Persuasive Essay On 'The Great Homework Debate'
Landon Biggs
English 1050-020
Jan Gane
14 October 2013
The Great Homework Debate Over the last several years, many educators have had strong opinionated discussions about whether or not homework for school-aged children is beneficial to their learning and achievement. Many have researched the topic through various surveys and have reported their findings. Some researchers believe homework helps students grow academically to achieve higher test scores and better grades. An article written by the NC Board of Education supports how homework does help students out. While Alfie Kohn disagrees by saying that homework takes away valuable time that could be used for their hobbies and time that they could spend with their family. Robert Marzano and Debra Pickering, agree with both the NC Board of Education and Kohn by stating that most homework assignments are based on the amount of work students produce and …show more content…
assignments are not thought provoking enough to challenge students as well as allow them the opportunity to be creative. By analyzing these three articles it can be seen how homework can help or hurt students.
According to Kohn’s book, The Homework Myth: Why our Kids Get Too Much of a Bad Thing, it seems that homework has not been proven to be academically beneficial to elementary students. Kohn states that, “Decades of investigation have failed to provide evidence that homework is beneficial for students in elementary school”. (Kohn 1) Research has shown that homework has scarcely increased high school students test scores. Kohn stated that, “At the high school level, studies find a correlation between homework Biggs 2 and improved test scores usually only find a very small difference.” (Kohn1). The small difference may not be because of homework assignments that were assigned. If homework is not helping students improve their test scores, then the question everybody is asking is why are teachers still handing out homework?
Some teachers think that homework is a way of tuning up kids learning skills and helping them learn in a different environment such as their house or at a local library. Some teachers believe that repetition and drills help students learn. If students do something over and over repeatedly, surely the information will be retained is the attitude some teachers have. “Some teachers say that homework should be varied and interesting” (Kohn 2). If homework is interesting to the students then they should be able to understand it a lot better and not get bored with it. For example, science teachers could give their students experiments to conduct at home. If the teachers just keep giving the students paperwork, then the students will become bored and not understand any of the material.
The main focus of homework is that the homework should have a reason. Some say that homework is a way to reinforce their skills and help them become more well-rounded students. Others think that homework takes time away from the students so that they cannot go to extra-curricular activities such as clubs, sports, etc. Some think homework is meaningless assignments that do not require complex thinking or creativity. If the students have choices of what their homework is on then they could get more done because they will know what they are completing and they will have a better chance of remembering what they did. If the homework that the students complete is limited to the quality Biggs 3 of the assignment and not the length of it then they will be more likely to stay focused and complete the assignment.
In the Marzano and Pickering’s article, The Case For and Against Homework, it seems that homework can be a good thing or a bad thing. It is stated in the article that “Certainly, inappropriate homework may produce little or no benefit—it may even decrease student achievement.”(Marzano and Pickering 1) The article also states, “With only rare exceptions, the relationship between the amount of homework students do and their achievement outcomes was found to be positive and statistically significant.”(Marzano and Pickering 2)
If teachers would continue to give homework, but make sure that the quality of the homework assignment is beneficial to the outcome of the particular lesson, then the students could learn more out of completing homework assignments.
If time permits, it would be ideal if teachers could plan homework assignments based on the needs of individual students. These tailored assignments would be better as ability levels vary in different students. This way, homework would not be too easy or too hard for a class of students with varying ability levels. The problem with this ideal situation is the vast amount of time it takes teachers to plan and grade varying assignments. Obviously homework helps out high school students more than it helps out elementary school students and middle school students. In middle school, there was a .15 percent gain in Grades 4-6, a .31 percent gain in grade 7-9, and a .64 percent gain in grades 10-12.(Marzano and Pickering 2) The article states that, “Homework for young children should help them develop good study habits,
foster Biggs 4 positive attitudes toward school, and communicate to students the idea that learning takes work at home as well as at school.”(Marzano and Pickering 3)
In The Public Schools of North Carolina State Board of Education’s article Homework in High School: Influence on Learning, it seems that homework helps all students in many ways. What ways? They state that “Previous research has demonstrated that the amount of time a student spends on homework is associated with better grades and higher achievement test scores at both middle and high school levels.”(NC State Board of Education 1)
More recent studies have been conducted to account for homework that was done in school (including other areas of school such as the cafeteria, other classes, or study hall) versus homework that was done outside of school. If students can get in an environment where everybody around them is doing homework then they will be more likely to finish it because they will feel more confident about their work. They will feel like they are doing what everyone else is doing.
However, according to the article Homework in High school: Influence on Learning, studies show that when students complete homework outside of school, achievement scores are higher than when homework is done somewhere at school. It is thought that when homework is actually done at home, a parent may be nearby to help students. Also, in the home environment, students may feel that education is valued there, so it becomes important to the student (NC Board of Education 3). If parents are able to help students, it can sometimes be helpful because students can learn from a different point of view, or actually be taught material in a different way that the student may better understand. Biggs 5
While there are many valid points and good supporting data, it seems that all educators involved in decisions regarding homework should also consider the busy day in which we live. Students have the opportunity to be involved in extra-curricular activities more than ever. These activities can also be meaningful and help young minds grow socially as well as academically. Everyone should work toward reaching a compromise where students are not overloaded with meaningless amounts of homework, but have assignments designed to inspire student learning, creativity, and critical thinking while only using a moderate amount of time so students can have time to explore other interests and hobbies. It seems that students would learn more, be more well-rounded, and ready for college or the work force upon completion of high school if this approach was implemented.
Biggs 6
Works Cited
Marzano, Robert J., and Debra J. Pickering. Educational Leadership:Responding to Changing Demographics:The Case For and Against Homework. N.p., Mar. 2007. Web. 19 Sept. 2013.
Evaluation Brief: Homework in High School: Influence on Learning. Vol. 1, Number 7. August 1999. http://www.ncpublicschools.org/docs/accountability/evaluation/evalbriefs/vol1n7-hwrk.pdf . Web. 19 Sept. 2013
"The homework debate." Techniques 82.1 (2007): 7+. Academic OneFile. Web. 23 Sept. 2013.
English 1050-020
Jan Gane
14 October 2013
The Great Homework Debate Over the last several years, many educators have had strong opinionated discussions about whether or not homework for school-aged children is beneficial to their learning and achievement. Many have researched the topic through various surveys and have reported their findings. Some researchers believe homework helps students grow academically to achieve higher test scores and better grades. An article written by the NC Board of Education supports how homework does help students out. While Alfie Kohn disagrees by saying that homework takes away valuable time that could be used for their hobbies and time that they could spend with their family. Robert Marzano and Debra Pickering, agree with both the NC Board of Education and Kohn by stating that most homework assignments are based on the amount of work students produce and …show more content…
assignments are not thought provoking enough to challenge students as well as allow them the opportunity to be creative. By analyzing these three articles it can be seen how homework can help or hurt students.
According to Kohn’s book, The Homework Myth: Why our Kids Get Too Much of a Bad Thing, it seems that homework has not been proven to be academically beneficial to elementary students. Kohn states that, “Decades of investigation have failed to provide evidence that homework is beneficial for students in elementary school”. (Kohn 1) Research has shown that homework has scarcely increased high school students test scores. Kohn stated that, “At the high school level, studies find a correlation between homework Biggs 2 and improved test scores usually only find a very small difference.” (Kohn1). The small difference may not be because of homework assignments that were assigned. If homework is not helping students improve their test scores, then the question everybody is asking is why are teachers still handing out homework?
Some teachers think that homework is a way of tuning up kids learning skills and helping them learn in a different environment such as their house or at a local library. Some teachers believe that repetition and drills help students learn. If students do something over and over repeatedly, surely the information will be retained is the attitude some teachers have. “Some teachers say that homework should be varied and interesting” (Kohn 2). If homework is interesting to the students then they should be able to understand it a lot better and not get bored with it. For example, science teachers could give their students experiments to conduct at home. If the teachers just keep giving the students paperwork, then the students will become bored and not understand any of the material.
The main focus of homework is that the homework should have a reason. Some say that homework is a way to reinforce their skills and help them become more well-rounded students. Others think that homework takes time away from the students so that they cannot go to extra-curricular activities such as clubs, sports, etc. Some think homework is meaningless assignments that do not require complex thinking or creativity. If the students have choices of what their homework is on then they could get more done because they will know what they are completing and they will have a better chance of remembering what they did. If the homework that the students complete is limited to the quality Biggs 3 of the assignment and not the length of it then they will be more likely to stay focused and complete the assignment.
In the Marzano and Pickering’s article, The Case For and Against Homework, it seems that homework can be a good thing or a bad thing. It is stated in the article that “Certainly, inappropriate homework may produce little or no benefit—it may even decrease student achievement.”(Marzano and Pickering 1) The article also states, “With only rare exceptions, the relationship between the amount of homework students do and their achievement outcomes was found to be positive and statistically significant.”(Marzano and Pickering 2)
If teachers would continue to give homework, but make sure that the quality of the homework assignment is beneficial to the outcome of the particular lesson, then the students could learn more out of completing homework assignments.
If time permits, it would be ideal if teachers could plan homework assignments based on the needs of individual students. These tailored assignments would be better as ability levels vary in different students. This way, homework would not be too easy or too hard for a class of students with varying ability levels. The problem with this ideal situation is the vast amount of time it takes teachers to plan and grade varying assignments. Obviously homework helps out high school students more than it helps out elementary school students and middle school students. In middle school, there was a .15 percent gain in Grades 4-6, a .31 percent gain in grade 7-9, and a .64 percent gain in grades 10-12.(Marzano and Pickering 2) The article states that, “Homework for young children should help them develop good study habits,
foster Biggs 4 positive attitudes toward school, and communicate to students the idea that learning takes work at home as well as at school.”(Marzano and Pickering 3)
In The Public Schools of North Carolina State Board of Education’s article Homework in High School: Influence on Learning, it seems that homework helps all students in many ways. What ways? They state that “Previous research has demonstrated that the amount of time a student spends on homework is associated with better grades and higher achievement test scores at both middle and high school levels.”(NC State Board of Education 1)
More recent studies have been conducted to account for homework that was done in school (including other areas of school such as the cafeteria, other classes, or study hall) versus homework that was done outside of school. If students can get in an environment where everybody around them is doing homework then they will be more likely to finish it because they will feel more confident about their work. They will feel like they are doing what everyone else is doing.
However, according to the article Homework in High school: Influence on Learning, studies show that when students complete homework outside of school, achievement scores are higher than when homework is done somewhere at school. It is thought that when homework is actually done at home, a parent may be nearby to help students. Also, in the home environment, students may feel that education is valued there, so it becomes important to the student (NC Board of Education 3). If parents are able to help students, it can sometimes be helpful because students can learn from a different point of view, or actually be taught material in a different way that the student may better understand. Biggs 5
While there are many valid points and good supporting data, it seems that all educators involved in decisions regarding homework should also consider the busy day in which we live. Students have the opportunity to be involved in extra-curricular activities more than ever. These activities can also be meaningful and help young minds grow socially as well as academically. Everyone should work toward reaching a compromise where students are not overloaded with meaningless amounts of homework, but have assignments designed to inspire student learning, creativity, and critical thinking while only using a moderate amount of time so students can have time to explore other interests and hobbies. It seems that students would learn more, be more well-rounded, and ready for college or the work force upon completion of high school if this approach was implemented.
Biggs 6
Works Cited
Marzano, Robert J., and Debra J. Pickering. Educational Leadership:Responding to Changing Demographics:The Case For and Against Homework. N.p., Mar. 2007. Web. 19 Sept. 2013.
Evaluation Brief: Homework in High School: Influence on Learning. Vol. 1, Number 7. August 1999. http://www.ncpublicschools.org/docs/accountability/evaluation/evalbriefs/vol1n7-hwrk.pdf . Web. 19 Sept. 2013
"The homework debate." Techniques 82.1 (2007): 7+. Academic OneFile. Web. 23 Sept. 2013.