time to complete. With that in mind, I frequently consider the homework I assign to my
own first graders. As each new school year approaches I weigh the purpose of the assignments and
consider if they are making a positive impact not only in my students learning, but also in my students
home school connection with their parents.
To be a successful teacher, I endeavor to empower my students with the confidence and knowledge
to succeed in their academic and personal lives. I teach at a Title I school, where 93 percent of our
students are profiled as economically disadvantaged and 66 percent of our students labeled at-risk.
Many of the students I have worked with throughout my 10 years at Metz live in single parent homes
with multiple siblings. Some students had one or both parents incarcerated, live in shelters because
of homelessness or were removed from their home situation.
Even with these deficits, our school still manages to attain recognized and commended performance
levels on Texas state tests. Our staff and students work very hard for their successes. To further
contribute to these successes, I continually seek innovative ways to bring quality learning to my
students in and outside of the classroom. Luckily, I have always had the autonomy to choose what
homework I assign to my students and I strive to create interesting and meaningful projects
throughout the year that will help extend the home school connection.

The Home School Connection

One of the main goals of my homework assignments is to create opportunities for my students to
interact with their parents and take time to learn about what makes themselves and their families
special. At the beginning of the year, in lieu of traditional homework assignments, I focus on the
student and their family. Two of the first special at home activities I assign include the Family Page
Project to display during Back-to-School Night and the Baby Name Project.
The Family Page Project is a wonderful way to learn about your student's families. Parents are sent
the Family Page Project letter, with instructions about how to work with their child to decorate a
large piece of paper with interesting facts about their family. I find that sending an oversized piece of
white construction paper works better than a large poster board, which can be overwhelming to fill.
The instruction letter is filled with ideas that families can use to decorate their page, but they are
encouraged to complete it any way they like. It is amazing how creative my families have been with
these projects. In my third year of teaching, one of my students, Julissa, glued magazine pictures of
people, but added her own families heads. It was hilarious looking, and showed that her family had a
great sense of humor. This year, my student Alex and his family worked together to create an
amazing family book. Another one of my students, Nathan, drew houses for all of his extended family
members and glued in the faces of their dozen of cousins, aunts, uncles and grandparents.
I always give the students time to present their family page in class. The things they share can be
quite insightful, touching and funny. One student talked about his uncle who had died in a gang
dispute. He had a lot to share about the things he used to do with his uncle and it was obvious that he
missed him very much. A former student, Lily, attached pictures from a trip to Bolivia to visit her
father's family and this led to an impromptu lesson on South America. This year when Kerina showed
the picture of her mother that she drew she shared that her mother was going to have a baby "but she
isn't ready to take it out yet!"
I always display these projects in the school hallway so everyone who attends Back-to-School Night
can enjoy them. Over the years it has grown in success and families who are not even in my class
come by to see the display. Two of my colleagues have begun to do this project as well, with the
same enjoyment and success.
One of my other favorite family assignments is the Baby Name Project. I send home the Baby Name
Project letter describing how family members can help. This project gives parents the opportunity to
share with their child the origin of their name and information about the day they were born. I have to
credit my own mom with inspiring this project. On every birthday when I was younger, she would tell
me the story of my birth and I loved hearing every little detail. I kept the tradition up with my own son,
Ian and I love setting up the opportunity for my student's parents to do the same.
You would be surprised at how many children have no idea how their name was chosen or what
happened on the day they were born. I love hearing students tell their stories and I use their parents
written account to help them share more details with the class. The accompanying baby photos are
always a huge hit! Of course, I always bring a photo of myself as a baby and as a first grader so my
students can hear my story and see what I looked like when I was their age.
Homework battles have raged for decades. For as long as kids have been whining about doing their
homework, parents and education reformers have complained that homework's benefits are dubious.
Meanwhile many teachers argue that take-home lessons are key to helping students learn. Now, as
schools are shifting to the new (and hotly debated) Common Core curriculum standards, educators,
administrators and researchers are turning a fresh eye toward the question of homework's value.
But when it comes to deciphering the research literature on the subject, homework is anything but an
open book.

The 10-minute rule

In many ways, homework seems like common sense. Spend more time practicing multiplication or
studying Spanish vocabulary and you should get better at math or Spanish. But it may not be that
simple.
Homework can indeed produce academic benefits, such as increased understanding and retention of
the material, says Duke University social psychologist Harris Cooper, PhD, one of the nation's leading
homework researchers. But not all students benefit. In a review of studies published from 1987 to
2003, Cooper and his colleagues found that homework was linked to better test scores in high school
and, to a lesser degree, in middle school. Yet they found only faint evidence that homework provided
academic benefit in elementary school (Review of Educational Research, 2006).

Then again, test scores aren't everything. Homework proponents also cite the nonacademic
advantages it might confer, such as the development of personal responsibility, good study habits
and time-management skills. But as to hard evidence of those benefits, "the jury is still out," says
Mollie Galloway, PhD, associate professor of educational leadership at Lewis & Clark College in
Portland, Oregon. "I think there's a focus on assigning homework because [teachers] think it has
these positive outcomes for study skills and habits. But we don't know for sure that's the case."
Even when homework is helpful, there can be too much of a good thing. "There is a limit to how much
kids can benefit from home study," Cooper says. He agrees with an oft-cited rule of thumb that
students should do no more than 10 minutes a night per grade level — from about 10 minutes in first
grade up to a maximum of about two hours in high school. Both the National Education Association
and National Parent Teacher Association support that limit.

Beyond that point, kids don't absorb much useful information, Cooper says. In fact, too much
homework can do more harm than good. Researchers have cited drawbacks, including boredom and
burnout toward academic material, less time for family and extracurricular activities, lack of sleep and
increased stress.
In a recent study of Spanish students, Rubén Fernández-Alonso, PhD, and colleagues found that
students who were regularly assigned math and science homework scored higher on standardized
tests. But when kids reported having more than 90 to 100 minutes of homework per day, scores
declined (Journal of Educational Psychology, 2015).
"At all grade levels, doing other things after school can have positive effects," Cooper says. "To the
extent that homework denies access to other leisure and community activities, it's not serving the
child's best interest."
Children of all ages need down time in order to thrive, says Denise Pope, PhD, a professor of
education at Stanford University and a co-founder of Challenge Success, a program that partners
with secondary schools to implement policies that improve students' academic engagement and well-
being.
"Little kids and big kids need unstructured time for play each day," she says. Certainly, time for
physical activity is important for kids' health and well-being. But even time spent on social media can
help give busy kids' brains a break, she says.
All over the map
But are teachers sticking to the 10-minute rule? Studies attempting to quantify time spent on
homework are all over the map, in part because of wide variations in methodology, Pope says.
A 2014 report by the Brookings Institution examined the question of homework, comparing data from
a variety of sources. That report cited findings from a 2012 survey of first-year college students in
which 38.4 percent reported spending six hours or more per week on homework during their last year
of high school. That was down from 49.5 percent in 1986 (The Brown Center Report on American
Education, 2014).
The Brookings report also explored survey data from the National Assessment of Educational
Progress, which asked 9-, 13- and 17-year-old students how much homework they'd done the
previous night. They found that between 1984 and 2012, there was a slight increase in homework for
9-year-olds, but homework amounts for 13- and 17-year-olds stayed roughly the same, or even
decreased slightly.
Yet other evidence suggests that some kids might be taking home much more work than they can
handle. Robert Pressman, PhD, and colleagues recently investigated the 10-minute rule among more
than 1,100 students, and found that elementary-school kids were receiving up to three times as much
homework as recommended. As homework load increased, so did family stress, the researchers
found (American Journal of Family Therapy, 2015).

Many high school students also seem to be exceeding the recommended amounts of homework.
Pope and Galloway recently surveyed more than 4,300 students from 10 high-achieving high schools.
Students reported bringing home an average of just over three hours of homework nightly (Journal of
Experiential Education, 2013).
On the positive side, students who spent more time on homework in that study did report being more
behaviorally engaged in school — for instance, giving more effort and paying more attention in class,
Galloway says. But they were not more invested in the homework itself. They also reported greater
academic stress and less time to balance family, friends and extracurricular activities. They
experienced more physical health problems as well, such as headaches, stomach troubles and sleep
deprivation. "Three hours per night is too much," Galloway says.
In the high-achieving schools Pope and Galloway studied, more than 90 percent of the students go
on to college. There's often intense pressure to succeed academically, from both parents and peers.
On top of that, kids in these communities are often overloaded with extracurricular activities, including
sports and clubs. "They're very busy," Pope says. "Some kids have up to 40 hours a week — a full-
time job's worth — of extracurricular activities." And homework is yet one more commitment on top of
all the others.

"Homework has perennially acted as a source of stress for students, so that piece of it is not new,"
Galloway says. "But especially in upper-middle-class communities, where the focus is on getting
ahead, I think the pressure on students has been ratcheted up."
Yet homework can be a problem at the other end of the socioeconomic spectrum as well. Kids from
wealthier homes are more likely to have resources such as computers, Internet connections,
dedicated areas to do schoolwork and parents who tend to be more educated and more available to
help them with tricky assignments. Kids from disadvantaged homes are more likely to work at
afterschool jobs, or to be home without supervision in the evenings while their parents work multiple
jobs, says Lea Theodore, PhD, a professor of school psychology at the College of William and Mary
in Williamsburg, Virginia. They are less likely to have computers or a quiet place to do homework in
peace.
"Homework can highlight those inequities," she says.
Quantity vs. quality
One point researchers agree on is that for all students, homework quality matters. But
too many kids are feeling a lack of engagement with their take-home assignments,
many experts say. In Pope and
Galloway's research, only 20 percent to 30 percent of students said they felt their
homework was useful or meaningful.
"Students are assigned a lot of busywork. They're naming it as a primary stressor, but they don't feel
it's supporting their learning," Galloway says.
"Homework that's busywork is not good for anyone," Cooper agrees. Still, he says, different subjects
call for different kinds of assignments. "Things like vocabulary and spelling are learned through
practice. Other kinds of courses require more integration of material and drawing on different skills."
But critics say those skills can be developed with many fewer hours of homework each week. Why
assign 50 math problems, Pope asks, when 10 would be just as constructive? One Advanced
Placement biology teacher she worked with through Challenge Success experimented with cutting his
homework assignments by a third, and then by half. "Test scores didn't go down," she says. "You can
have a rigorous course and not have a crazy homework load."
Still, changing the culture of homework won't be easy. Teachers-to-be get little instruction in
homework during their training, Pope says. And despite some vocal parents arguing that kids bring
home too much homework, many others get nervous if they think their child doesn't have enough.
"Teachers feel pressured to give homework because parents expect it to come home," says
Galloway. "When it doesn't, there's this idea that the school might not be doing its job."

Galloway argues teachers and school administrators need to set clear goals when it comes to
homework — and parents and students should be in on the discussion, too. "It should be a broader
conversation within the community, asking what's the purpose of homework? Why are we giving it?
Who is it serving? Who is it not serving?"
Until schools and communities agree to take a hard look at those questions, those backpacks full of
take-home assignments will probably keep stirring up more feelings than facts.

20 Pros and Cons of Homework

by Natalie Regoli

Homework. It’s a word that sends a shudder down the spine of students and parents alike.

It is also a question that has become divisive. Some people feel that homework is an
effective way to reinforce the concepts that were learned at school. Others feel like the
time that homework demands would be better spent with a meaningful activity that brings
the family together.

Is homework important? Is it necessary? Or is the added stress that homework places on

students and parents doing more harm than good? Here are some of the key pros and
cons to discuss.
List of the Pros of Homework
1. It encourages the discipline of practice.
Repeating the same problems over and over can be boring and difficult, but it also
reinforces the practice of discipline. To get better at a skill, repetition is often necessary.
You get better with each repetition. By having homework completed every night,
especially with a difficult subject, the concepts become easier to understand. That gives
the student an advantage later on in life when seeking a vocational career.
2. It gets parents involved with a child’s life.
Looking at Common Core math can be somewhat bewildering to parents. If you see the
math problem 5×3 expressed as an addition problem, 5+5+5 seems like the right answer.
The correct answer, however, would be 3+3+3+3+3. By bringing homework to do,
students can engage their learning process with their parents so everyone can be
involved. Many parents actually want homework sent so they can see what their children
are being taught in the classroom.
3. It teaches time management skills.
Homework goes beyond completing a task. It forces children (and parents, to some
extent) to develop time management skills. Schedules must be organized to ensure that
all tasks can be completed during the day. This creates independent thinking and
develops problem-solving skills. It encourages research skills. It also puts parents and
children into a position where positive decision-making skills must be developed.
4. Homework creates a communication network.
Teachers rarely see into the family lives of their students. Parents rarely see the
classroom lives of their children. Homework is a bridge that opens lines of communication
between the school, the teacher, and the parent. This allows everyone to get to know one
another better. It helps teachers understand the needs of their students better.
It allows parents to find out their child’s strengths and weaknesses. Together, an
educational plan can be developed that encourages the best possible learning
environment.

5. It allows for a comfortable place to study.

Classrooms have evolved over the years to be a warmer and welcoming environment, but
there is nothing like the comfort that is felt at home or in a safe space. By encouraging
studies where a child feels the most comfortable, it is possible to retain additional
information that may get lost within the standard classroom environment.

List of the Cons of Homework

1. Children benefit from playing.
Being in a classroom can be a good thing, but so ca being on a playground. With too
much homework, a child doesn’t have enough time to play and that can impact their
learning and social development. Low levels of play are associated with lower academic
achievement levels, lower safety awareness, less character development, and lower
overall health.
2. It encourages a sedentary lifestyle.
Long homework assignments require long periods of sitting. A sedentary lifestyle has
numerous direct associations with premature death as children age into adults. Obesity
levels are already at or near record highs in many communities. Homework may reinforce
certain skills and encourage knowledge retention, but it may come at a high price.
3. Not every home is a beneficial environment.
There are some homes that are highly invested into their children. Parents may be
involved in every stage of homework or there may be access to tutors that can explain
difficult concepts. In other homes, there may be little or no education investment into the
child. Some parents push the responsibility of teaching off on the teacher and provide no
homework support at all.
Sometimes parents may wish to be involved and support their child, but there are barriers
in place that prevent this from happening. The bottom line is this: no every home life is
equal.

4. School is already a full-time job for kids.

An elementary school day might start at 9:00am and end at 3:20pm. That’s more than 6
hours of work that kids as young as 5 are putting into their education every day. Add in the
extra-curricular activities that schools encourage, such as sports, musicals, and after-
school programming and a student can easily reach 8 hours of education in the average
day. Then add homework on top of that? It is asking a lot for any child, but especially
young children, to complete extra homework.

5. There is no evidence that homework creates improvements.

Survey after survey has found that the only thing that homework does is create a negative
attitude toward schooling and education in general. Homework is not associated with a
higher level of academic achievement on a national scale. It may help some students who
struggle with certain subjects, if they have access to a knowledgeable tutor or parent, but
on a community level, there is no evidence that shows improvements are gained.
Have you ever thought why the biggest part of students starts hating school with some
time? More than a half of all their answers to this question will mention the necessity to do
homework.
Whether the reasons for that are procrastination or lack of time but in any case, the topic of homework has
been discussed by educators for many times. There are causes for both banning homework and leaving it in
different amounts, but still, the home assignment benefits outweigh its drawbacks.
Homework in different countries
Unfortunately, it is very difficult to estimate how much time a child should spend on his or her homework. All
the figures are strictly individual as nobody supposes that today a girl will suffer from a headache and a boy will
have a volleyball competition. That means that they have to shorten their night sleep to cope with all the tasks
assigned to them.
Another astonishing fact about the volumes of a home assignment given to school kids in different countries. If
to consider that a child should have time for clubs, relaxation, friends apart from homework, it should not take
more than one hour to complete all the tasks every day. But in some countries, people begin to doubt the fact
that homework should not be banned: statistics are terrifying. The research by OECD that was analyzing the
homework of 15-year-old school kids has shown that Italian children are overwhelmed with homework as they
have to spend over 9 hours on it weekly. The other countries where children have to work over 6 hours on
their tasks are Ireland, Poland, the USA and Australia. No wonder children would rather find hundreds of
other activities than do their home assignments.
1.

At the same time, each person realizes that homework is extremely important in studying. According to
the Cooper’s review of homework studies, 70% of students show better academic success thanks to homework
they were completing. Consequently, we should not underestimate its benefits and now it is time to focus on the
reasons why it should not be banned.

1.)Home environment can be more productive for some pupils than a classroom one
Not all children are capable of coping with the tension that appears in the classroom because of
different reasons: time limits, scolding other students, noise etc. That is why a home can have a
more productive atmosphere as there is no competition, restrictions and you can learn material at your
own pace in the place where you feel comfortable and relaxed.

2.)Parents have a representation of the things that happen in the classroom

A necessity to do and check homework makes parents more involved in studying. Sometimes children
may have troubles with some topics or even subjects and difficulties with homework can be a ringing
bell to provide assistance to your child. Moreover, it encourages parents to communicate with their
children

3.Homework boosts interaction between students and teachers

Homework is done for different purposes but one of them is improved interaction between learners and
educators. Students not only ask questions but also visit after class activities to be able to deal with it
themselves.

4. It teaches students responsibility

When students only visit classes they have no idea how difficult it is for teachers to prepare for the
lessons and may behave abusively. When they are given assignments on a regular basis, they raise
responsibility, punctuality, and executivity. These features can be very useful for the future career too.

5.)Homework improves presentation skills

Diligent students do their best to impress their teachers in the classroom. Such painstaking and
thorough preparation is very important for building better presentation skills.
What About Traditional Daily Assignments?

Research has consistently shown that parental involvement in a child's learning is a key factor in that
child's achievement in school. With the reality of the test driven world of education, many parents
expect what they were given in school for homework, familiar daily or weekly assignments. I do agree
with the rationale behind these daily assignments:

 Homework reinforces skills, concepts and information learned in class.

 Homework prepares students for upcoming class topics.
 Homework teaches students to work independently and develop self-discipline.
 Homework encourages students to take initiative and responsibility for completing a task.
 Homework allows parents to have an active role in their child's education and helps them to
evaluate their child's progress.
 Homework activities relate what is learned in school to children's lives outside of school and
helps to connect school learning to the real world.

But I believe these daily homework assignments should be varied and meaningful, not always rote
practice work.
To encourage authentic writing for homework assignments; I use a class mascot, his sleepover bag
and a journal for students to write about the mascot's visit to their home. I send home the classroom
digital camera so students can photograph their home, family, special events and vacations. We print
their photos on the class computer and use them to support their writing. Students interview family
members for information to share with the class. We also write poetry, lists, headlines, photo
captions, book reviews and more.
To reinforce practice with their word wall words, students learn how to rainbow write, triangle write,
happy face write, staircase write, box it write and sort their word wall words by number of letters,
syllables, and vowels. I have included a Spelling Ideas printable with examples of all of these ideas
and more so you can use it with your students.
To practice math skills and problem solving I send home math games with my students to play with
parents or siblings. I assign homework that can easily be modified depending on the students' level of
understanding. I also have Family Game Night. Students are allowed to borrow a board game from
my classroom collection to take home for the weekend. These games include a memory game from
the National Museum of Art, Boggle, Clue for Kids, Scrabble for Kids and more. Students never
realize that they are learning about art, counting, problem solving, reading and following directions
while they're having fun.
Most importantly I want my first grade students to be reading every single night to improve their word
recognition, comprehension, fluency and word attack skills. I am thankful that our school has a
fantastic guided reading book library that almost all teachers at Metz use on a daily basis. This allows
my students to take home the same books we read in class during guided reading, and reread them
dozens of times over several weeks, improving their language arts skills. Students read the same
books during independent reading time in class, so they receive further literacy support with these
same books just in case an adult is unable to support their reading at home.
Even if your school doesn't have a literacy library of leveled books, you can use reading textbooks the
same way, search the Internet for web sites that carry professionally developed leveled readers that
you can download and print for student use such as Learning A-Z, or purchase one of the exceptional
guided reading programs from Scholastic. If you are short on funding to purchase a program check
out local teacher grants in your area or sign up on Donors Choose or Adopt a Classroom.
Homework is an important time to make connections and reflect; on self, family, friends, new or
familiar information, and the world beyond. What you present to your students will determine the
heights they will climb to continue to maintain their academic success. "What is more important,
quantity or quality?" is a question you could ask yourself when revaluating the homework you assign
to your students. Homework should be fun and full of discovery, not only your students, but for you as
well!
Why Homework should not banned?
The second reason why homework should not banned is because it helps students when they
grow up. ... The first reason why homework should not be banned is because,homework aims to
help us master certain skills.if there is no practice,then excellence will not be achieved.Feb 29, 2016

Reason #2
The second reason why homework should not banned is because it helps students when they grow up. It will help
students with their self-esteem, become more responsible, and independent.
"The greater the number of assignments that students completed, the better grades they received."
The first reason why homework should not be banned is because,homework aims to help us master certain skills.if there
is no practice,then excellence will not be achieved. Homework is important because it helps your child develop positive
study habits that will serve him or her well throughout life.

¨Completing homework in a timely manner will help your child develop self trust and self-confidence. The inspiration to
work harder on the next project occurs when kids feel good about their accomplishment. ( Pryor-Johnson Faye Glenda)
The third reason why homework should not be banned is because it helps improve grades and test scores. Grades are
majorly significant when it comes to graduating and becoming successful.

Here are the top 14 reasons why Homework is important:

1. It improves your child’s thinking and memory

2. It helps your child develop positive study skills and habits that will serve him or her well throughout
life
3. Homework encourages your child to use time wisely
4. It teaches your child to work independently
5. Homework teaches your child to take responsibility for his or her work
6. It allows your child to review and practice what has been covered in class
7. It helps your child to get ready for the next day’s class
8. Homework helps your child learn to use resources, such as libraries, reference materials, and
computer Web sites to find information
9. It encourages your child to explores subjects more fully than classroom time permits
10. It allows your child to extend learning by applying skills to new situations
11. It helps your child integrate learning by applying many different skills to a single task, such as book
reports or science projects
12. Howework helps parents learn more about what your child is learning in school
13. It allows parents to communicate about what he or she is learning
14. It encourages parents to spark your child’s enthusiasm
Why Homework Is Good
Here are 10 reasons why homework is good, especially for the sciences, such as chemistry:

1. Doing homework teaches you how to learn on your own and work independently. You'll
learn how to use resources such as texts, libraries, and the internet. No matter how well
you thought you understood the material in class, there will be times when you'll get
stuck doing homework. When you face the challenge, you learn how to get help, how to
deal with frustration, and how to persevere.
2. Homework helps you learn beyond the scope of the class. Example problems from
teachers and textbooks show you how to do an assignment. The acid test is seeing
whether you truly understand the material and can do the work on your own. In science
classes, homework problems are critically important. You see concepts in a whole new
light, so you'll know how equations work in general, not just how they work for a
particular example. In chemistry, physics, and math, homework is truly important and
not just busywork.
3. It shows you what the teacher thinks is important to learn, so you'll have a better idea of
what to expect on a quiz or test.

4. It's often a significant part of your grade. If you don't do it, it could cost you, no matter
how well you do on exams.

5.Homework is a good opportunity to connect parents, classmates, and siblings with your
education. The better your support network, the more likely you are to succeed in class.

6.Homework, however tedious it might be, teaches responsibility and accountability. For
some classes, homework is an essential part of learning the subject matter.

7.Homework nips procrastination in the bud. One reason teachers give homework and
attach a big part of your grade to it is to motivate you to keep up. If you fall behind, you
could fail.

8.How will you get all your work done before class? Homework teaches you time
management and how to prioritize tasks.

9.Homework reinforces the concepts taught in class. The more you work with them, the
more likely you are to learn them.

10.Homework can help boost self-esteem. Or, if it's not going well, it helps you identify
problems before they get out of control.