When Homework Becomes Busy Work
Purposeful Homework Enhances Classroom Learning and Academic Goals
Nov 18, 2008
Homework for the sake of homework accomplishes no purpose. Homework should prepare students for the next class session, reinforce concepts taught in prior classes, and extend classroom instruction as a bridge between related concepts in a particular unit.
Is Homework Necessary?
Some classroom teachers never assign homework. Schools and districts may not see the need for homework and discourage the practice as a regular, nightly extension of the classroom. Other critics point out that many students, at least in high school, may work necessary part time jobs, thus prohibiting additional work beyond the school day.
Some perceive homework as “busy work,” a redundant exercise that serves no meaningful purpose. Even top tier students deride homework as an unnecessary time constraint that interferes with the many activities pursued in the attempt to achieve differentiation in the college admissions process.
Homework becomes necessary when:
- Students fail to adequately prepare for class by avoiding reading or studying.
- Classroom goals cannot be met due to daily interruptions in the schedule.
- Taught concepts require further reinforcement and practice.
Purposeful Homework
Homework should never be used as an academic “safety net” to raise individual grades or keep students from failing. Worksheets frequently used as homework accomplish no significant purpose and do not enhance the learning process. As Marcia Tate, a writer on brain compatible learning states, “worksheets don’t grow dendrites!”
Although some parents and administrators view homework as an every-night activity, usually to project an image that learning is taking place, effective homework tied to classroom instruction should only be assigned as a necessary and concept-building adjunct to classroom instruction. The proliferation of mindless worksheets and redundant homework assignments will swiftly be viewed as “busy work” by students and completion of the activities will involve no upper level critical analysis. Homework must have a definite purpose and should always be decisively connected to overall classroom goals and curricular standards.
Typical homework assignments should take no more than twenty minutes, although upper level Honors classes and AP courses may require more time. All homework assignments should be fully screened to avoid the temptation of assigning tasks that contribute little toward a student’s understanding of taught concepts. It is tempting to take an easy approach that allows homework to serve as a pass/fail grade option, but students will not benefit. Purposeful homework extends the lesson plan and provides valuable reinforcement of key concepts taught in the class room.
Homework Not Projects
Homework should never be weighted as major projects or papers. Purposeful homework should be one part of a general grade criterion that enables students to successfully demonstrate knowledge and understanding through a variety of assessment methodologies. Infrequent homework measures progress; it does not call for new concepts nor assesses concepts that have not been taught.
Teachers that give nightly homework must ask themselves if the assigned work is purposeful. It is better to not give homework, than to assign work that is redundant and liable to be perceived as mindless “busy work.”
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