is it time to get rid of homework vox

Is it time to get rid of homework? Mental health experts weigh in.

It's no secret that kids hate homework. And as students grapple with an ongoing pandemic that has had a wide range of mental health impacts, is it time schools start listening to their pleas about workloads?

Some teachers are turning to social media to take a stand against homework. 

Tiktok user @misguided.teacher says he doesn't assign it because the "whole premise of homework is flawed."

For starters, he says, he can't grade work on "even playing fields" when students' home environments can be vastly different.

"Even students who go home to a peaceful house, do they really want to spend their time on busy work? Because typically that's what a lot of homework is, it's busy work," he says in the video that has garnered 1.6 million likes. "You only get one year to be 7, you only got one year to be 10, you only get one year to be 16, 18."

Mental health experts agree heavy workloads have the potential do more harm than good for students, especially when taking into account the impacts of the pandemic. But they also say the answer may not be to eliminate homework altogether.

Emmy Kang, mental health counselor at Humantold , says studies have shown heavy workloads can be "detrimental" for students and cause a "big impact on their mental, physical and emotional health."

"More than half of students say that homework is their primary source of stress, and we know what stress can do on our bodies," she says, adding that staying up late to finish assignments also leads to disrupted sleep and exhaustion.

Cynthia Catchings, a licensed clinical social worker and therapist at Talkspace , says heavy workloads can also cause serious mental health problems in the long run, like anxiety and depression. 

And for all the distress homework  can cause, it's not as useful as many may think, says Dr. Nicholas Kardaras, a psychologist and CEO of Omega Recovery treatment center.

"The research shows that there's really limited benefit of homework for elementary age students, that really the school work should be contained in the classroom," he says.

For older students, Kang says, homework benefits plateau at about two hours per night. 

"Most students, especially at these high achieving schools, they're doing a minimum of three hours, and it's taking away time from their friends, from their families, their extracurricular activities. And these are all very important things for a person's mental and emotional health."

Catchings, who also taught third to 12th graders for 12 years, says she's seen the positive effects of a no-homework policy while working with students abroad.

"Not having homework was something that I always admired from the French students (and) the French schools, because that was helping the students to really have the time off and really disconnect from school," she says.

The answer may not be to eliminate homework completely but to be more mindful of the type of work students take home, suggests Kang, who was a high school teacher for 10 years.

"I don't think (we) should scrap homework; I think we should scrap meaningless, purposeless busy work-type homework. That's something that needs to be scrapped entirely," she says, encouraging teachers to be thoughtful and consider the amount of time it would take for students to complete assignments.

The pandemic made the conversation around homework more crucial 

Mindfulness surrounding homework is especially important in the context of the past two years. Many students will be struggling with mental health issues that were brought on or worsened by the pandemic , making heavy workloads even harder to balance.

"COVID was just a disaster in terms of the lack of structure. Everything just deteriorated," Kardaras says, pointing to an increase in cognitive issues and decrease in attention spans among students. "School acts as an anchor for a lot of children, as a stabilizing force, and that disappeared."

But even if students transition back to the structure of in-person classes, Kardaras suspects students may still struggle after two school years of shifted schedules and disrupted sleeping habits.

"We've seen adults struggling to go back to in-person work environments from remote work environments. That effect is amplified with children because children have less resources to be able to cope with those transitions than adults do," he explains.

'Get organized' ahead of back-to-school

In order to make the transition back to in-person school easier, Kang encourages students to "get good sleep, exercise regularly (and) eat a healthy diet."

To help manage workloads, she suggests students "get organized."

"There's so much mental clutter up there when you're disorganized. ... Sitting down and planning out their study schedules can really help manage their time," she says.

Breaking up assignments can also make things easier to tackle.

"I know that heavy workloads can be stressful, but if you sit down and you break down that studying into smaller chunks, they're much more manageable."

If workloads are still too much, Kang encourages students to advocate for themselves.

"They should tell their teachers when a homework assignment just took too much time or if it was too difficult for them to do on their own," she says. "It's good to speak up and ask those questions. Respectfully, of course, because these are your teachers. But still, I think sometimes teachers themselves need this feedback from their students."

More: Some teachers let their students sleep in class. Here's what mental health experts say.

More: Some parents are slipping young kids in for the COVID-19 vaccine, but doctors discourage the move as 'risky'

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August 16, 2021

Is it time to get rid of homework? Mental health experts weigh in

by Sara M Moniuszko

It's no secret that kids hate homework. And as students grapple with an ongoing pandemic that has had a wide-range of mental health impacts, is it time schools start listening to their pleas over workloads?

Some teachers are turning to social media to take a stand against homework .

Tiktok user @misguided.teacher says he doesn't assign it because the "whole premise of homework is flawed."

For starters, he says he can't grade work on "even playing fields" when students' home environments can be vastly different.

"Even students who go home to a peaceful house, do they really want to spend their time on busy work? Because typically that's what a lot of homework is, it's busy work," he says in the video that has garnered 1.6 million likes. "You only get one year to be 7, you only got one year to be 10, you only get one year to be 16, 18."

Mental health experts agree heavy work loads have the potential do more harm than good for students, especially when taking into account the impacts of the pandemic. But they also say the answer may not be to eliminate homework altogether.

Emmy Kang, mental health counselor at Humantold, says studies have shown heavy workloads can be "detrimental" for students and cause a "big impact on their mental, physical and emotional health."

"More than half of students say that homework is their primary source of stress, and we know what stress can do on our bodies," she says, adding that staying up late to finish assignments also leads to disrupted sleep and exhaustion.

Cynthia Catchings, a licensed clinical social worker and therapist at Talkspace, says heavy workloads can also cause serious mental health problems in the long run, like anxiety and depression.

And for all the distress homework causes, it's not as useful as many may think, says Dr. Nicholas Kardaras, a psychologist and CEO of Omega Recovery treatment center.

"The research shows that there's really limited benefit of homework for elementary age students, that really the school work should be contained in the classroom," he says.

For older students, Kang says homework benefits plateau at about two hours per night.

"Most students, especially at these high-achieving schools, they're doing a minimum of three hours, and it's taking away time from their friends from their families, their extracurricular activities. And these are all very important things for a person's mental and emotional health."

Catchings, who also taught third to 12th graders for 12 years, says she's seen the positive effects of a no homework policy while working with students abroad.

"Not having homework was something that I always admired from the French students (and) the French schools, because that was helping the students to really have the time off and really disconnect from school ," she says.

The answer may not be to eliminate homework completely, but to be more mindful of the type of work students go home with, suggests Kang, who was a high-school teacher for 10 years.

"I don't think (we) should scrap homework, I think we should scrap meaningless, purposeless busy work-type homework. That's something that needs to be scrapped entirely," she says, encouraging teachers to be thoughtful and consider the amount of time it would take for students to complete assignments.

The pandemic made the conversation around homework more crucial

Mindfulness surrounding homework is especially important in the context of the last two years. Many students will be struggling with mental health issues that were brought on or worsened by the pandemic, making heavy workloads even harder to balance.

"COVID was just a disaster in terms of the lack of structure. Everything just deteriorated," Kardaras says, pointing to an increase in cognitive issues and decrease in attention spans among students. "School acts as an anchor for a lot of children, as a stabilizing force, and that disappeared."

But even if students transition back to the structure of in-person classes, Kardaras suspects students may still struggle after two school years of shifted schedules and disrupted sleeping habits.

"We've seen adults struggling to go back to in-person work environments from remote work environments. That effect is amplified with children because children have less resources to be able to cope with those transitions than adults do," he explains.

'Get organized' ahead of back-to-school

In order to make the transition back to in-person school easier, Kang encourages students to "get good sleep, exercise regularly (and) eat a healthy diet."

To help manage workloads, she suggests students "get organized."

"There's so much mental clutter up there when you're disorganized... sitting down and planning out their study schedules can really help manage their time," she says.

Breaking assignments up can also make things easier to tackle.

"I know that heavy workloads can be stressful, but if you sit down and you break down that studying into smaller chunks, they're much more manageable."

If workloads are still too much, Kang encourages students to advocate for themselves.

"They should tell their teachers when a homework assignment just took too much time or if it was too difficult for them to do on their own," she says. "It's good to speak up and ask those questions. Respectfully, of course, because these are your teachers. But still, I think sometimes teachers themselves need this feedback from their students."

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Student Opinion

Should We Get Rid of Homework?

Some educators are pushing to get rid of homework. Would that be a good thing?

By Jeremy Engle and Michael Gonchar

Do you like doing homework? Do you think it has benefited you educationally?

Has homework ever helped you practice a difficult skill — in math, for example — until you mastered it? Has it helped you learn new concepts in history or science? Has it helped to teach you life skills, such as independence and responsibility? Or, have you had a more negative experience with homework? Does it stress you out, numb your brain from busywork or actually make you fall behind in your classes?

Should we get rid of homework?

In “ The Movement to End Homework Is Wrong, ” published in July, the Times Opinion writer Jay Caspian Kang argues that homework may be imperfect, but it still serves an important purpose in school. The essay begins:

Do students really need to do their homework? As a parent and a former teacher, I have been pondering this question for quite a long time. The teacher side of me can acknowledge that there were assignments I gave out to my students that probably had little to no academic value. But I also imagine that some of my students never would have done their basic reading if they hadn’t been trained to complete expected assignments, which would have made the task of teaching an English class nearly impossible. As a parent, I would rather my daughter not get stuck doing the sort of pointless homework I would occasionally assign, but I also think there’s a lot of value in saying, “Hey, a lot of work you’re going to end up doing in your life is pointless, so why not just get used to it?” I certainly am not the only person wondering about the value of homework. Recently, the sociologist Jessica McCrory Calarco and the mathematics education scholars Ilana Horn and Grace Chen published a paper, “ You Need to Be More Responsible: The Myth of Meritocracy and Teachers’ Accounts of Homework Inequalities .” They argued that while there’s some evidence that homework might help students learn, it also exacerbates inequalities and reinforces what they call the “meritocratic” narrative that says kids who do well in school do so because of “individual competence, effort and responsibility.” The authors believe this meritocratic narrative is a myth and that homework — math homework in particular — further entrenches the myth in the minds of teachers and their students. Calarco, Horn and Chen write, “Research has highlighted inequalities in students’ homework production and linked those inequalities to differences in students’ home lives and in the support students’ families can provide.”

Mr. Kang argues:

But there’s a defense of homework that doesn’t really have much to do with class mobility, equality or any sense of reinforcing the notion of meritocracy. It’s one that became quite clear to me when I was a teacher: Kids need to learn how to practice things. Homework, in many cases, is the only ritualized thing they have to do every day. Even if we could perfectly equalize opportunity in school and empower all students not to be encumbered by the weight of their socioeconomic status or ethnicity, I’m not sure what good it would do if the kids didn’t know how to do something relentlessly, over and over again, until they perfected it. Most teachers know that type of progress is very difficult to achieve inside the classroom, regardless of a student’s background, which is why, I imagine, Calarco, Horn and Chen found that most teachers weren’t thinking in a structural inequalities frame. Holistic ideas of education, in which learning is emphasized and students can explore concepts and ideas, are largely for the types of kids who don’t need to worry about class mobility. A defense of rote practice through homework might seem revanchist at this moment, but if we truly believe that schools should teach children lessons that fall outside the meritocracy, I can’t think of one that matters more than the simple satisfaction of mastering something that you were once bad at. That takes homework and the acknowledgment that sometimes a student can get a question wrong and, with proper instruction, eventually get it right.

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Fostering and supporting mental health, focusing on empowerment, well-being and suicide prevention

Is it time to get rid of homework mental health experts weigh in, august 17 , 2021.

It’s no secret that kids hate homework. And as students grapple with an ongoing pandemic that has had a wide-range of mental health impacts, is it time schools start listening to their pleas over workloads?

Here's Why Even Teachers Want to Get Rid of Homework

Students are either doing too much take-home work or too little. But a smarter approach to learning is gaining ground

It’s the kind of news that generations of kids have been waiting for: At long last, homework might be on the way out. We’ll probably never get rid of it completely, but the news is undeniable . After years of murmurs, rumors, research, and complaints, more schools and teachers are dialing back the take-home burden—and in some cases, assigning only what can be done in the classroom.

Why haven’t we done this before? Anxiety over excessive homework is perennial. But so is anxiety over under-assignment, which could leave kids at risk of being boxed out by overachievers at other more competitive schools. Thomas Scott, executive director of the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents, confessed to the Boston Globe , “If you walk into a meeting with parents any time after September and ask them if students are receiving too much homework, half the hands will go up. Then if you ask them if students are not receiving enough homework, the rest of the hands go up.”

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It’s the kind of nervous mania that’s gotten Americans painted in recent years as helicopter parents. But it’s been baked into our national character for well over a century. As markets have largely conquered all the realms of life that haven’t been conquered by patronage, our dreams for our children start to center around getting them into one kind of promised land or another—the “perfect college” or the “perfect job” that will at last give them a good shot at a safe and healthy future.

The trend began long enough ago that 19th century French sociologist and political theorist Alexis de Tocqueville worried we’d all end up pining for centralized administrative jobs, far more than risky, heroic, or even erotic callings. Americans, he ruefully mused, might turn out to be like the hero of a Chinese novel—probably like the hero of Wu Ching-Tzu’s 1751 novel, The Scholars, who won favor from his beloved by acing his civil service exam, according to University of Virginia Professor James Ceaser .

Today, China’s civil service exam is still going strong, with over 1 million applicants vying for entrance in October. According to CNN Money, over 9,500 of them applied for just one of the plum jobs : head of the reception office of the China Democratic League in Beijing. As horrific as that fate seems to be in the land of the free and the home of the brave, we’ve pushed for a long time to help make it a reality.

That’s why, when it comes to homework, it’s been such a long, hard road toward change. In 2014, data from the National Assessment of Education Progress showed homework remained “remarkably stable” over the prior 30 years, as the Brookings Institution concluded . Some kids got an even heavier load, but some got relief: “The percentage of nine-year-olds with no homework fell by 13 percentage points, and the percentage with less than an hour grew by 16 percentage points.”

Over the past few years, however, a wave has been building. Noelle M. Ellerson, of the School Superintendents Association (AASA), recently confirmed “ a small but growing number of schools or teachers (are) revising homework policies or talking about it,” as the Associated Press reported, and "whether it's to do away with it or to shift to a policy where homework is the classwork they didn't finish during the day or where the homework of the child is to read with their parents."

Anecdotal evidence suggests palpable relief among affected parents. “In my kids' experience, what I notice is a kind of mindfulness from their teachers, who aren't going full no homework but seem to be observing a no-more-than necessary approach,” says Matt Feeney, a California parent writing a book about family life. “My oldest, a fifth grader, has less homework than I expected this year, perhaps less than last year. I have heard anti-homework murmurings from her (and her siblings') teachers since she was in kindergarten. This is the first year where these sentiments seem to be altering policy.”

New America foundation’s Conor Williams, a public school parent who has taught first graders as well as East Coast undergraduates, has seen the issue unfold from both sides. Eliminating or decreasing homework, he says, “tracks recent research showing that, in general, homework assignments don't appear to do much to help kids achieve at higher levels. There are studies showing that particular sorts of assignments for particular subjects or ages might work better than others, but there's not a ton of evidence that homework helps kids learn.”

As a parent and a former teacher, Williams avows there’s some value in homework gained from the sheer power of routine. But even that isn’t a no-brainer. “We know that kids who read with their parents more in the early years—birth to eight years old—often have better academic trajectories. So assigning kids to read with their parents in elementary school is a strong way to use homework. Assigning them math worksheets probably isn't.”

Of course, if American kids don’t want China’s star students to beat them to Mars, they’ll probably have to memorize their multiplication tables. But if we all make a little more room for kids to dive into what most captures their imaginations, we might not feel so tortured about the way we prepare to compete in life.

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Education , History

Are We Seeing the End of Homework?

Does homework deliver academic benefits or just create added stress? Educators have been mulling that question for decades.

Jeff Nilsson

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Generations of children have shared a dream that might be realized in our lifetime: Homework might be abolished.

At present, homework, which author Alfie Kohn, author of “The Case Against Homework,” describes as second shift work for schoolchildren, is entrenched in our education system. According to one study from 2016, 95 percent of grade school children and just over 91 percent of high school students report they have homework.

How much? Grade schools like to follow the “ 10-minute rule ”— 10 minutes for each grade level the student has passed. High school students took home an average of 7.5 hours of assignments every week. Students generally accept homework as a necessary part of their schooling (77 percent say homework is “important” or “very important”).

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However, when students were asked what they considered a primary source of stress in learning, 56 percent said “homework.” Homework was viewed as a primary stressor more than taking tests or trying to get good grades.

But educators wouldn’t assign it if it didn’t serve a good purpose. Teachers give several reasons for handing out at-home assignments, including developing students’ critical thinking, assessing their skills and knowledge, and motivating them to learn. The most popular response was “helping students practice skills or to prepare for tests.” But studies haven’t proven it’s useful for these goals. A complicating factor is that there are too many variables to prove that it’s homework, specifically, that delivers academic benefits.

In addition to teachers, parents often are strong proponents of homework. Eighty percent of parents say they think homework is important. When schools and teachers have chosen not to assign homework, moms and dads grow concerned about their children’s future and insist they bring homework back. They believe kids need the challenge of homework to be successful and prepared for college and career.

Critics of homework have their own arguments. None is more effective than the fact that homework can’t be proven to be helpful. In elementary school, according to Kohn, no correlation has been found between homework and test scores. In high school, it appears to provide only a slight benefit.

Moreover, a study of schools in 47 countries found that school systems that assigned the least amount of homework (Denmark and Czech Republic) had much higher test scores than countries with the most homework assigned (Iran and Thailand).

A study of 28,000 high school seniors found three things correlated to academic success: quality of instruction, motivation, and ability. Homework’s contribution was marginal and sometimes led to more academic problems that it solved. So, we’ve come to a point where educators are considering the idea of homework-free schooling.

Schools have tried to go homework-free in past generations. In 1901, California banned homework for students 14 years and younger. The ban remained in effect until 1917. In the 1930s, the American Child Health Association branded homework as a form of child labor, which had recently been outlawed for many industries. Over the next several decades, the amounts of homework given to students declined.

Some teachers complained about this trend toward little homework. In the pages of the February 1, 1941, issue of The Saturday Evening Post , one grumbled that if the teacher assigns a reasonable amount of good hard homework, it would be met by a “storm of protests from the parents.” They would rather have Johnny spend his free time enjoying wholesome recreation.

But then, in 1957, Russia launched the first man-made satellite into space. Americans knew the Soviets already had an atomic bomb. Now they were winning the space race. Here was proof that the country was falling behind at the height of the Cold War.

To regain the technical lead, we needed smarter Americans, which meant more rigorous curricula. Congress passed a billion-dollar package to improve teaching of science, math, and foreign languages. A return to homework was part of the plan. Homework once again increased.

An article in May 14, 1960, issue of The Saturday Evening Post objected to the increased homework trend, saying that “certain schools have answered the challenge of Sputnik with busy work — meaning more history dates to memorize, more arithmetic problems to copy at home. It is homework hysteria. Often it is unplanned and gives students impossible loads of work one night and little the next. Busywork bores the bright student—and overwhelms the average.”

But a few months later, the Post had changed its tune. An in-depth article in the December 24, 1960, issue called “U.S. Schools: Not the Best, But Not So Bad” compared American schools to the curricula from other countries; in addition to little homework, the article fretted over the effects of TV, telephones, and teachers. It concluded with a six-point plan, the first point being “lengthen our school year and increase the amount of homework required.”

Eventually, the enthusiasm for homework flagged, and in the more casual climate of the late 1960s, homework loads grew lighter. The head of California’s Bureau of Elementary Education said no teacher aware of modern methods would assign such meaningless homework as repetitive arithmetic problems. Such an assignment, she said, kills time and “kills the child’s creative urge to intellectual activity.”

There was another attempt to revive homework in the ’80s. A National Commission on Excellence in Education reported on the cold-war dangers confronting America that arose from low-quality education in “ A Nation At Risk ” (1983). The Commission concluded “homework is good and more is better.” Ten years after “A Nation at Risk” was published, it was reported that “more homework has been required in 27 percent of high schools, 30 percent of middle schools, and 32 percent of elementary schools. Thus, while some progress has been made, there is still a long way to go.”

But the Cold War ended, and the national drive for quality in education trailed off.

Yet current studies show a majority of schools are still handing out at-home assignments. And while there is little agreement between proponents and critics of homework, there’s general agreement that homework shows little benefit at the grade school level.

But the desire to assign homework persists. There’s a belief that homework develops a child’s self-discipline. It teaches them good work habits, responsibility, and independence. After all, parents might say, that’s how they acquired those virtues. But whether or not that is the case is unresolved. One thing we know to be true is that parents, politicians, and educators will insist on assigning it, and students will complain, procrastinate, and eventually suffer through it.

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As a former teacher of language arts, I found homework beneficial for my students, particularly for reading. For those who struggled decoding words even on a middle school level, reading together in class and discussing the material made it easier for students of all levels to respond to questions. In addition, assigning responses for homework allowed students to reflect and compose a better answer than if they were hurried to do so in class. For those who really need time to gather thoughts for writing, this gave them the time needed without feeling like they were always the last ones done. I found the answers to critical thinking questions to have more elaboration.

I think homework for high-school and middle school has merrits but it also has burdens. High school students need to be capable of reading novels and longer pieces of literature outside school as well as write longer papers. These skills are a must for further education and jobs.

A good balanced article on the issue of homework. Ditto Bob’s comments.

As a Substitute Teacher for a local rural school district I can see the trend that homework is becoming less and less, especially among those teachers age 35 and under. Oddly enough, I notice the best teachers are those over the age 40 and often with tenure. BTW, since we are in a small rural district, the goons of NEA (National Education Association) are not a factor which is a plus for both students and parents. Bad teachers usually last no more than two years and when they’re fired, they’re outta here!

Yes, homework (pro and con) remains a riddle to this day with almost as many variables as there are students. What’s too much for one, might be fine for another. My own thoughts would ideally be the teacher having the ability to assess each student individually, and have the homework tailored to their specific needs. Basically focusing on the subject they may be weak in, spending more time to be stronger in grasping and understanding it as to not fall behind.

Some students would have math homework on a given day, others history, geography, science, etc. If it’s the day before a history test, the teacher can go over everything that will be on the test the next day with the students taking notes, then the homework for that afternoon/evening would focus on that. Optional open book tests are good for students not wired to memorize as such.

Engaging with the books is a positive thing. If the student isn’t sure of an answer, they can go into whichever chapter and find it. There’s that “I found the answer!” moment which is very positive. For students that want to keep the book closed, that’s their choice. Sufficient time should be given to accommodate the majority.

So homework should be about learning and not regurgitating for taking tests. There is some crossover, of course. That’s the tricky part that still hasn’t changed much since the 19th century. Striking that elusive balance of time and learning. Are we seeing the end of homework? Possibly, but probably not.

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Should homework be banned?

Social media has sparked into life about whether children should be given homework - should students be freed from this daily chore? Dr Gerald Letendre, a professor of education at Pennsylvania State University, investigates.

We’ve all done it: pretended to leave an essay at home, or stayed up until 2am to finish a piece of coursework we’ve been ignoring for weeks. Homework, for some people, is seen as a chore that’s ‘wrecking kids’ or ‘killing parents’, while others think it is an essential part of a well-rounded education. The problem is far from new: public debates about homework have been raging since at least the early-1900s, and recently spilled over into a Twitter feud between Gary Lineker and Piers Morgan.

Ironically, the conversation surrounding homework often ignores the scientific ‘homework’ that researchers have carried out. Many detailed studies have been conducted, and can guide parents, teachers and administrators to make sensible decisions about how much work should be completed by students outside of the classroom.

So why does homework stir up such strong emotions? One reason is that, by its very nature, it is an intrusion of schoolwork into family life. I carried out a study in 2005, and found that the amount of time that children and adolescents spend in school, from nursery right up to the end of compulsory education, has greatly increased over the last century . This means that more of a child’s time is taken up with education, so family time is reduced. This increases pressure on the boundary between the family and the school.

Plus, the amount of homework that students receive appears to be increasing, especially in the early years when parents are keen for their children to play with friends and spend time with the family.

Finally, success in school has become increasingly important to success in life. Parents can use homework to promote, or exercise control over, their child’s academic trajectory, and hopefully ensure their future educational success. But this often leaves parents conflicted – they want their children to be successful in school, but they don’t want them to be stressed or upset because of an unmanageable workload.

However, the issue isn’t simply down to the opinions of parents, children and their teachers – governments also like to get involved. In the autumn of 2012, French president François Hollande hit world headlines after making a comment about banning homework, ostensibly because it promoted inequality. The Chinese government has also toyed with a ban, because of concerns about excessive academic pressure being put on children.

The problem is, some politicians and national administrators regard regulatory policy in education as a solution for a wide array of social, economic and political issues, perhaps without considering the consequences for students and parents.

Does homework work?

Homework seems to generally have a positive effect for high school students, according to an extensive range of empirical literature. For example, Duke University’s Prof Harris Cooper carried out a meta-analysis using data from US schools, covering a period from 1987 to 2003. He found that homework offered a general beneficial impact on test scores and improvements in attitude, with a greater effect seen in older students. But dig deeper into the issue and a complex set of factors quickly emerges, related to how much homework students do, and exactly how they feel about it.

In 2009, Prof Ulrich Trautwein and his team at the University of Tübingen found that in order to establish whether homework is having any effect, researchers must take into account the differences both between and within classes . For example, a teacher may assign a good deal of homework to a lower-level class, producing an association between more homework and lower levels of achievement. Yet, within the same class, individual students may vary significantly in how much homework improves their baseline performance. Plus, there is the fact that some students are simply more efficient at completing their homework than others, and it becomes quite difficult to pinpoint just what type of homework, and how much of it, will affect overall academic performance.

Over the last century, the amount of time that children and adolescents spend in school has greatly increased

Gender is also a major factor. For example, a study of US high school students carried out by Prof Gary Natriello in the 1980s revealed that girls devote more time to homework than boys, while a follow-up study found that US girls tend to spend more time on mathematics homework than boys. Another study, this time of African-American students in the US, found that eighth grade (ages 13-14) girls were more likely to successfully manage both their tasks and emotions around schoolwork, and were more likely to finish homework.

So why do girls seem to respond more positively to homework? One possible answer proposed by Eunsook Hong of the University of Nevada in 2011 is that teachers tend to rate girls’ habits and attitudes towards work more favourably than boys’. This perception could potentially set up a positive feedback loop between teacher expectations and the children’s capacity for academic work based on gender, resulting in girls outperforming boys. All of this makes it particularly difficult to determine the extent to which homework is helping, though it is clear that simply increasing the time spent on assignments does not directly correspond to a universal increase in learning.

Can homework cause damage?

The lack of empirical data supporting homework in the early years of education, along with an emerging trend to assign more work to this age range, appears to be fuelling parental concerns about potential negative effects. But, aside from anecdotes of increased tension in the household, is there any evidence of this? Can doing too much homework actually damage children?

Evidence suggests extreme amounts of homework can indeed have serious effects on students’ health and well-being. A Chinese study carried out in 2010 found a link between excessive homework and sleep disruption: children who had less homework had better routines and more stable sleep schedules. A Canadian study carried out in 2015 by Isabelle Michaud found that high levels of homework were associated with a greater risk of obesity among boys, if they were already feeling stressed about school in general.

For useful revision guides and video clips to assist with learning, visit BBC Bitesize . This is a free online study resource for UK students from early years up to GCSEs and Scottish Highers.

It is also worth noting that too much homework can create negative effects that may undermine any positives. These negative consequences may not only affect the child, but also could also pile on the stress for the whole family, according to a recent study by Robert Pressman of the New England Centre for Pediatric Psychology. Parents were particularly affected when their perception of their own capacity to assist their children decreased.

What then, is the tipping point, and when does homework simply become too much for parents and children? Guidelines typically suggest that children in the first grade (six years old) should have no more that 10 minutes per night, and that this amount should increase by 10 minutes per school year. However, cultural norms may greatly affect what constitutes too much.

A study of children aged between 8 and 10 in Quebec defined high levels of homework as more than 30 minutes a night, but a study in China of children aged 5 to 11 deemed that two or more hours per night was excessive. It is therefore difficult to create a clear standard for what constitutes as too much homework, because cultural differences, school-related stress, and negative emotions within the family all appear to interact with how homework affects children.

Should we stop setting homework?

In my opinion, even though there are potential risks of negative effects, homework should not be banned. Small amounts, assigned with specific learning goals in mind and with proper parental support, can help to improve students’ performance. While some studies have generally found little evidence that homework has a positive effect on young children overall, a 2008 study by Norwegian researcher Marte Rønning found that even some very young children do receive some benefit. So simply banning homework would mean that any particularly gifted or motivated pupils would not be able to benefit from increased study. However, at the earliest ages, very little homework should be assigned. The decisions about how much and what type are best left to teachers and parents.

As a parent, it is important to clarify what goals your child’s teacher has for homework assignments. Teachers can assign work for different reasons – as an academic drill to foster better study habits, and unfortunately, as a punishment. The goals for each assignment should be made clear, and should encourage positive engagement with academic routines.

Parents should inform the teachers of how long the homework is taking, as teachers often incorrectly estimate the amount of time needed to complete an assignment, and how it is affecting household routines. For young children, positive teacher support and feedback is critical in establishing a student’s positive perception of homework and other academic routines. Teachers and parents need to be vigilant and ensure that homework routines do not start to generate patterns of negative interaction that erode students’ motivation.

Likewise, any positive effects of homework are dependent on several complex interactive factors, including the child’s personal motivation, the type of assignment, parental support and teacher goals. Creating an overarching policy to address every single situation is not realistic, and so homework policies tend to be fixated on the time the homework takes to complete. But rather than focusing on this, everyone would be better off if schools worked on fostering stronger communication between parents, teachers and students, allowing them to respond more sensitively to the child’s emotional and academic needs.

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25 Reasons Homework Should Be Banned (Busywork Arguments)

As students across the globe plow through heaps of homework each night, one question lingers in the minds of educators, parents, and students alike: should homework be banned?

This question is not new, yet it continues to spark lively debate as research findings, anecdotal evidence, and personal experiences paint a complex picture of the pros and cons of homework.

On one hand, proponents of homework argue that it reinforces classroom learning, encourages a disciplined work ethic, and provides teachers with valuable insight into student comprehension. They see homework as an extension of classroom instruction that solidifies and enriches learning while fostering important skills like time management and self-discipline. It also offers an opportunity for parents to be involved in their children's education.

However, some people say there are a lot of downsides. They argue that excessive homework can lead to stress and burnout, reduce time for extracurricular activities and family interactions, exacerbate educational inequalities, and even negatively impact students' mental health.

This article presents 25 reasons why we might need to seriously consider this radical shift in our educational approach. But first, lets share some examples of what homework actually is.

Examples of Homework

These examples cover a wide range of subjects and complexity levels, reflecting the variety of homework assignments students might encounter throughout their educational journey.

• Spelling lists to memorize for a test
• Math worksheets for practicing basic arithmetic operations
• Reading assignments from children's books
• Simple science projects like growing a plant
• Basic geography assignments like labeling a map
• Art projects like drawing a family portrait
• Writing book reports or essays
• Advanced math problems
• Research projects on various topics
• Lab reports for science experiments
• Reading and responding to literature
• Preparing presentations on various topics
• Advanced math problems involving calculus or algebra
• Reading classic literature and writing analytical essays
• Research papers on historical events
• Lab reports for advanced science experiments
• Foreign language exercises
• Preparing for standardized tests
• College application essays
• Extensive research papers
• In-depth case studies
• Advanced problem-solving in subjects like physics, engineering, etc.
• Thesis or dissertation writing
• Extensive reading and literature reviews
• Internship or practicum experiences

Lack of proven benefits

Homework has long been a staple of traditional education, dating back centuries. However, the actual efficacy of homework in enhancing learning outcomes remains disputed. A number of studies indicate that there's no conclusive evidence supporting the notion that homework improves academic performance, especially in primary education . In fact, research suggests that for younger students, the correlation between homework and academic achievement is weak or even negative .

Too much homework can often lead to increased stress and decreased enthusiasm for learning. This issue becomes particularly pressing when considering the common 'more is better' approach to homework, where the quantity of work given to students often outweighs the quality and effectiveness of the tasks. For instance, spending countless hours memorizing facts for a history test may not necessarily translate to better understanding or long-term retention of the subject matter.

However, it's worth noting that homework isn't completely devoid of benefits. It can help foster self-discipline, time management skills, and the ability to work independently. But, these positive outcomes are usually more pronounced in older students and when homework assignments are thoughtfully designed and not excessive in volume.

When discussing the merits and drawbacks of homework, it's critical to consider the nature of the assignments. Routine, repetitive tasks often associated with 'drill-and-practice' homework, such as completing rows of arithmetic problems or copying definitions from a textbook, rarely lead to meaningful learning. On the other hand, assignments that encourage students to apply what they've learned in class, solve problems, or engage creatively with the material can be more beneficial.

Increased stress

Homework can often lead to a significant increase in stress levels among students. This is especially true when students are burdened with large volumes of homework, leaving them with little time to relax or pursue other activities. The feeling of constantly racing against the clock to meet deadlines can contribute to anxiety, frustration, and even burnout.

Contrary to popular belief, stress does not necessarily improve performance or productivity. In fact, high levels of stress can negatively impact memory, concentration, and overall cognitive function. This counteracts the very purpose of homework, which is intended to reinforce learning and improve academic outcomes.

However, one might argue that homework can teach students about time management, organization, and how to handle pressure. These are important life skills that could potentially prepare them for future responsibilities. But it's essential to strike a balance. The pressure to complete homework should not come at the cost of a student's mental wellbeing.

Limited family time

Homework often infringes upon the time students can spend with their families. After spending the entire day in school, children come home to yet more academic work, leaving little room for quality family interactions. This limited family time can hinder the development of important interpersonal skills and familial bonds.

Moreover, family time isn't just about fun and relaxation. It also plays a crucial role in the social and emotional development of children. Opportunities for unstructured play, family conversations, and shared activities can contribute to children's well-being and character building.

Nonetheless, advocates of homework might argue that it can be a platform for parental involvement in a child's education. While this may be true, the involvement should not transform into parental control or cause friction due to differing expectations and pressures.

Reduced physical activity

Homework can often lead to reduced physical activity by eating into the time students have for sports, recreation, and simply being outdoors. Physical activity is essential for children's health, well-being, and even their academic performance. Research suggests that physical activity can enhance cognitive abilities, improve concentration, and reduce symptoms of ADHD .

Homework, especially when it's boring and repetitive, can deter students from engaging in physical activities, leading to a sedentary lifestyle. This lack of balance between work and play can contribute to physical health problems such as obesity, poor posture, and related health concerns.

Homework proponents might point out that disciplined time management could allow students to balance both work and play. However, given the demanding nature of many homework assignments, achieving this balance is often easier said than done.

Negative impact on sleep

A significant concern about homework is its impact on students' sleep patterns. Numerous studies have linked excessive homework to sleep deprivation in students. Children often stay up late to complete assignments, reducing the amount of sleep they get. Lack of sleep can result in a host of issues, from poor academic performance and difficulty concentrating to physical health problems like weakened immunity.

Even the quality of sleep can be affected. The stress and anxiety from a heavy workload can lead to difficulty falling asleep or restless nights. And let's not forget that students often need to wake up early for school, compounding the negative effects of late-night homework sessions.

On the other hand, some argue that homework can teach children time management skills, suggesting that effective organization could help prevent late-night work. However, when schools assign excessive amounts of homework, even the best time management might not prevent encroachment on sleep time.

Homework can exacerbate existing educational inequalities. Not all students have access to a conducive learning environment at home, necessary resources, or support from educated family members. For these students, homework can become a source of stress and disadvantage rather than an opportunity to reinforce learning.

Children from lower socio-economic backgrounds might need to contribute to household chores or part-time work, limiting the time they have for homework. This can create a gap in academic performance and grades, reflecting not on the students' abilities but their circumstances.

While homework is meant to level the playing field by providing additional learning time outside school, it often does the opposite. It's worth noting that students from privileged backgrounds can often access additional help like tutoring, further widening the gap.

Reduced creativity and independent thinking

Homework, particularly when it involves rote learning or repetitive tasks, can stifle creativity and independent thinking. Students often focus on getting the "right" answers to please teachers rather than exploring different ideas and solutions. This can hinder their ability to think creatively and solve problems independently, skills that are increasingly in demand in the modern world.

Homework defenders might claim that it can also promote independent learning. True, when thoughtfully designed, homework can encourage this. But, voluminous or repetitive tasks tend to promote compliance over creativity.

Diminished interest in learning

Overburdening students with homework can diminish their interest in learning. After long hours in school followed by more academic tasks at home, learning can begin to feel like a chore. This can lead to a decline in intrinsic motivation and an unhealthy association of learning with stress and exhaustion.

In theory, homework can deepen interest in a subject, especially when it involves projects or research. Yet, an excess of homework, particularly routine tasks, might achieve the opposite, turning learning into a source of stress rather than enjoyment.

Inability to pursue personal interests

Homework can limit students' ability to pursue personal interests. Hobbies, personal projects, and leisure activities are crucial for personal development and well-being. With heavy homework loads, students may struggle to find time for these activities, missing out on opportunities to discover new interests and talents.

Supporters of homework might argue that it teaches students to manage their time effectively. However, even with good time management, an overload of homework can crowd out time for personal interests.

Excessive workload

The issue of excessive workload is a common complaint among students. Spending several hours on homework after a full school day can be mentally and physically draining. This workload can lead to burnout, decreased motivation, and negative attitudes toward school and learning.

While homework can help consolidate classroom learning, too much can be counterproductive. It's important to consider the overall workload of students, including school, extracurricular activities, and personal time, when assigning homework.

Limited time for reflection

Homework can limit the time students have for reflection. Reflection is a critical part of learning, allowing students to digest and integrate new information. With the constant flow of assignments, there's often little time left for this crucial process. Consequently, the learning becomes superficial, and the true understanding of subjects can be compromised.

Although homework is meant to reinforce what's taught in class, the lack of downtime for reflection might hinder deep learning. It's important to remember that learning is not just about doing, but also about thinking.

Increased pressure on young children

Young children are particularly vulnerable to the pressures of homework. At an age where play and exploration are vital for cognitive and emotional development, too much homework can create undue pressure and stress. This pressure can instigate a negative relationship with learning from an early age, potentially impacting their future attitude towards education.

Advocates of homework often argue that it prepares children for the rigors of their future academic journey. However, placing too much academic pressure on young children might overshadow the importance of learning through play and exploration.

Lack of alignment with real-world skills

Traditional homework often lacks alignment with real-world skills. Assignments typically focus on academic abilities at the expense of skills like creativity, problem-solving, and emotional intelligence. These are crucial for success in the modern workplace and are often under-emphasized in homework tasks.

Homework can be an opportunity to develop these skills when properly structured. However, tasks often focus on memorization and repetition, rather than cultivating skills relevant to the real world.

Loss of motivation

Excessive homework can lead to a loss of motivation. The constant pressure to complete assignments and meet deadlines can diminish a student's intrinsic motivation to learn. This loss of motivation might not only affect their academic performance but also their love of learning, potentially having long-term effects on their educational journey.

Some believe homework instills discipline and responsibility. But, it's important to balance these benefits against the potential for homework to undermine motivation and engagement.

Disruption of work-life balance

Maintaining a healthy work-life balance is as important for students as it is for adults. Overloading students with homework can disrupt this balance, leaving little time for relaxation, socializing, and extracurricular activities. All of these are vital for a student's overall development and well-being.

Homework supporters might argue that it prepares students for the workloads they'll face in college and beyond. But it's also crucial to ensure students have time to relax, recharge, and engage in non-academic activities for a well-rounded development.

Impact on mental health

There's a growing body of evidence showing the negative impact of excessive homework on students' mental health. The stress and anxiety from heavy homework loads can contribute to issues like depression, anxiety, and even thoughts of suicide. Student well-being should be a top priority in education, and the impact of homework on mental health cannot be ignored.

While some might argue that homework helps students develop resilience and coping skills, it's important to ensure these potential benefits don't come at the expense of students' mental health.

Limited time for self-care

With excessive homework, students often find little time for essential self-care activities. These can include physical exercise, proper rest, healthy eating, mindfulness, or even simple leisure activities. These activities are critical for maintaining physical health, emotional well-being, and cognitive function.

Some might argue that managing homework alongside self-care responsibilities teaches students valuable life skills. However, it's important that these skills don't come at the cost of students' health and well-being.

Decreased family involvement

Homework can inadvertently lead to decreased family involvement in a child's learning. Parents often feel unqualified or too busy to help with homework, leading to missed opportunities for family learning interactions. This can also create stress and conflict within the family, especially when parents have high expectations or are unable to assist.

Some believe homework can facilitate parental involvement in education. But, when it becomes a source of stress or conflict, it can discourage parents from engaging in their child's learning.

Reinforcement of inequalities

Homework can unintentionally reinforce inequalities. Students from disadvantaged backgrounds might lack access to resources like private tutors or a quiet study space, placing them at a disadvantage compared to their more privileged peers. Additionally, these students might have additional responsibilities at home, further limiting their time to complete homework.

While the purpose of homework is often to provide additional learning opportunities, it can inadvertently reinforce existing disparities. Therefore, it's essential to ensure that homework doesn't favor students who have more resources at home.

Reduced time for play and creativity

Homework can take away from time for play and creative activities. These activities are not only enjoyable but also crucial for the cognitive, social, and emotional development of children. Play allows children to explore, imagine, and create, fostering innovative thinking and problem-solving skills.

Some may argue that homework teaches discipline and responsibility. Yet, it's vital to remember that play also has significant learning benefits and should be a part of every child's daily routine.

Increased cheating and academic dishonesty

The pressure to complete homework can sometimes lead to increased cheating and academic dishonesty. When faced with a large volume of homework, students might resort to copying from friends or searching for answers online. This undermines the educational value of homework and fosters unhealthy academic practices.

While homework is intended to consolidate learning, the risk of promoting dishonest behaviors is a concern that needs to be addressed.

Strained teacher-student relationships

Excessive homework can strain teacher-student relationships. If students begin to associate teachers with stress or anxiety from homework, it can hinder the development of a positive learning relationship. Furthermore, if teachers are perceived as being unfair or insensitive with their homework demands, it can impact the overall classroom dynamic.

While homework can provide an opportunity for teachers to monitor student progress, it's important to ensure that it doesn't negatively affect the teacher-student relationship.

Negative impact on family dynamics

Homework can impact family dynamics. Parents might feel compelled to enforce homework completion, leading to potential conflict, stress, and tension within the family. These situations can disrupt the harmony in the household and strain relationships.

Homework is sometimes seen as a tool to engage parents in their child's education. However, it's crucial to ensure that this involvement doesn't turn into a source of conflict or pressure.

Cultural and individual differences

Homework might not take into account cultural and individual differences. Education is not a one-size-fits-all process, and what works for one student might not work for another. Some students might thrive on hands-on learning, while others prefer auditory or visual learning methods. By standardizing homework, we might ignore these individual learning styles and preferences.

Homework can also overlook cultural differences. For students from diverse cultural backgrounds, certain types of homework might seem irrelevant or difficult to relate to, leading to disengagement or confusion.

Encouragement of surface-level learning

Homework often encourages surface-level learning instead of deep understanding. When students are swamped with homework, they're likely to rush through assignments to get them done, rather than taking the time to understand the concepts. This can result in superficial learning where students memorize information to regurgitate it on assignments and tests, instead of truly understanding and internalizing the knowledge.

While homework is meant to reinforce classroom learning, the quality of learning is more important than the quantity. It's important to design homework in a way that encourages deep, meaningful learning instead of mere rote memorization.

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Too much homework: Is it reality or a myth?

How long do your kids spend each night hitting the books? If they are complaining about being buried by a growing mountain of homework, not so fast.

A report from the Brookings Institution released Tuesday suggests that despite stories about stressed out kids having too much homework, the amount has not changed much in 30 years and rarely tops more than two hours a night.

"It still doesn't look like kids are overworked," researcher Tom Loveless, a former math teacher who conducted the study, told USA Today . "The percentage who are overworked is really small."

The TODAY anchors weighed in Tuesday, with Matt Lauer and Carson Daly saying they don’t quite remember being overburdened.

“I don’t remember doing two hours of homework a night,” Lauer said. “Me neither,” Daly added.

Natalie Morales said she thinks homework loads vary by school, and added, “I think nowadays, kids are on their devices.”

In the report, “Homework In America, ” Loveless analyzed several previous surveys, including the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Kids ages 9, 13 and 17 were asked how much time they spent on homework a day earlier.

For the 17-year-olds, the percentage of kids doing the most homework — more than two hours a night — stayed the same at 13 percent from 1984 to 2012. The percentage spending one to two hours a night dropped from 27 percent to 23 percent in that time period and the kids who did less than an hour — 26 percent — was the same as well.

The percentage of 13-year-olds with the heaviest workload, more than two hours, dropped from 9 percent to 7 percent in 2012, and those spending one to two hours on homework also went down.

TODAY’s Savannah Guthrie said she thought it was the younger kids who have been getting more homework lately. “Isn’t the complaint that it’s the little kids, the little ones in elementary school who have homework until 10 at night?

The Brookings report concluded that “the homework load has remained remarkably stable since 1984,” with one exception: 9-year-olds.

The percentage of 9-year-olds with no homework fell from 35 percent in 1984 to 22 percent in 2012, while the percentage of those doing less than an hour rose from 41 percent o 57 percent in the same time period.

Lauer said his elementary school-aged kids spend 45 minutes to an hour on homework.

Another survey, by researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles, found that the percentage of college freshmen who recalled having at least six hours a week of homework during their last year of high school dropped from 50 percent in 1986 to 38 percent in 2012, USA Today said.

The Brookings report comes as some parents have complained about their kids being stressed out from too much homework. Some district are considering time limits on homework or making homework optional.

The report noted that major magazines ran cover stories on the evils of homework from 1998 until 2003. More recently, it noted a 2011 front-page New York Times story about the nightly homework grind stressing out kids and an article in The Atlantic in September headlined “My Daughter’s Homework Is Killing Me,” that describes a man doing his daughter’s homework every night for a week.

The Brookings report says most parents think their kids are getting the right amount of homework, and that “homework horror stories” need proper perspective.

“They seem to originate from the very personal discontents of a small group of parents,” the report said. “They do not reflect the experience of the average family with a school-age child.”

Mike Petrilli of the education think tank Thomas B. Fordham Institute said the amount of homework varies for different kinds of students. Those hoping to attend elite colleges "probably are doing too much homework and are stressed out about it," he told USA Today.

But the rest of the students, he said, "are not being pushed to do a lot of homework at all."

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Letters to the Editor: Schools teach kids not to slack off. How would no more homework help?

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To the editor: Reading your editorial favoring a school grading system that deemphasizes homework and task completion , I though what great news this might mean to journalists. Just turn your articles in whenever, no consequences, and don’t worry about work outside your official hours.

Advertisers, turn in your ad copy whenever. Delivery folks, take your time, because deadlines don’t matter. Custodians, clean the toilets whenever you feel like it.

Now, to real life: There are very few tests given once we are adults, but there are many daily chores that must be done and deadlines that must be met. My job as a teacher is not only to educate my students, but also to turn them into employable and responsible adults.

That means daily practice with a routine that becomes ingrained. Completing homework teaches a student organization and planning; it also improves academic skills and reinforces knowledge.

Kathleen McCarthy, Torrance

To the editor: After raising a family of seven quite successful students and teaching public school for 10 years, I agree with your editorial about homework and grading.

I graduated from Reed College in Oregon, a school that deemphasizes grades and is renowned for sending many alumni to graduate school. As students we got many comments on the margins of our papers and tests followed by a conference with the professor or our advisor.

I was also influenced by a book I read early in my career pointing out that if you gave a test on the first day of school, some children would ace it, others would have mixed results, and some would fail. If you did a good job, by the end of the term, everyone should do fairly well on the test, even those who initially failed. The grade should reflect the knowledge gained.

I did my best to follow this advice, and I am encouraged that people are once again considering what education is really all about — and it certainly should not be about averaging test scores.

Sharon Toji, Irvine

To the editor: Letter writers brought up important issues on homework and education . Missing, however, was the fact that students are different, with different interests and talents. The human race depends on this diversity.

As the late psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi pointed out: “If we were all more or less alike, humans would grow into narrowly specialized organisms. It would be difficult for us to adapt to changing conditions.”

An important function of school is to help students discover and develop their interests and pursue their strengths. Overemphasizing “requirements” not only leads to boredom, it also doesn’t result in as much learning as encouraging students to engage in tasks they find natural and interesting.

Plato understood this: “Bodily exercise, when compulsory, does no harm to the body; but knowledge which is acquired under compulsion obtains no hold on the mind.”

Stephen Krashen, Los Angeles

The writer is a professor emeritus of education at USC.

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This article is packed full of strategies from other students on how to have fun in high school while still keeping your future bright. “It is a balancing act, ” explains Mark Ellis, the 9th grade counselor at North Springs High School, “and students need to make use of good time management skills.”

Tips for Tackling the Struggle Between Homework, Grades and Extracurricular Activities

I’d be shocked to meet any high school student who did not have a rough time balancing their schoolwork, sports, clubs, hobbies, and social life. Time management is essential to being successful, and with that comes the need for effective study habits and adequate sleep at night. This article is packed full of strategies from other students on how to have fun in high school while still keeping your future bright. 

One aspect of school that I struggle with is managing time for homework and studying with everything else going on in my life.  

Mark Ellis, the 9th grade counselor at North Springs High School explained: “It is a balancing act, and students need to make use of good time management skills. After school, take a break, however make sure to be working on your assignments in order to have time for those extracurricular activities. The most important thing to colleges is the overall average. That’s the best indicator of what type of student you’ll be in college.”

Emerson Goldberg, a freshman at North Springs, said, “ I don’t have time to do one thing, and then when I try to focus on one thing I stop focusing on the other, but you kind of need to have both [focus on school and other activities]. You just need to be able to manage your time wisely so you can get both done.” 

Feeling Overwhelmed

Gustavo Jones, a freshman at North Springs, said, “I feel really overwhelmed because sometimes schoolwork can become too much and I’m not able to finish it during school, so I have to do it at home. I also have to do the sports I like and help around the house, so I’m not able to do homework, so I get pretty overwhelmed. If I’m not able to complete the homework during the class, I try to get it done during my next period.” 

The problem I’ve found is that students simply do not have time after school to do homework, so they do it during other classes, which causes them to not fully focus on the other class they are in.  

Diana Ignatenko, a freshman at North Springs, told me, “I’m not that overwhelmed because I usually get my work done during class. If I get it done during class, I don’t have to do it later on, so I have more time for other things.” 

Study Hall Solution?

I believe the solution to this problem is a class for  study hall. I know teachers need to give homework to teach students the material at a reasonable pace, but with North Springs High’s new eight-period block schedule, there is time to have one of these classes become a study hall. Students could be in the study hall of their homeroom and not get a grade for the class, but instead only be marked for attendance. Teachers could complete their own work at this time while keeping their students on task and safe. 

Ellis said, “I would like to see a study hall class, especially for freshmen, but it is difficult to build that in with the other electives and extracurricular activities that students are reporting they want to have. Students determine which extracurricular activities the school will offer based on the demand. If, in the future, students say ‘we want a study hall class,’ then I feel confident that it would be offered, but I would love to see it as an option regardless. Students’ requests are what drive us.”

I know a study hall could create other challenges because it would take up an elective, so I understand why it might not be possible. With that said, I know we’ll all need some strategies to get our schoolwork done efficiently. Of everyone I interviewed, the responses all echoed this: phones are restricting our ability to get work done in a timely manner. 

Goldberg said, “I can get distracted easily, so I try not to be on my phone too much while I’m doing my homework. I usually listen to music because I can’t be in complete silence, but I also can’t be watching TV, or I get too distracted.” 

Ignatenko said, “I usually get distracted by my phone or my pet or my family, but I go in my room and put my phone away, or, if I do have my phone, I just put music on.” 

Jones added, “I get distracted by my phone and messages, so I try to just space it out and put a timer on to get my homework done.” 

Homework vs Phone

When studying and finishing my homework, I also eliminate all distractions. When I’m doing homework with my phone next to me, it takes me double the amount of time to finish. If I have my phone next to me while studying, when the test comes, the information I need for the test mixes with the memories of the distraction on my phone that I had while studying.   

Imagine you’ve put away all distractions, you’re sitting on your bed, at your desk, or wherever you do homework, and you’re stuck. You have all this boring work, and you don’t know where to start. You’ve lost all motivation and all you want to do is sleep.

When I reach this inevitable time in my day, I’ve found that making a list of priorities helps me. I write a list of all my assignments and upcoming assessments and then write when they are due or occurring. This process helps me sort through what I should work on first, and what I can save for the future, while also giving me time to get my mind ready to work. 

Noa Lazarian, a freshman at North Springs, has a similar approach: “I shove everything into my calendar, and then that’s when I’m going to get everything done.” 

On the topic of calendars, from my own experience, I can say that using a calendar is only beneficial if I remember to study for short amounts of time over multiple days before the test to make it easier for me to digest and remember the material. In my calendar, I make a schedule that includes time for my hobbies and sports. This also shows me if any of my clubs have meetings with conflicting times. 

I am also someone who gets overwhelmed and stressed easily. I have an unhealthy habit of going on my phone for hours when this happens, so I’ve been trying to read or draw instead. 

Take a Breather

Goldberg told me, “Usually I will try to give myself some independent time and just give myself time to recuperate. It’s important to give yourself a breather, so I’ll maybe watch a show, or I’ll do make-up. I just do something I love doing to take off the stress.” 

On weekends when I have more time, I like to improve my art or bake. Both activities require my full attention, so I use these to take my mind off everything else in my life.

Another problem I’ve noticed in all high schoolers is the weight of not sleeping enough at night. For reference, the CDC recommends eight to 10 hours of sleep each night for people ages 13 to 18. 

Goldberg said, “I definitely don’t get the full eight hours. I usually get between five and seven hours, which I know is not enough, but I’ve gotten into a habit of doing that. I’m not usually tired during the day, but it would definitely be healthier if I got eight hours.” 

Jones added, “I get very little sleep. I get about five to six hours of sleep, and I definitely want more.” 

Finally, I think it’s essential to mention the importance of not overscheduling yourself. 

Extracurriculars Advice

In reference to extracurricular activities, Lazarian said, “You can do a couple, but you just have to manage your time wisely.” 

Goldberg said, “You do not have to do everything, and don’t do any clubs you don’t really like and are boring just because you want to get into a good college, because you don’t have time to do that. I’d say one to three clubs. If you are going to do the musical, then don’t do a sport at the same time. Look to see if the club is one that you have to put in a lot of time for. Think about how much time you have to give and see if you can manage to be there when you’re needed for them.” 

Ignatenko said, “For freshmen, I would say you can do at least one sport and one to two clubs.” 

Jones, added, “At least do two. One sport and one or two extracurricular activities.” 

The student perspective is essential, but so is the perspective of a teacher who knows what colleges like to see. 

Counselor Ellis told me, “Colleges want to see a continuation of one or more of the extracurricular activities. They want to see you in it a couple years or more, ideally at least three. Along the way, have a leadership role or two, like being a co-captain of a team, first chair in an orchestra or band, leading a community service project, or being an officer of a club. In freshman year, explore the clubs, get involved, and build on that sophomore, junior, and senior year. I recommend starting small to determine what you can and cannot handle.”

I’ll personally be using the advice I’ve received while writing this, and maybe one day I’ll get the consistent eight hours of sleep that I need.

Sarah Meiselman, 15, attends North Springs Charter High School. She enjoys writing, reading, walking with her dog, and listening to true-crime podcasts.

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Six Ways To End the Tyranny of Homework

E very evening, after a full day of classes, usually followed by a two-hour basketball practice, my son, Nathaniel, climbs the stairs to his room lugging a heavy backpack and disappears into a black hole. As a 10th-grader in an academically rigorous Los Angeles high school, this is his nightly homework routine: three to four hours of English, history, Spanish, science and math.

Besides a short break for family dinner—a nightly ritual that my husband and I insist on, lest we risk never seeing him during the week—Nathaniel pretty much keeps his head down until at least 11 pm, when he and I start to tussle over bedtime.

Given this relentless reality, it is not surprising that a recent study about homework from Stanford University caught my eye. The researchers sampled 4,317 students from 10 high performing high schools—both private and public—in upper-middle-class California communities and found that they averaged more than three hours of homework each night, just like my boy.

They also found that students with such heavy homework loads experienced high stress; health issues like stomach aches, exhaustion, headaches, weight loss, weight gain and sleep deprivation; and less time for friends, family and extracurricular activities. (Full disclosure: Nathaniel, who certainly feels the stress, attends one of the schools that participated in the study.)

Depending on his basketball schedule, Nathaniel typically leaves the house at 7:30 a.m. and gets home 10 hours later, sometime around 6 p.m. With a little downtime “to chill,” a quick shower and dinner, he often doesn’t even start his homework until 8 p.m.

“Some kids are putting in adult loads, and they’re not adults,” says Denise Pope, a senior lecturer at Stanford’s Graduate School of Education, who led the research. “It’s exhausting to be in school for eight hours—always being on, listening, being engaged and then coming home to face hours of homework.”

To be sure, not all kids struggle to keep up with this nightly crush. In fact, most don’t. A new report from the Brookings Institution points out that, overall, homework loads haven’t changed much in three decades, with the majority of high school students doing just an hour per night. Citing a 2007 MetLife survey, the Brookings scholars noted that there are more U.S. parents who think their kids have too little homework rather than too much—25% compared with 15%.

All of which got me thinking: What is that Goldilocks-like sweet spot when it comes to how much homework a kid should have? And what is homework really meant to accomplish in the first place?

For some answers, I turned to Pope, who is the co-founder of Challenge Success , a nonprofit out of Stanford that works with schools and families to create a more balanced and academically fulfilling life for kids. Here are some principles she suggests for creating an ideal homework environment:

1. Give high school students two hours of homework a night. Like most experts, Pope believes that this is just the right amount. After that, the link between homework and achievement drops, stress increases and learning declines.

2. Just because a lot of homework is assigned doesn’t necessarily mean it is intellectually demanding. “There is a lot of confusion between rigor and load on the part of teachers, administrators and parents,” Pope says.

With this in mind, she advises teachers to always ask themselves a list of questions before assigning homework: What is the purpose of the assignment? How long will it take an average student to do it? Is it clear? Is the homework valuable and meaningful to students? What is the quality of the homework being assigned? In other words, does it serve to engage students more deeply with the material—or is it just busy work?

3. Homework should be tailored to each individual’s needs, whenever possible. Although this can be challenging, especially for public school teachers with large classes, Pope says customization is essential for maximizing learning. For example, rather than give an entire class 25 math problems to complete, students with a good grasp of the concepts might get fewer but more challenging problems; kids who are struggling could be assigned problems specifically designed to help them master the basics.

4. In preparing kids for what will happen in class, homework should concentrate on tasks that can’t be done effectively during the school day. This includes things like reading chapters from a book, collecting specimens in the backyard for a science experiment or interviewing someone from the community for an oral history project.

5. Rethink giving points for homework . Assigning points for completed homework may give kids a chance to improve their overall grade in a particular class—showing their organizational skills, ability to follow directions and work ethic—but Pope says it does little to demonstrate their actual command of a subject.

6. Parents shouldn’t help with homework or be the homework police. They can advocate for smart homework policies at their children’s school. But “let teachers intervene if the student isn’t doing homework correctly or regularly,” Pope says.

Parents can help, she adds, by respecting their children’s working style—some need a quiet space, others like to listen to music while doing calculus. They can also make sure their kids aren’t overscheduled and that they get enough sleep; research indicates that teenagers need more than nine hours of sleep each night, but that most get about seven.

Hmm. It looks like Nathaniel’s light is still on as I type this. Time for him to trade the books for bed.

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Nobody knows what the point of homework is (Vox)

• Thread starter entremet
• Start date Aug 1, 2024

You wouldn't toast a NES cartridge

• Aug 1, 2024

Over the past three years, in response to concerns about equity, schools across the country, including in Sacramento, Los Angeles , San Diego , and Clark County, Nevada , made permanent changes to their homework policies that restricted how much homework could be given and how it could be graded after in-person learning resumed. Three years into the pandemic, as districts and teachers reckon with Covid-era overhauls of teaching and learning, schools are still reconsidering the purpose and place of homework. Whether relaxing homework expectations helps level the playing field between students or harms them by decreasing rigor is a divisive issue without conclusive evidence on either side, echoing other debates in education like the elimination of standardized test scores from some colleges' admissions processes. I first began to wonder if the homework abolition movement made sense after speaking with teachers in some Massachusetts public schools, who argued that rather than help disadvantaged kids, stringent homework restrictions communicated an attitude of low expectations. One, an English teacher, said she felt the school had "just given up" on trying to get the students to do work; another argued that restrictions that prohibit teachers from assigning take-home work that doesn't begin in class made it difficult to get through the foreign-language curriculum. Teachers in other districts have raised formal concerns about homework abolition's ability to close gaps among students rather than widening them. Many education experts share this view. Harris Cooper, a professor emeritus of psychology at Duke who has studied homework efficacy, likened homework abolition to "playing to the lowest common denominator." Click to expand... Click to shrink...

Nobody knows what the point of homework is

But there is still no research consensus on homework's effectiveness; no one can seem to agree on what the right metrics are. Much of the debate relies on anecdotes, intuition, or speculation. Click to expand... Click to shrink...

My grandmother gave me homework before I started school as well as when school was over, and I was vastly more prepared for it as a result. I don't think school even had anything to teach me - well, on things like math, anyway - until I hit high school. So my homework experience was different, but I definitely think it was effective. Sounds like more research is needed though.  

TheDarkKnight

I think education has gone way overboard on the amount of homework assigned to kids, but I do believe you can't just learn in lectures/classrooms. Maybe some subjects you don't need a lot Or you're just substituting Lectures for homework in the classroom Especially for math. You need the repetition and time to let it settle in your mind.  

I hated homework too and mostly knocked homework out while still in school whenever I had some space between classes or when a class was canceled.  

TheDarkKnight said: I think education has gone way overboard on the amount of homework assigned to kids, but I do believe you can't just learn in lectures/classrooms. Maybe some subjects you don't need a lot Or you're just substituting Lectures for homework in the classroom Especially for math. You need the repetition and time to let it settle in your mind. Click to expand... Click to shrink...

SchrodingersDog

Hard to say, I'm not working in the field so I have no particularly qualified opinion other than a gut feeling. Imho, repetition is often absolutely key to mastering skills. And I could certainly imagine homework does its part in that regard, even more so given it's done - ideally - in an quiet environment in which students can take as much or as little time as they need to solve a problem. I'm not sure it's important in every single subject. But learning maths or languages without doing anything at home? I'd picture that to be a lot tougher. The way it's often designed and implemented will surely often suck though. In an ideal world, I'd say give students a tablet and some app that focuses on whichever their weakest points are across subjects, then makes them do exercises specifically geared around those problem areas for an hour a day or whatever.  

I always thought homework was dumb too then I got to college and realized you need to know how to do 100% of your studying outside of the classroom. you need to figure out how to solve problems without asking the person next to you. you're expected to know how to do all these things on day one they definitely go overboard on homework, but it's a necessary evil imo  

Homework in moderation is fine. It gives you hands-on at bats, learning through repetition that a lot of courses don't have time to do in class. Edit: it's also important to learn how to learn on your own.  

I saw homework as practice. Though admittedly the only kind worth a damn in elementary school was math homework.  

ExoExplorer

Hated homework in HS. Refused to do it most of the time. Somehow I managed to squeak by. Surprise surprise, come college when I was studying things I actually cared about, doing homework was so much easier. Too much homework doesn't make up for poor classroom experience. I fear it's too easy for districts to use as a band-aid when facing classroom budget cuts.  

Never did them as a kid  

RPGam3r said: Homework in moderation is fine. It gives you hands-on at bats, learning through repetition that a lot of courses don't have time to do in class. Click to expand... Click to shrink...

As a teacher: fuck homework. It's part of the deal for me and my students: you work in class, I give you no homework.  

AzorAhai said: As a teacher: fuck homework. It's part of the deal for me and my students: you work in class, I give you no homework. Click to expand... Click to shrink...

"This guy are sick"

I imagine these days the point is to feed it to AI and use those answers. I think it's useful in the case of something like math when and where students are encouraged to show how they worked out answers. Not sure about other classes.  

entremet said: Math makes more sense to do in class, though. That's how I learned it because I can then verify stuff with the teacher. You could also talk out the problems. Click to expand... Click to shrink...

entremet said: Yeah, you have to grade it lol. If you have 30 kids per class and 5 classes. That's 150 papers to grade for just one day. Click to expand... Click to shrink...

Homework is absolutely necessary to learn better and more efficiently, as repetition is the basis of studying. That's how you review and practice what you heard in class. Also, I don't know how it is in the USA, but in my country homework isn't graded so it's not like the teacher does extra work.  

How do you expect to learn to write a text when you only have 45 minutes per lecture with 30 other students? It would be even more difficult for mathematical problems, where you need to first figure out an approach and then find a solution. I understand that it's a lot of work for both teachers and students, but eliminating homework and only working on problems for effectively 5 minutes would be catastrophic. How about increasing the teacher count and reducing the burden on parents & students, so they have way more effective time to get an education they need and deserve?  

I'm pro-homwork Yay, found my conservative talking point, had to happen eventually.  

I hated homework. I did the bare minimum to get by. I could never focus on actually getting it done, I found it so tedious. Maths was practically impossible for me to do at home, so I would just end up looking at the answers in the back of the book. If I was feeling energetic at least I would try and work backwards to figure out how to get to that answer, but that was few and far between. I do think reading books for English should be part of homework. Having to sit in English class and listen to my classmates slowly read aloud was almost torture lol. All that said, I think Australian schools seem to have far less focus and sheer amount of homework that USA schools seem to have.  

Bjomesphat said: There can be such a variance between students in math, and with the teacher making sure everyone understands the concepts, in class lectures were often too slow for me. It was much more valuable for me to get my practice in at home where I could go at my own pace. Click to expand... Click to shrink...

D A M A G E D

Going to school = preparing for 8 hrs of work everyday. Homework = preparing to work more at home for free.  

I'm kind of divided myself on the subject, as prior experience when I was in HS and the pandemic showed that just stuffing students with homework is no replacement for actual teaching; but also drawing from my experience in HS, little to no homework only really works if both the teacher can sucessfully engage the students with whatever subject they're teaching, and if the subject is of interest to the students in the first place. Homework is not meant to be a replacement for teaching nor a tool for leveling students, it should be used as a measure of how well the students are understanding the subject and grading is only a tool to get them to actually do it. I don't have an answer as to how much homework should exist, but I feel that both extremes (no homework and all homework all the time) aren't really useful and suspect the "right" amount of homework depends on both the teacher's ability to make a lecture engaging and on the specific class' students affinity for that particular subject.  

behOemoth said: How do you expect to learn to write a text when you only have 45 minutes per lecture with 30 other students? It would be even more difficult for mathematical problems, where you need to first figure out an approach and then find a solution. I understand that it's a lot of work for both teachers and students, but eliminating homework and only working on problems for effectively 5 minutes would be catastrophic. How about increasing the teacher count and reducing the burden on parents & students, so they have way more effective time to get an education they need and deserve? Click to expand... Click to shrink...

Lobster Roll

Signature-less, now and forever™.

I'm not really sure what the point of homework was myself considering I was good at taking tests and yet my friends and I after a certain age would just copy all of our homework to save time.  

PeskyToaster

Where are everyone's parents these days good lord.  

Our kids have been in a no-homework school for the last five years, and we're now moving them to one that does set homework. Even though that change isn't the primary reason for the shift, the children in the school we're leaving all test lower on high school entry mock exams than counterparts who get homework. And obviously correlation doesn't mean causation, but my anecdotal evidence is that my children retain knowledge and skills better when they're repeated and reinforced outside of school hours. EDIT: And, to be clear, my wife and I have been setting our own homework for the last year, which is fine. But, you know, we're not trained teachers. We don't know if we're getting it right or not.  

I'd have rather stayed in school and hour earlier/later than had to do homework.  

entremet said: But you're learning without feedback, which is key to learning. Yeah, you can grade homework, but if you don't see what the student is doing wrong, hard to correct. Many educators are learning that learning is very social but how homework is designed, it is pretty isolated. Click to expand... Click to shrink...

entremet said: I know many in my generation, Millennials, see homework as a necessary thing because we grew up in that culture. I"m no education policy or learning expert but it seems the case for homework is not that clear cut. Click to expand... Click to shrink...

I feel differently about it on a subject to subject basis. For Math homework in particular, hated it. Not because it was hard, I used to buy those Mensa branded math books Costco sold and did them of my own volition, years before we'd learn that level of math in school. But because it was almost universally busywork and wasn't really adding to what I was already doing. It was "boring" and boring was poison to me. There is some merit to the idea that repetition is what helps reinforce learning, but I just don't think homework accounts for the variance of a kid's home life. Some kids are going to thrive in a classroom environment, and some are going to thrive being able to study/work from home. Homework puts the onus on everyone being able to "thrive" at home, and those who can't will end up suffering. I think the answer is, as always when it comes to education, that there is no right/wrong answer. It's going to be different for every student whether it's more or less effective to have them grinding out homework. But the education system as it is today just isn't equipped to handle that level of individualism.  

One Winged Slayer

Homework is to condition children into expecting to work outside of established hours.  

I found it much more useful in primary school. A lot of the homework I was assigned in high school was just pointless and made life needlessly more stressful.  

Eliminate completely? Probably not. But decrease the amount significantly? Sounds like a win.  

Sol C. Johnson

I'm in the necessary evil camp BUT I think it should be eased up a bit.  

For mathematics and certain other fields. Homework is helpful to reinforce how to work out problems. My problem is so much if it is just plain busy work with a generation that already has time constraints.  

RadzPrower said: Homework is to condition children into expecting to work outside of established hours. Click to expand... Click to shrink...

Messofanego

Homework normalised further down the line when you got into the job sector, unsociable work hours and zero hour contracts. I learned more from doing essays, research, other long-term work but not from short-term, day-to-day homework. Especially if your parent isn't an expert on the subject.  

I hated worksheet and project-based homework. I was fine with studying, essays, reading, and reports. This is clearly why I got an engineering degree in college which required me to basically only do problem sets and projects (and to study by doing problem sets).  

MadScientist

My kid is just starting kindergarten and I really hope his school has no homework. Maybe until at least 6th grade or so. The little time we have with him at home, I would rather him be playing and hanging out with family. Not doing homework.  

Saw the truth behind the copied door

I rarely did my HW and skirted by, ABOLISH HOMEWORK  

Nastrodamous

I do some mentoring and the amount of work the kids are assigned is insane. An additional 4 hours of work on top of everything else they have to do is so wrong. No wonder they are all so stressed out.  

I'm going to say the central problem here ("there is no research consensus on homework's effectiveness") is because there is no central consensus on how an individual human learns. Everyone learns differently. Not even just at the rate that you learn, but how you learn. Some people do a lot better with instruction, some people do better with video, some people do better with reading, some people do better with repetition. All of these things can help basically anyone individually, but certain methods are better for certain people. This being the case, there simply can't be a consensus on homework's effectiveness. For every person where homework doesn't help them, there's someone that throwing themselves into homework is their bag entirely. A better, much more well funded and much better supported education system, would try to tackle the individuals needs rather than trying to group teach everyone as if every human being is the same. But we don't got that. So you gotta go for a more well rounded approach.  

Main intention behind homework is repetition because this reinforces what's learned in school and helps internalize the knowledge. Problem is often implementation of homework by teachers and penalizing not doing homework for whatever reasons. Personally I stopped doing homework in the 5th grade because I just couldn't be bothered to do stuff I've understood the first time again and again. Now I'm doing my PhD so it definitely didn't stop me from doing excellent in my field. In my kids though I definitely sometimes see that homework is helping them, but it depends completely on subject/type of homework.  

PlanetSmasher

The abominable showman.

Ravelle said: I hated homework too and mostly knocked homework out while still in school whenever I had some space between classes or when a class was canceled. Click to expand... Click to shrink...

Ultimately there are variables we know affect education such as class sizes and poverty that are larger problems. Though on the topic of homework I refused to do it at home, unless it was easy to find the answers. That's my time. I would do it on the bus or whenever there was free time at school. Repetition is important but maybe instead take some time in the school day to have a homework class so everyone can go and get their reps in. If you want kids to learn how to learn you have a class where they can research and learn what they want. You ask them what are they're interested in, help them learn about the thing they want and then do a small talk in front of everyone. Bish bash bosh. I'm the greatest educator.  

I'm pretty pro-homework, in moderation. No, it shouldn't be a replacement for in-class instruction. It's reinforcement for what you learned in class, and maybe get a head start on what you'll be looking at next. An hour or so of homework isn't going to kill anyone. I know that students all work at different paces and what takes one kid 15 minutes might take another an hour, but I'm fine with the idea of homework. I'm in higher ed, and the number of students we get that simply don't understand that you have to do work outside of the class is staggering. Some of our area high schools have adopted a "no homework" policy, and then they come to us and their world is destroyed. We see them for 150 minutes a week, that's not nearly enough time to cover everything. What's really funny is when they realize most of their teachers don't grade their homework, outside of maybe like a "you did it so you get points" kind of grade. They think great, it's not graded so I don't have to do it. Wrong, the homework isn't just to generate a grade for you, it's so you reinforce the skills you're learning in class and you can come back and ask questions about what you didn't get.  

Since there's no research consensus (weird), I can only offer my own experience. Idk if I could've learned half of what I did without homework. It was the time to do hands on work at my own pace. It was the time to see different angles of the same concept until I got it. And it was the time to solidify my existing understanding. Class was basically monkey see, I'm not sure I could learn without monkey do.  

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Is homework a total waste of time.

Recently in my school, we decided as a staff to completely get rid of homework for a month to see if it would benefit the whole teaching and learning experience. I have to say, I only saw positives from this trial.

More time during the school day was spent on teaching and learning rather than correction of work/checking if work was completed

We didn't have that allocated time to take down to take down homework or hand out worksheets/books

The children commented that without homework the teacher didn't have reason to be giving out to children and reprimanding them for not having work completed.

Point 3 then got me thinking... Each day a child could come to school without completing homework and they are greeted first thing with negativity and a reprimand. From that moment on, the child's attitude towards that day in school is negative. They may begin to act up and seek attention. Is the teacher's attitude towards the child also tainted? Will the teacher be able to involve that child as much in the learning environment than they involve a child who did complete their homework?

Any views? We have to approach the principal with an opinion next week. Whether to keep homework or rid of.

****Also, I'm currently teaching in a primary school in Ireland. I have 4th class which is 9-10year olds, and I teach the whole curriculum from English to maths to geography to the arts 😀

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College students needed spring break for their mental health. Covid-19 took that away.

3 college students on why spring break is more than just a time to party.

by Maryam Gamar

When videos of college students on spring break in Miami went viral soon after much of the country went on lockdown last March, many Americans raised their eyebrows. Students were recorded beachside saying things like, “I’m not going to let [Covid-19] stop me,” and, “I think they’re blowing it way out of proportion.” Footage showed bars crowded with sunburnt college students blasting music from portable speakers and leaning over tables to share drinks. Those watching and reading who were already feeling the effects of the virus were furious at the disregard for public safety. Others secretly agreed with the spring-breakers and were sure that Covid-19 would blow over within a few weeks.

Well, it didn’t. And this year, spring break is looking a little different for college students.

To ensure that there are no outbreaks on campus, many colleges are canceling spring break altogether or replacing it with “ wellness days ” to prevent students from traveling to holiday hot spots. Yale University, for example, is canceling spring break but giving students periodic days off throughout the semester, while Michigan State University reduced its spring break to two consecutive days in March.

From an administrative perspective, taking away spring break seems like the most straightforward way to stop the spread, but this decision has presented new problems. Many students are not currently on campus, and due to the flexibility of online classes, they can travel whenever they want regardless of spring break’s nonexistence. This means the negative effects of losing spring break are most heavily felt by students who were following the school’s Covid-19 restrictions — like weekly mandatory Covid-19 testing — to begin with.

Canceling spring break also raises the question: What is its main benefit in the first place? While in popular culture spring break may look like a week of EDM music and reckless abandon, the reality is that many college students use the time off to decompress after midterms and gear up for the second half of the semester. It has been a year since colleges resorted to online learning, and one of the most consistently discussed challenges has been maintaining mental health. Zoom fatigue and too much screen time have made taking a break even more important. According to a multi-school survey by the University of Michigan , 83 percent of students said their mental health had negatively impacted their academic performance, and half of the students surveyed said they now struggle with depression, anxiety, or both.

“The more intensity and pressure a student is feeling, the more their performance will decrease,” Elizabeth Aranda, a psychologist who works at UC Berkeley, told Vox. Aranda said that during recent workshops with students, the most consistent theme has been “burnout,” and what they really need after a year of isolation and stress is a break.

This spring, the sudden transition from a full week off to intermittent wellness days, combined with a year of unconventional learning, has proven difficult for many students.

“A lot of people are struggling more than usual this semester,” said Joe Bjorkman, a first-year student at Michigan State University. “My mental health has been depreciating at an extended rate.”

Here are three stories, edited and condensed, from college students who are spending their spring breaks (or lack thereof) trying to find a balance between being Covid-safe and taking a mental break. For the sake of privacy, the students have requested that their last names not be used.

Nigel, 22, Washburn University

Last year around this time, I was playing football in the middle of our spring season. After four practices, I never played football again.

Once we went on spring break and Covid restrictions hit, our coaches told us, “No practice next week.” And if you know anything about collegiate athletics, they never cancel practice. Ever. So I was like, okay, this is a pretty big deal. And then they canceled practice the week after that, and soon spring sports were canceled altogether.

This year, things are a bit different. I’ve kind of just taken the spring break mentality out because I know I’m not going to have one. Washburn canceled spring break and replaced it with two mental health days throughout the semester to keep students from traveling.

I’m not on campus anyway, all of my classes are online, but I’d rather be able to take a week off. I don’t think that the two days they gave us equate to the 10-day spring break we normally get. But maybe that’s me being selfish.

I didn’t really have anything too crazy planned over spring break last year, which is part of the reason why it was so disheartening to see we’re not having one this year. Mainly it was just a lot of downtime, which as college kids we need. Football’s tough, so that week was crucial to rest my body and reset the palate mentally, especially during that time period where everything was hitting the fan.

This year I think it’s been important to just keep myself busy and not allow myself to get idle. Downtime for me isn’t necessarily the best thing for my mental health. The easiest way for me to cope is knowing that I’m about to graduate. So after I push through these last couple of months, I’m done.

It’s weird also with graduation being announced. They’re planning to do that in person now at the football stadium. So we’ll see if that goes through or not, but I’ve learned with Covid to not really bank on anything. They told me last summer, leading up to my senior year, to be ready to play football. I was getting in shape all summer, working out with the team, getting ready for a season that never happened.

Kate, 22, Yale Divinity School

Last year during spring break, I got to go on a last hurrah before I realized how severe the situation was going to be. In November, my cousin and I had planned a trip to Mexico City for spring break. We started hearing Covid stirrings mid-February, but it was still a very distant thing. Then two days before we left for Mexico City, the school started canceling school-sponsored trips, but none of my friends were canceling except people who were going to China and Italy.

My cousin and I had about 48 hours to decide if we should go or not, so we looked at case numbers in Mexico — at that point there were zero recorded cases — and we decided to go with it.

On the way there, I was like, “Oh, maybe I’ll wash my hands a little bit more often; it is flu season, after all.” And then on the way back, I was like, “Don’t touch anything ,” and I wiped down my seat on the airplane. And it was in the airport on the way home that I found out the rest of my semester was canceled.

In American media in particular, it was that one week in March where Covid blew up — and that was the week I was in Mexico City.

I remember continuously refreshing the case numbers on my phone, and every time, it would go up. This year, in my iPhone photo album, I’m getting all these Mexico City memories of me hanging out in public, in bars, without a mask, and it all feels so distant.

This semester, Yale is giving us break days throughout the semester instead of a full break in order to alleviate some of the pressure of going straight through. In my opinion, it’s a very fair solution because they don’t want people leaving campus, getting sick, and bringing it back to campus.

But from the standpoint of a student who actually has to sit through this, it’s pretty brutal. It’s a lot of class and a pretty relentless schedule. But the professors are also really tired. They also don’t want to teach straight through a semester. The administration doesn’t take any joy in doing any of this. It’s just a terrible situation, and there’s no really good solution. I think everyone is just trying to do their best.

Joe, 19, Michigan State University

On January 30, Michigan State University announced that they were enforcing an extended lockdown on campus because Covid cases were rising again. We could only leave our room to go to the cafeteria to get our food — and if we had anyone over and the RAs found out, we would be put on probation. They also announced that they would be replacing spring break with two wellness days to deter people from traveling.

For me, spring break is a week that gives you the chance to relax, but also to catch up on all the things that you’re lagging behind on, and the wellness days didn’t provide us that opportunity.

I completely understand the validity of trying to prevent travel for Covid safety, but when you reduce a whole week to two days in the middle of the week, it takes away from the chance to relax. The day before our wellness day, one of my professors sent an article about Zoom fatigue with tips on how to combat it.

He told us to “just relax, and enjoy your next few days.” But it’s ironic because then we had an assignment due on Wednesday and a quiz on Friday, so I ended up working on those during my days off.

I can’t say that I have the solution to end all solutions, but I think the one that MSU came up with was much too costly on students’ mental health. And it makes me mad that I’m sacrificing my mental well-being because there are students out there who, despite everything, would put themselves and others in danger for a fun week in Florida. And it’s even worse because it didn’t matter if we had a spring break or not. The students who wanted to go were going to go regardless. We don’t have in-person classes, so no one is restricted to stay in Michigan, and during one week recently, when I opened my Snapchat, every other story was someone in Fort Lauderdale.

Last year, a lot of my friends still went on their spring break trips and were really happy about the two extra weeks because Covid wasn’t as big of a deal as it is now. But even though we know now that this pandemic is serious, I guess not much has changed, because people are still traveling.

It’s definitely frustrating knowing that strict restrictions like canceling spring break this year have to be implemented because of people like that — but then people like me end up struggling the most.

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