Benefits Of Assigning Homework

Glenda Pryor-Johnson of Concordia University says that homework assists in developing four essential qualities in children: Responsibility, Time Management, Perseverance, and Self-Esteem (Fuglei). In addition, homework fosters greater self-direction and self-discipline in students. These are the necessary qualities that will help them become high-achieving students. These skills acquired from homework will also benefit students in the real-world, and in college too. Students who regularly completed homework will be more inquisitive in life and participate in more independent problem solving (Plato). In college, professors expect that students have well-developed study habits from all those years of homework. Proponents believe that homework serves as the foundation for acquiring these qualities and study habits, however, the opposers of homework believe these benefits to be highly subjective, and cite lack of evidence as their reasoning behind refuting this

“Homework is arguably the worst punishment inflicted upon the student body.” One would think this extreme statement would come from the 10-year boys and girls who complain to their parents about the homework they have to complete. However, Rodney Jones starts of his argument against homework using this statement. He argues that homework does not help children taking up all their time. Continuing, he explains how parents should extend child’s knowledge out of school instead of homework and in the end these assignments do not help students grade. However, in contrast of Jones’ beliefs homework indeed benefits children’s learning through the small amounts of extra practice it gives to help the students excel.

Everyday, when the school day is over, students are most likely to get homework to do when they get home. This can be a lot or a little amount of homework, but it can still effect the students the way they are. These effects can be good, bad, or nothing, so today, we take a look whether homework should be assigned or not.

Before everyone rushes off to condemn homework altogether, they should realize the many benefits provided when students take work home. Many times, repetition has been proven as “the law of learning.” When students do work outside of school, it helps reinforce what they learn inside school. According to Wendy J. Ponte, a freelance writer with three school-aged children, there are “no studies to back up the claim” that repetition improves academic performance. While some repetition might be helpful, Ponte points out that “When kids come home with 100 multiplication problems to solve, it becomes simple drudgery.” Can a love of learning be fostered in children who are overcome with hordes of homework?

Students should get homework because they learn key morals from it that they should learn. In the article “The Importance of Homework and Studying”, the author Diane Ravitch supports homework, saying that “they provide an opportunity for children to develop self-discipline, study habits, and time management skills.”. These skills will help the students further in the future, and also “Children can set homework goals and enjoy a feeling of accomplishment when the goals are met.”. This will make the student feel more responsible and confident in them.

In The Battle 0ver Homework, Harris Cooper defines homework as, “tasks assigned to students by school teachers that are intended to be carried out during non-school hours” (27) Common homework assignments might include reading, writing, problems to solve, a school project, or other skills to be practiced. The purpose of homework is to assist in reinforcing what was taught in class. Sometimes the purpose is to gather extra information beyond what was taught that day. There are many teachers who don’t understand the meaning of homework and just give it as something to keep students busy. Homework should be given to students on a regular basis but only in reasonable amounts.

The next reason too much homework is harmful to students is that studies show more homework to cause lower test scores. One to two hours of homework a week does not cause a major change in test scores (Wolchover). There is no evidence of homework having any academic benefit in elementary or middle school, and the academic benefit found in high school is very weak (Kohn). Homework is not shown to help students academically until grades ten through twelve (Wolchover). There is also no proof that homework increases good study habits in students (Kohn).

In many American households, homework is the main cause of stress. Some people think that America is not so well and adding more homework will fix that problem. A study by Indiana University found that students who do more homework tend to get higher scores on standardized tests” (“Do Kids Need Homework?”). “Plus, part of growing up is learning to balance outside activities and the demands of schoolwork” (“Should Parents Help Kids With Homework?). Teachers have their reasons as well. “Teachers say homework is important in the learning process and can help kids develop study and organizational skills. They say kids need to practice what they've learned in school so that the material sticks in their brain” (Strauss). “Having too much homework

Every single student receives homework when he or she enrolls in school. Whether it is a single page, or three chapters a night, homework is always a factor in education. This said, Brian Haley captures the essence of these assignments, saying, “like mowing a lawn or taking out the garbage, homework seems to be a fact of life” (Source E). It has been long debated what amount of homework is adequate for students. Some view homework as a hindrance, whereas others view homework as positive reinforcement of skills learned in the classroom setting. Decreasing homework is necessary, as it is a detriment that takes up time and does not add value to a student’s education.

There is a general consensus in educational literature today that homework does have a positive effect on learning, through extending the time available for learning. Teachers are clearly convinced

Most students are probably thinking “no homework is stupid” . But, believe it or not, homework is good for you. Homework creates a bridge between school and home. Homework allows your parents to keep up with what you're doing in class. Studying is also another form of homework. In fact, according to “Is Homework Good For Kids?” it states that “Children should spend time studying each day, even if they don't have any homework” (Reilly 1). Even though some kids may say that homework doesn't leave them enough time to do other things at home, they should still receive it because it can help them practice what they are learning, develop work ethic skills, and learn time management.

Homework has dated back to the beginning of the American education system, and so has the debate of whether students should do homework or not. Over the years, there have been many different arguments as to why homework should or should not be assigned. Most of those arguments have almost always resulted in two main arguments, it takes too much time or it is a necessary supplement. Opinions on this subject has changed drastically over the years. This can be seen in the argument from Issues and Controversies, “The crusade against homework was so effective that, in 1901, California banned homework for students under the age of 15, though the state allowed a limited amount of homework in high school.” This was later repealed and during the Cold War era, homework was important to better understand our country and what it stood for as a way to combat communism in the US.

Parents, students, and teachers all sometimes wonder how useful is homework? Though studies examining the relationship between homework and school achievement have been inclusive(ERIC). Still many teachers and researchers still agree that homework helps students achieve higher grades in school. Schools that assigned homework frequently showed higher student achievement than schools that assigned little homework(ERIC). This means that homework is working. Studies have generally found that if teachers carefully plan homework, homework can be quite helpful(KidSource). Homework has proven its effectiveness and is a very powerful factor in student performance.

Another pro of homework is that it has been linked to higher student achievement. “Duke University Professor Harris Cooper and his research team identified 35 studies that found a positive correlation between homework and achievement, but only after elementary school” (Fuglei). Younger students are less capable of fully reaping the benefits of homework because their study habits are not completely developed yet, among other reasons. However, older students have greatly benefited from homework when it comes to their test scores. Dr. Cooper again stated that “Across five studies, the average student who did homework had a higher unit test score than the students not doing homework” (Fuglei). However, those against homework disagree with these claims, and hold the opinion that homework is unrelated to student success. They attribute higher tests scores and other achievement to other factors, not homework. Another pro is that homework allows teachers to gauge how well students are understanding the material, and then modify instruction as needed. Teachers can also identify struggling students through their homework performance and provide more assistance for them. This way, students won’t feel like they are being singled out or feel embarrassed for not fully grasping the material. Homework also serves as a reference for teachers during parent-teacher conferences (“The Good Schools Guide”). Without homework, teachers would have to find other methods to gauge student

The homework controversy has been going on for a quiet a long time with no end in sight. Homework is defined as an out of class task assigned to the students to help with practice or prepare for the future. Homework has been around a long period of time. It has set and traced as a tradition of having teachers assigning work and students completing it. Parents say that teachers require it and teachers say’s that parents demand to help their kids to finish it. Teachers assign homework to help some students improve their grade, pass course, re-learn the subject you learn in the class, and pass the course for those of who do not do well on tests and exams. Can homework be considered helpful or harmful? This interrogation turns into an argument or debate between two reasonable subjects. Especially for the student’s athletes or any students who enjoys after school activities, homework hurts probably the most. The assignments take away time, which could be spent on doing more productive actions or spend time with your family or may cause unnecessary stress.