How necessary is homework?

I've gradually moved from a homework enthusiast to someone who believes homework should be in moderation to someone who really doesn't believe in it at all.

I am project based so the only homework the kids might have is to get something that needs to come into class for the work they are doing.  Like photos.  Right now both yearbook and multimedia students are to be taking sports photos after school.  You would think I was asking them to go down to the railroad tracks and be run over!

My marketing students have to go out and talk to businesses to get sponsorships for an event we are planning.  Most of them are good about this because they have been trained for the past two years and they aren't bashful.  

That's my homework.

I don't believe in homework, either.  I have spent too many hours with my own children crying over busywork assignments to see any value in it. My students work hard in my classroom, so I think it's ok for them to go home without homework, although many of their parents and my colleagues are horrified.

We've gone to weighted grades at Our Humble High School, so that kids can't flunk if they don't do their homework. I really think kids need the reinforcement that homework provides, but I can see how some of it can be pointless, too.

My previous school had a rule about homework...no more than 10 minutes for each grade level added...10 for K, 20 for 1st, 30 for 2nd, etc.  And that included any reading that had to be done.  So if I required my 2nd graders to read for 15 min. each night, I couldn't assign more than 5 minutes of anything else.  Which was fine.  My parents LOVED no nightly homework.  In fact, a parent once said that she loved how there was occassionally a project to do, but not something every day.  She said it was fun family time doing projects, but not busy work.  A colleage of mine sent all homework home in a folder on Monday and the students had all week to complete it.  The student could do it all on Monday night (because some kids love that) and others would break it down into small chunks.  Her parents LOVED her way of doing homework.  Now that my oldest has started Kindergarten, I understand how little time there is for a child to do homework, eat dinner, get bathed, get things ready for the next day, and be a kid before bedtime rolls around.  Thanks for this post.  

My previous school had a rule about homework...no more than 10 minutes for each grade level added...10 for K, 20 for 1st, 30 for 2nd, etc.  And that included any reading that had to be done.  So if I required my 2nd graders to read for 15 min. each night, I couldn't assign more than 5 minutes of anything else.  Which was fine.  My parents LOVED no nightly homework.  In fact, a parent once said that she loved how there was occassionally a project to do, but not something every day.  She said it was fun family time doing projects, but not busy work.  A colleage of mine sent all homework home in a folder on Monday and the students had all week to complete it.  The student could do it all on Monday night (because some kids love that) and others would break it down into small chunks.  Her parents LOVED her way of doing homework.  Now that my oldest has started Kindergarten, I understand how little time there is for a child to do homework, eat dinner, get bathed, get things ready for the next day, and be a kid before bedtime rolls around.  Thanks for this post.  

Change has arrived in fundraising. I came across a website www.raisewhileyousave.com   (RWYS) the other day when looking into Green fundraising oppurtunities, as I am fed up with my kids going door 2 door and selling cookie dough and magazines. I looked into this new fundraising program which is helping parents Save Money while raising money.they are also helping great causes which don't have any budget to run a fundraiser, as they do all the work for you, by building you a webpage attached to thier website. Thier products are these really snazzy energy saving product kits, which can save parent $100's of dollars on those bills we all hate to open. I thought I would share this information as we could all do with a little extra cash during this economy Im sure. My friend who is a PTA mom is always complaining about the difficulty of getting new ideas, and the lack of interest they have in the same old boring fundraising oppurtunities. I think this is very clever, as the schools and community fundraisers, don't purchase anything, the kids don't need to do anything, the kits save money and help raise money, and apparently they even send the kits out to the parents home, so PTA moms like my friend no longer need to chase moms around the playground to tell them thier products are in the sports hall for collection. we've all been there.  :)  

Our school has the same 10 minute per subject rule; however, I rarely give homework. If I do give it, I always give them the opportunity to begin it in class. I don't believe in it myself. On a selfish note, I've been teaching all day, the last thing I want to do is more school work!

I think students in elementary school should not be bombarded with homework, but once they get to high school they should expect homework.  From personal experience, I can say that I took the easier classes in high school that did not require as much work.  Then, when I got to college I was overwhelmed.  I think we should allow kids to be kids, but should also prepare students for college by giving them homework in middle school and in high school.

I like that you said you're on your "soapbox" because I get on mine as well dealing with homework. What about the students that go home to take care of younger siblings and have no parental guidance? Or have struggles at home that are so distracting homework cannot be completed? As teachers we need to help the students learn, not punish them for having problems at home they cannot ignore.

I am not a fan of homework.

I agree that homework has gotten out of control. I believe very little encourages creativity - it is mostly busy work. As a parent of a child who dislikes homework, I can tell you there are nights when it can take two hours to finish assignments!

As an educator, I always believed that it was more important to have 3 well written sentences than 12 mediocre ones. My daughter will write the shortest sentences she can, because she knows she has so many to write. She is also graded on everything - if she misspells any words, at any time during the day, it goes toward her spelling and language grade. Now instead of using words like gigantic and enormous, she will write "big" because she can spell that.  I think if we first focused on quality and creativity instead of quantity we would see more effort from students. Secondly if we would put down the red pens for a moment and give kids the chance to express themselves without fear of every other word being circled in red - we would be surprised at what they are capable of. Where is their "spell check" before they hand something in? We should be praising them for using big words, not pointing out that they cannot spell them.

I have a hard time giving homework that is easy enough for students to do without much help from others but challenging enough to make it worth their time.  I want to help build a strong work ethic in my students, but also want them to have time for family and hobbies - it is definitely a difficult balance.  How much homework do you give?  What are your opinions?

I am a student in middle school currently, and get stragiht A's. My teachers say we should only have 1 hour of homework every night, but when you combine homework from both classes we end up with around 2-4 hours every night. Alot of it is challenging, which I think is good, challenge is important, but when you work on 1 math problem for 30 minutes to an hour because you don't understand it gets frustrating. Add to that that I know if I don't complete the problem correctly and get the right answer I will lose enough points to drop the grade on the assignment by a whole letter, and it adds alot of pressure to the frustration. I think that homework should be given lightly and only when there was not enough time to practice in class.

I just recently made homework optional, and now get complaints from parents that I don't give enough of it.

I agree with everything that is said in this blog about not liking the idea of homework.  I think kids are in school for 6 hours a day.  When they are done, let them come home and ride their bikes, build a snowman, or go roller skating with friends and just be kids.  Also, I think homework really cuts into family time.  With families that have two working parents or headed by a single working parent, you only have those few hours in the evening to spend time together.  There are countless times that I missed out on doing something with my children because they were tied up with homework all night.  I can recall many times where my son would start his homework right after dinner and actually be sitting and working on it right up until bedtime.  I just think that is so unfair to do to a child.  

I find your bog to be so laid back and enjoyable and your thoughts are relieving.  So many young kids come home with backpacks weighing more than them.  I agree that in these times, teachers should realize that more than likely their students have 2 working parents and especially in the younger grades parents really need to help with homework and time is an issue.  Once the family gets through with dinner wouldn't it be nicer to enjoy some family time instead of doing homework?  I do believe in some hw but does it have to be everyday and does have to be so much?

I find your bog to be so laid back and enjoyable and your thoughts are relieving.  So many young kids come home with backpacks weighing more than them.  I agree that in these times, teachers should realize that more than likely their students have 2 working parents and especially in the younger grades parents really need to help with homework and time is an issue.  Once the family gets through with dinner wouldn't it be nicer to enjoy some family time instead of doing homework?  I do believe in some hw but does it have to be everyday and does have to be so much?