Homework: To Assign or Not To Assign?

Presented by: Denise M. Fries Last updated: 5 November 2004 C & I 402, fall, 2004

Introduction

This presentation came about in an effort to determine the effectiveness of the homework I assign. I had three main questions regarding homework that I hoped to find conclusive answers to in my research. This Power Point presentation is an attempt to share the answers I have found.

The Big Three Questions

Is it fair to grade students on homework? Isn’t homework their practice? Were we graded as children as we learned how to ride a bicycle or tie our shoes?

Is it fair to penalize students for late assignments?

Do I even need to assign homework at all?

Why Teachers Should Assign Homework-the Benefits:

Homework can: Provide additional practice. Provide teachers a way to monitor student

progress. Provide teachers a way to diagnose

student learning problems. Increase student responsibility and

accountability.

Benefits, Continued

Facilitate more rapid movement through the curriculum.

Allow for increased communication between school and home.

Lead to students’ and parents’ understanding that the school has high expectations for students.

Benefits, Continued

To further clarify the first benefit listed-”Provide additional practice” I have listed the following:

Homework:• Gives students a chance to review.• Allows students to prepare for the next

day’s lesson.

(Additional Practice, Continued)

Provides opportunities for students to learn to use other resources, i.e. the library, the Internet, reference books, and community resources.

Allows for a more in-depth exploration of topics than is possible during class time.

Helps students develop time management, study & organizational skills.

Why Teachers Shouldn’t Assign Homework

Homework can:• Contribute significantly to students’

negative attitudes toward school—this is particularly true if homework is a source of conflict between students and parents at home.

• Create negative feelings if linked to punishment.

Negative Aspects of Homework, con’t.

Stress students if the students do not have a supportive homelife which allows quiet time to complete assignments.

Physicians are concerned that excessive homework is contributing to students being significantly sleep-deprived.

Reinforce skills learned incorrectly if not corrected immediately.

Negative Aspects, Continued

Be brutal to the lives of teachers. Rob children of time that could be spent

doing other things that might have more influence on character. Children are not miniature adults and have different needs than adults.

What Homework Should Be—by the Experts.

The School Board and Administrators should develop a schoolwide or districtwide homework policy.

Classroom Teachers should:-never give homework as a punishment or

use “no homework” as a reward;-vary homework assignment types;

Homework by the Experts

-not give daily assignments that are too long;

-give classroom assignments built on homework to reinforce the value of homework;

-give importance to homework through oral comments and scoring papers regularly;

Homework by the Experts

-apply effective instructional practice to homework;

-assure that students have concepts and skills necessary to do the assignment;

-review the assignment before giving it to students and anticipate difficulties;

-teach students the skills they need to study;

Homework by the Experts

-give clear instructions;-correct homework;-give feedback;-involve parents;-challenge students at their learning level by

recognizing each student’s unique needs and circumstances;

Homework by the Experts

-review homework policies and guidelines on a regular basis.

How Much Homework Is Enough?

A guide for teachers sponsored by the Office of Educational Research and Improvement in the U.S. Department of Education establishes the following guidelines for how long students should spend on homework each night:

-Grades 1-3: no more than 20 minutes per night.

How Much Is Enough Homework?

-Grades 4-6: 20 to 40 minutes per night for all subjects.

-Grades 7-9: no more than 2 hours per night for all subjects.

-Grades 10-12: 1 ½ to 2 ½ hours per night for all subjects.

What Homework Should Be---by Our Administration:

Our administration at Thomas Metcalf Laboratory School at ISU believes that homework can be a positive experience in the life of a child. They further assert that schools need to be set up in a way that allows for teachers to collaborate and communicate on homework by cultivating sensitivity to student overload and seeking to meet the needs of the individual learner when applicable. It is their opinion that by communicating homework to parents through

Homework by the Administration

Newsletters and web-sites and by offering help sessions after school, parents and teachers can have a team effort in supporting students. It is the belief of our administrative team that the nature of the homework should be purposeful and directly apply to concepts being explored in class.

What Homework Should Be---my Opinions.

The debate has been on for years and will continue to rage on over the issue of homework. I see both positive and negative aspects of homework. If homework is implemented properly, there are many significant advantages for the students. On the other hand, if homework is used incorrectly, any gain that the students could have earned from the assignment will be lost. As a teacher with multiple preps and large amounts of students, the task of grading and providing positive feedback on each students’ assignments is daunting. Coupled with the charge of returning the homework quickly so that students have immediate feedback on how they are doing, homework can become

Homework, My Opinions

overwhelming to teachers. As a parent, I readily admit a frustration at the amount of time my girls spend on homework and the juggling acts needed to provide time for an extra-curricular or tow, family time, sleeping, etc.

With that said, I still strongly believe that homework is more benefit than not. In my subject matter of foreign language, if students do not practice the skills outside of class, their level of expertise will not grow. I have looked closely at my own homework policies and believe that I have developed a positive plan. What follows is that ACTION PLAN for my courses.

Spanish Homework Action Plan:

Spanish homework should be: purposeful: -provide further practice/reinforcement of skills introduced in class; -provide opportunities for extension and enrichment; -individualized as necessary to accommodate students’ needs;

Action Plan, Continued

-a means to complete work begun in class; -preparation for new classroom instruction. Reasonable in length (no more than 10-20

minutes a night) Be given oral and/or written feedback so that

students see that homework is valued Be structured so that students have the skills

and concepts necessary to complete the activity without frustration.

Action Plan, Continued Varied by the type of activity the students are

asked to complete. Have clear and precise instructions with time in

class for students to ask questions. Involve the parents by having the homework and

other class news posted on the Metcalf Homework Page, notices through the school newsletter and the electronic Spanish newsletter, and HELP sessions daily after school.

Action Plan, Continued

Homework policies and guidelines will be reviewed on a regular basis.

Spanish Homework-additional Teacher Responsibilites Provide daily updates to the Metcalf Homework

Page. Encouraging students to attend the HELP

sessions in place for 4th-8th grades and assisting in the running of the program.

Provide daily homework notices to the 4th and 5th grade homerooms.

Provide in-class time to record assignments in assignment notebooks and begin assignments.

Additional Teacher responsiblities, Continued

• Teacher will provide feedback for all homework assignments, either oral, written or both.

• Some homework assignments will be graded for completion only and others will be graded for accuracy as well.

Spanish Homework-parent Responsibilities

Parents should try to:• Set a regular study time each day that is not

interrupted. This should have definite beginning and ending times.

• Establish a study area away from distractions.• Make sure students have the materials they

need to do assignments and a place to store them.

• Have the students organize school materials.

Parent Responsibilities, Continued

• Have the student make a daily list of homework assignments so parent and student con both monitor progress on work.

• Help the student work to find the answer rather than doing th work just to get it done.

• Be supportive and give assistance when students get frustrated or discouraged with particularly difficult assignments.

Parent Responsibilities, Continued

• Contact the teacher to clear up any misunderstandings, troubleshoot problems and be better informed about the students’ learning progress.

Spanish Homework-student Responsibilities

Students should:• Write down assignments.• Be sure all assignments are clear; don’t be

afraid to ask questions if necessary.• Set aside a regular time for studying. Try to find

at least 10 minutes a day to review current vocabulary and grammar at a minimum-even when there isn’t written homework.

• Find a quiet, well-lit place to study.

(Student Responsibilities, Continued)

• Utilize the HELP program after school.• Be responsible in checking the Homework Page

and checking with the teacher in case of absences.

Spanish Grade Level Specifics

Fourth grade:-Assignments will be marked late after being late

for more than four class days. - Points will be deducted for late assignments after

that time.-The only assignment which will be recorded as a

zero will the assignment not turned in by the end of a grading period.

Spanish Grade Level Specifics

Fifth Grade:-Assignments will be marked late after being late

for three class days or more. -Points will be deducted based on how many days

late the assignment is.-Once an assignment is more than 12 class days

late, it will be corrected and noted as completed, but a zero will be assigned as the grade.

Spanish Grade Level Specifics Sixth-Eighth grades:-There will be 20% deducted from an assignment

which is completed during class (the day that it is due,) turned in at the end of the school day or turned in one day late.

-For assignments two or three days late, 30% will be deducted from the score earned.

-If an assignment is four or five days late, 50% of the score earned will be deducted.

(Spanish Grade Level Specifics, Continued) For an assignment six or seven days late, a student may

earn up to 25% of the earned score. After an assignment is eight days or more late, the work

will be corrected and noted as completed, but a score of a zero will be recorded.

There will continue to be one free late assignment each quarter. This will allow a student to turn in an assignment one day late and still receive credit for all the points earned.

Spanish Grade Level Specifics

****There are always extraordinary circumstances when exceptions need to be made. This has always been my personal policy and will continue to be so.****

Brief Answers to the Three Big Questions

As I look back at my original questions, I believe I do have answers. To the question, “Is it fair to grade homework?” I can say, “yes.” My plan is to grade homework in a variety of ways. I will have “homework checks” where the grade will be given based on whether the homework is completed or not. In addition, I will collect some homework that will be graded and corrected. The grade of these assignments will be basically based on completion and effort. The third type of homework will be collected and graded for accuracy. The research shows that homework that is not given

Answers, Continued

feedback will send students the message that homework is not valued and not worthy of being completed. The students also need for the feedback to be given quickly after completion of the assignment. This is so that if students have learned a skill/concept incorrectly, they can immediately re-learn it properly. The longer a student knows misinformation, the harder it is to correct it.

In answer to the second question, “Is it fair to penalize students for late assignments?”, my answer is yes. Students need to learn to be responsible and accountable for their work. This does not mean that

Answers, Continued

work cannot be accepted late. I have decided that I will continue to deduct points for late assignments, but I have restructured my late policy. The research indicates that homework late policies need to be clearly stated and explained so that students and parents understand the consequences of late work. It is my intention to summarize my Action Plan and go over it with my students in class. Not only will they be given a written copy for their notebooks, but a copy will be sent home to the parents as well. Also, by not deducting points from late assignments, I believe that I am sending the

Answers, Continued

message that homework is not important and can be done if and when a student feels so inclined. Furthermore, it is unfair to the students who complete assignments on time if a student can turn in work late and still earn the same score. Our students have the HELP (homework assistance) program after school beginning with fourth grade, study halls, and time to complete assignments in class.

The third question was, “Do I even need to assign homework at all?” Although I acknowledge that there are drawbacks to homework, it is my opinion that homework when properly administered is an important

Answers, Continued

component of all students’ education. I am going to continue to revise the amount of homework that I assign and will also continue to work with the other members of our teaching team to assure that students have a reasonable amount of homework each night.

Works CitedAnderman, Eric M., Ph.D. “Stressing Competition May Drive Adolescents

to Cheat in School.” APA ONLINE. 26 Feb. 1998. 1 Sept. 2004 <http://www.apa.org/releases/homework.html.

Butler, Jocelyn A. “Homework.” NW Regional Educational Laboratory. 31 Aug. 01. 1 Sept. 2004 <http://www.nwrel.org/scpd/sirs/1/cu1.html.

Checkley, K.. “Homework—A New Look at an Age-Old Practice.” Education Update, 39 (7). 1997. 1 Sept. 2004 <http://www.fekids.com/article/print/0,1303,3-9181,00.html?obj_gra.

Cooper, Harris Ph.D. “Yes Johnny; Doing Your Homework Is Important.” 26 Feb. 1998. 1 Sept. 2004 <http://www.apa.org/releases/homework.html.

Works Cited, ContinuedFritson Coffman, Amy. Interview. 21 Oct. 2004.

“Getting the Most Out of Homework.” NW Regional Educational Laboratory. Oct. 2000. 7 Oct. 2004 <http://www.nwrel.org/request/oct00/most.html.

Heller, Dr. “Viewing Homework as an Educational Liability.” Parenting & Marriage Articles. 7 Oct. 2004 <http://www.drheller.com/viewing_homework.html.

Marzano, Robert J., Debra J. Pickering, and Jane E. Pollock. Classroom Instruction that Works-Research-Based Strategies for Increasing Student Achievement. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 2001.

Works Cited, Continued

Marzano, Robert J., Debra J. Pickering, and Jane E. Pollock. A Handbook for Classroom Instruction that Works. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 2001.

Walker, Tony. “Is Homework Worth the Hassle?” American Association of Christian Schools. 3 Sept. 2004. 7 Sept. 2004 <http://aacs.org/pubs/ViewPArticle.aspx?ArticleID=260.

Yeow, Elizabeth. “Homework: To do or not to do?” Cultural Inquiry Process: Guidebook. 2002. 1 Sept. 2004 <http://classweb.gmu.edu/cip/g/gc/gc-c015.htm.