homework should be abolished video

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'

Debate on Homework Should be Abolished [In Favour and Against]

Homework, a task students complete outside of school hours, sparks a widespread debate. Many argue it should be abolished. Today, with evolving educational methods, the relevance of homework is a hot topic. Its impact on students’ well-being and learning experience is under scrutiny.

Arguments in Favour Of Homework Should be Abolished

Argument 1: positive effects of abolishing homework on student mental health.

Homework can sometimes feel like a never-ending cycle of stress and pressure for students. Imagine a world where students could focus on learning in the classroom without the looming burden of homework hanging over their heads. Abolishing homework could have a profoundly positive impact on student mental health.

One primary reason why abolishing homework would benefit students’ mental health is the reduction of stress and anxiety. Students often feel overwhelmed by the amount of homework they have to complete, leading to high levels of stress that can affect their overall well-being. By removing this extra pressure, students would have more time to relax, unwind, and engage in activities that bring them joy.

Moreover, abolishing homework can improve students’ sleep quality. Many students stay up late trying to finish assignments, sacrificing valuable hours of sleep in the process. Sleep is essential for mental health, and getting enough rest allows students to focus better in school and feel more refreshed and energized.

Additionally, abolishing homework can help students maintain a healthier work-life balance. Students deserve time to pursue their interests, spend time with family and friends, and engage in extracurricular activities. Without the burden of homework, students would have more opportunities to explore their passions and develop a well-rounded lifestyle.

Furthermore, abolishing homework can enhance students’ confidence and self-esteem. When students are constantly struggling to complete assignments, it can take a toll on their belief in their abilities. By eliminating homework, students can feel more confident in their academic skills and approach learning with a positive attitude.

In conclusion, abolishing homework could be a significant step towards promoting better mental health among students. By reducing stress, improving sleep quality, fostering a healthier work-life balance, and boosting confidence, students can thrive academically and emotionally in a homework-free environment.

Argument 2: Fostering Family Bonding and Social Skills Through the Abolition of Homework

When homework is abolished, families have more opportunities to bond and connect with each other. Instead of being engrossed in individual tasks, students and their families can engage in shared activities like cooking together, playing games, or simply talking about their day. These moments of togetherness can strengthen family relationships and create lasting memories that may not have been possible if homework were taking up all the time.

Furthermore, abolishing homework can also help students develop important social skills. Without the burden of homework, students have more time to interact with their siblings, parents, and even neighbors. These interactions allow them to practice communication, empathy, and teamwork in a real-world setting. Through conversations and activities with family members, students can learn how to express themselves effectively, resolve conflicts peacefully, and understand different perspectives.

In addition, by abolishing homework, schools can encourage students to participate in community activities and events. Students can join clubs, sports teams, or volunteer organizations, fostering a sense of belonging and social responsibility. These extracurricular activities not only provide opportunities for students to make new friends but also help them develop leadership skills, teamwork, and resilience.

In conclusion, abolishing homework can have a positive impact on fostering family bonding and social skills among students. By prioritizing quality time with family members and engaging in social activities outside of school, students can develop stronger relationships, communication skills, and a sense of community. Ultimately, by promoting these aspects, schools can contribute to the holistic development of students and prepare them for success in both their personal and professional lives.

Arguments Against Of Homework Should be Abolished

Argument 1: detrimental impact on academic performance and learning retention.

Homework can be a source of stress and anxiety for many students. It takes away precious time that could be spent on other activities like hobbies, sports, or spending time with family and friends. This burden of homework can lead to students feeling overwhelmed and exhausted, affecting their overall well-being and mental health.

Research has shown that excessive homework can actually have a negative impact on academic performance. When students are overloaded with homework, they may struggle to retain the information they are trying to learn. This can result in lower test scores and a lack of true mastery of the material. Without sufficient time to review and consolidate what they have learned in class, students may find themselves falling behind academically.

Moreover, the stress and pressure associated with homework can create a barrier to effective learning. Students may feel demotivated and disengaged from their studies when faced with an overwhelming amount of homework to complete. This can hinder their ability to develop a genuine interest in the subjects they are studying and can lead to a lack of enthusiasm for learning.

Argument 2: Loss of Individual Accountability and Work Ethic

Additionally, when students are given homework tasks that they do not understand, it can be demotivating and lead to a lack of effort in completing the assignments. This lack of motivation can hinder the development of a strong work ethic, as students may not see the value in putting in the effort to complete tasks that they perceive as irrelevant or too challenging.

Moreover, the pressure to complete homework assignments on time can sometimes cause students to prioritize speed over quality. This can result in rushed and incomplete work, which does not foster a sense of pride in one’s accomplishments or encourage students to strive for excellence in their academic pursuits.

Furthermore, when students are burdened with excessive amounts of homework, it can take away from valuable time that could be spent engaging in other activities that promote personal growth and development. Without the opportunity to participate in extracurricular activities, hobbies, or simply relax and recharge, students may struggle to maintain a healthy work-life balance.

In conclusion, the practice of assigning homework can inadvertently contribute to a loss of individual accountability and work ethic among students. By abolishing homework, we can create a learning environment that encourages students to take ownership of their education, develop a strong work ethic, and prioritize meaningful learning experiences over rote tasks.

That’s it! I hope the debate helped you.

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Homework – Top 3 Pros and Cons

Pro/Con Arguments | Discussion Questions | Take Action | Sources | More Debates

From dioramas to book reports, from algebraic word problems to research projects, whether students should be given homework, as well as the type and amount of homework, has been debated for over a century. [ 1 ]

While we are unsure who invented homework, we do know that the word “homework” dates back to ancient Rome. Pliny the Younger asked his followers to practice their speeches at home. Memorization exercises as homework continued through the Middle Ages and Enlightenment by monks and other scholars. [ 45 ]

In the 19th century, German students of the Volksschulen or “People’s Schools” were given assignments to complete outside of the school day. This concept of homework quickly spread across Europe and was brought to the United States by Horace Mann , who encountered the idea in Prussia. [ 45 ]

In the early 1900s, progressive education theorists, championed by the magazine Ladies’ Home Journal , decried homework’s negative impact on children’s physical and mental health, leading California to ban homework for students under 15 from 1901 until 1917. In the 1930s, homework was portrayed as child labor, which was newly illegal, but the prevailing argument was that kids needed time to do household chores. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ 45 ] [ 46 ]

Public opinion swayed again in favor of homework in the 1950s due to concerns about keeping up with the Soviet Union’s technological advances during the Cold War . And, in 1986, the US government included homework as an educational quality boosting tool. [ 3 ] [ 45 ]

A 2014 study found kindergarteners to fifth graders averaged 2.9 hours of homework per week, sixth to eighth graders 3.2 hours per teacher, and ninth to twelfth graders 3.5 hours per teacher. A 2014-2019 study found that teens spent about an hour a day on homework. [ 4 ] [ 44 ]

Beginning in 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic complicated the very idea of homework as students were schooling remotely and many were doing all school work from home. Washington Post journalist Valerie Strauss asked, “Does homework work when kids are learning all day at home?” While students were mostly back in school buildings in fall 2021, the question remains of how effective homework is as an educational tool. [ 47 ]

Is Homework Beneficial?

Pro 1 Homework improves student achievement. Studies have shown that homework improved student achievement in terms of improved grades, test results, and the likelihood to attend college. Research published in the High School Journal indicated that students who spent between 31 and 90 minutes each day on homework “scored about 40 points higher on the SAT-Mathematics subtest than their peers, who reported spending no time on homework each day, on average.” [ 6 ] Students in classes that were assigned homework outperformed 69% of students who didn’t have homework on both standardized tests and grades. A majority of studies on homework’s impact – 64% in one meta-study and 72% in another – showed that take-home assignments were effective at improving academic achievement. [ 7 ] [ 8 ] Research by the Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA) concluded that increased homework led to better GPAs and higher probability of college attendance for high school boys. In fact, boys who attended college did more than three hours of additional homework per week in high school. [ 10 ] Read More

Pro 2 Homework helps to reinforce classroom learning, while developing good study habits and life skills. Students typically retain only 50% of the information teachers provide in class, and they need to apply that information in order to truly learn it. Abby Freireich and Brian Platzer, co-founders of Teachers Who Tutor NYC, explained, “at-home assignments help students learn the material taught in class. Students require independent practice to internalize new concepts… [And] these assignments can provide valuable data for teachers about how well students understand the curriculum.” [ 11 ] [ 49 ] Elementary school students who were taught “strategies to organize and complete homework,” such as prioritizing homework activities, collecting study materials, note-taking, and following directions, showed increased grades and more positive comments on report cards. [ 17 ] Research by the City University of New York noted that “students who engage in self-regulatory processes while completing homework,” such as goal-setting, time management, and remaining focused, “are generally more motivated and are higher achievers than those who do not use these processes.” [ 18 ] Homework also helps students develop key skills that they’ll use throughout their lives: accountability, autonomy, discipline, time management, self-direction, critical thinking, and independent problem-solving. Freireich and Platzer noted that “homework helps students acquire the skills needed to plan, organize, and complete their work.” [ 12 ] [ 13 ] [ 14 ] [ 15 ] [ 49 ] Read More

Pro 3 Homework allows parents to be involved with children’s learning. Thanks to take-home assignments, parents are able to track what their children are learning at school as well as their academic strengths and weaknesses. [ 12 ] Data from a nationwide sample of elementary school students show that parental involvement in homework can improve class performance, especially among economically disadvantaged African-American and Hispanic students. [ 20 ] Research from Johns Hopkins University found that an interactive homework process known as TIPS (Teachers Involve Parents in Schoolwork) improves student achievement: “Students in the TIPS group earned significantly higher report card grades after 18 weeks (1 TIPS assignment per week) than did non-TIPS students.” [ 21 ] Homework can also help clue parents in to the existence of any learning disabilities their children may have, allowing them to get help and adjust learning strategies as needed. Duke University Professor Harris Cooper noted, “Two parents once told me they refused to believe their child had a learning disability until homework revealed it to them.” [ 12 ] Read More

Con 1 Too much homework can be harmful. A poll of California high school students found that 59% thought they had too much homework. 82% of respondents said that they were “often or always stressed by schoolwork.” High-achieving high school students said too much homework leads to sleep deprivation and other health problems such as headaches, exhaustion, weight loss, and stomach problems. [ 24 ] [ 28 ] [ 29 ] Alfie Kohn, an education and parenting expert, said, “Kids should have a chance to just be kids… it’s absurd to insist that children must be engaged in constructive activities right up until their heads hit the pillow.” [ 27 ] Emmy Kang, a mental health counselor, explained, “More than half of students say that homework is their primary source of stress, and we know what stress can do on our bodies.” [ 48 ] Excessive homework can also lead to cheating: 90% of middle school students and 67% of high school students admit to copying someone else’s homework, and 43% of college students engaged in “unauthorized collaboration” on out-of-class assignments. Even parents take shortcuts on homework: 43% of those surveyed admitted to having completed a child’s assignment for them. [ 30 ] [ 31 ] [ 32 ] Read More

Con 2 Homework exacerbates the digital divide or homework gap. Kiara Taylor, financial expert, defined the digital divide as “the gap between demographics and regions that have access to modern information and communications technology and those that don’t. Though the term now encompasses the technical and financial ability to utilize available technology—along with access (or a lack of access) to the Internet—the gap it refers to is constantly shifting with the development of technology.” For students, this is often called the homework gap. [ 50 ] [ 51 ] 30% (about 15 to 16 million) public school students either did not have an adequate internet connection or an appropriate device, or both, for distance learning. Completing homework for these students is more complicated (having to find a safe place with an internet connection, or borrowing a laptop, for example) or impossible. [ 51 ] A Hispanic Heritage Foundation study found that 96.5% of students across the country needed to use the internet for homework, and nearly half reported they were sometimes unable to complete their homework due to lack of access to the internet or a computer, which often resulted in lower grades. [ 37 ] [ 38 ] One study concluded that homework increases social inequality because it “potentially serves as a mechanism to further advantage those students who already experience some privilege in the school system while further disadvantaging those who may already be in a marginalized position.” [ 39 ] Read More

Con 3 Homework does not help younger students, and may not help high school students. We’ve known for a while that homework does not help elementary students. A 2006 study found that “homework had no association with achievement gains” when measured by standardized tests results or grades. [ 7 ] Fourth grade students who did no homework got roughly the same score on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) math exam as those who did 30 minutes of homework a night. Students who did 45 minutes or more of homework a night actually did worse. [ 41 ] Temple University professor Kathryn Hirsh-Pasek said that homework is not the most effective tool for young learners to apply new information: “They’re learning way more important skills when they’re not doing their homework.” [ 42 ] In fact, homework may not be helpful at the high school level either. Alfie Kohn, author of The Homework Myth, stated, “I interviewed high school teachers who completely stopped giving homework and there was no downside, it was all upside.” He explains, “just because the same kids who get more homework do a little better on tests, doesn’t mean the homework made that happen.” [ 52 ] Read More

Discussion Questions

1. Is homework beneficial? Consider the study data, your personal experience, and other types of information. Explain your answer(s).

2. If homework were banned, what other educational strategies would help students learn classroom material? Explain your answer(s).

3. How has homework been helpful to you personally? How has homework been unhelpful to you personally? Make carefully considered lists for both sides.

Take Action

1. Examine an argument in favor of quality homework assignments from Janine Bempechat.

2. Explore Oxford Learning’s infographic on the effects of homework on students.

3. Consider Joseph Lathan’s argument that homework promotes inequality .

4. Consider how you felt about the issue before reading this article. After reading the pros and cons on this topic, has your thinking changed? If so, how? List two to three ways. If your thoughts have not changed, list two to three ways your better understanding of the “other side of the issue” now helps you better argue your position.

5. Push for the position and policies you support by writing US national senators and representatives .

More School Debate Topics

Should K-12 Students Dissect Animals in Science Classrooms? – Proponents say dissecting real animals is a better learning experience. Opponents say the practice is bad for the environment.

Should Students Have to Wear School Uniforms? – Proponents say uniforms may increase student safety. Opponents say uniforms restrict expression.

Should Corporal Punishment Be Used in K-12 Schools? – Proponents say corporal punishment is an appropriate discipline. Opponents say it inflicts long-lasting physical and mental harm on students.

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This is why we should stop giving homework

At Human Restoration Project, one of the core systemic changes we suggest is the elimination of homework. Throughout this piece, I will outline several research studies and reports that demonstrate how the negative impact of homework is so evident that any mandated homework, outside of some minor catching up or for incredibly niche cases, simply does more harm than good.

I’ll summarize four main reasons why homework just flat out doesn’t make sense.

• Achievement, whether that be measured through standardized tests or general academic knowledge, isn’t correlated to assigning or completing homework.
• Homework is an inequitable practice that harms certain individuals more than others, to the detriment of those with less resources and to minor, if any, improvement for those with resources.
• It contributes to negative impacts at home with one’s family, peer relationships, and just general school-life balance, which causes far more problems than homework is meant to solve.
• And finally, it highlights and exacerbates our obsession with ultra-competitive college admissions and job opportunities, and other detrimental faults of making everything about getting ahead .

Does Homework Make Us Learn More?

Homework is such a ubiquitous part of school that it’s considered radical to even suggest that lessening it could be good teaching. It’s completely normal for families to spend extra hours each night, even on weekends, completing projects, reports, and worksheets. On average, teenagers spend about an hour a day completing homework, which is up 30-45 minutes from decades past. Kindergartners, who are usually saved from completing a lot of after school work, average about 25 minutes of homework a night (which to note, is 25 minutes too much than is recommended by child development experts).

The “10-minute rule”, endorsed by the National Parent Teacher Association and National Education Association, is incorporated into most school policies: there’s 10 minutes of homework per day per grade level – as in 20 minutes a day in second grade or 2 hours a day in 12th grade. 

It’s so normalized that it was odd, when seemingly out of nowhere the President of Ireland recently suggested that homework should be banned . (And many experts were shocked at this suggestion.)

Numerous studies on homework reflect inconsistent results on what it exactly achieves. Homework is rarely shown to have any impact on achievement, whether that be measured through standardized testing or otherwise. As I’ll talk about later, the amount of marginal gains homework may lead to aren’t worth its negative trade-offs.

Let’s look at a quick summary of various studies:

• ‍ First off, the book National Differences, Global Similarities: World Culture and the Future of Schooling by David P. Baker and Gerald K. LeTendre draws on a 4 year investigation of schools in 47 countries. It’s the largest study of its type: looking at how schools operate, their pedagogy, their procedures, and the like. They made a shocking discovery: countries that assigned the least amount of homework: Denmark and the Czech Republic, had much higher test scores than those who assigned the most amount of homework: Iran and Thailand. The same work indicated that there was no correlation between academic achievement and homework with elementary students, and any moderate positive correlation in middle or high school diminished as more and more homework was assigned. ‍
• A study in Contemporary Educational Psychology of 28,051 high school seniors concluded that quality of instruction, motivation, and ability are all correlated to a student’s academic success. However, homework’s effectiveness was marginal or perhaps even counterproductive: leading to more academic problems than it hoped to solve. ‍
• The Teachers College Record published that homework added academic pressure and societal stress to those already experiencing pressures from other forces at home. This caused a further divide in academic performance from those with more privileged backgrounds. We’ll talk about this more later. ‍
• A study in the Journal of Educational Psychology examined 2,342 student attitudes toward homework in foreign language classes. They found that time spent on homework had a significant negative impact on grades and standardized test scores. The researchers concluded that this may be because participants had to spend their time completing worksheets rather than spend time practicing skills on their own time.
• Some studies are more positive. In fact, a meta-analysis of 32 homework studies in the Review of Educational Research found that most studies indicated a positive correlation between achievement and doing homework. However, the researchers noted that generally these studies made it hard to draw causal conclusions due to how they were set up and conducted. There was so much variance that it was difficult to make a claim one way or another, even though the net result seemed positive. This often cited report led by Dr. Harris Cooper at Duke University is the most commonly used by proponents of the practice. But popular education critic Alfie Kohn believes that this study fails to establish, ironically, causation among other factors. ‍
• And that said in a later published study in The High School Journal , researchers concluded that in all homework assigned, there were only modest linkages to improved math and science standardized test scores, with no difference in other subjects between those who were assigned homework and those who were not. None of the homework assigned had any bearing on grades. The only difference was for a few points on those particular subject’s standardized test scores.

All in all, the data is relatively inconclusive. Some educational experts suggest that there should be hours of homework in high school, some homework in middle school, and none in elementary school. Some call for the 10-minute rule. Others say that homework doesn’t work at all. It’s still fairly unstudied how achievement is impacted as a result of homework. But as Alfie Kohn says , “The better the research, the less likely one is to find any benefits from homework.” That said, when we couple this data with the other negative impacts of assigning homework: how it impacts those at the margins, leads to anxiety and stress, and takes away from important family time – it really makes us question why this is such a ubiquitous practice. 

Or as Etta Kralovec and John Buell write in The End of Homework: How Homework Disrupts Families, Overburdens Children, and Limits Learning,

‘Extensive classroom research of ‘time on task’ and international comparisons of year-round time for study suggest that additional homework might promote U.S. students’ achievement.’  This written statement by some of the top professionals in the field of homework research raises some difficult questions. More homework might promote student achievement? Are all our blood, sweat, and tears at the kitchen table over homework based on something that merely might be true? Our belief in the value of homework is akin to faith. We assume that it fosters a love of learning, better study habits, improved attitudes toward school, and greater self-discipline; we believe that better teachers assign more homework and that one sign of a good school is a good, enforced homework policy.

Our obsession with homework is likely rooted in select studies that imply it leads to higher test scores. The authors continue by deciphering this phenomena:

“[this is] a problem that routinely bedevils all the sciences: the relationship between correlation and causality. If A and B happen simultaneously, we do not know whether A causes B or B causes A, or whether both phenomena occur casually together or are individually determined by another set of variables…Thus far, most studies in this area have amounted to little more than crude correlations that cannot justify the sweeping conclusions some have derived from them.”

Alfie Kohn adds that even the correlation between achievement and homework doesn’t really matter. Saying,

“If all you want is to cram kids’ heads with facts for tomorrow’s tests that they’re going to forget by next week, yeah, if you give them more time and make them do the cramming at night, that could raise the scores…But if you’re interested in kids who know how to think or enjoy learning, then homework isn’t merely ineffective, but counterproductive… The practice of homework assumes that only academic growth matters, to the point that having kids work on that most of the school day isn’t enough…”

Ramping Up Inequity

Many justify the practice of assigning homework with the well-intentioned belief that we’ll make a more equitable society through high standards. However, it seems to be that these practices actually add to inequity. “Rigorous” private and preparatory schools – whether they be “no excuses” charters in marginalized communities or “college ready” elite suburban institutions, are notorious for extreme levels of homework assignment. Yet, many progressive schools who focus on holistic learning and self-actualization assign no homework and achieve the same levels of college and career success.

Perhaps this is because the largest predictor of college success has nothing to do with rigorous preparation, and everything to do with family income levels. 77% of students from high income families graduated from a highly competitive college, whereas 9% of students from low income families did the same .

It seems like by loading students up with mountains of homework each night in an attempt to get them into these colleges, we actually make their chances of success worse .

When assigning homework, it is common practice to recommend that families provide a quiet, well-lit place for the child to study. After all, it’s often difficult to complete assignments after a long day. Having this space, time, and energy must always be considered in the context of the family’s education, income, available time, and job security. For many people, jobs have become less secure and less well paid over the course of the last two decades.

In a United States context, we work the longest hours of any nation . Individuals in 2006 worked 11 hours longer than their counterparts in 1979. In 2020, 70% of children lived in households where both parents work. We are the only country in the industrial world without guaranteed family leave. And the results are staggering: 90% of women and 95% of men report work-family conflict . According to the Center for American Progress , “the United States today has the most family-hostile public policy in the developed world due to a long-standing political impasse.”

As a result, parents have much less time to connect with their children. This is not a call to a return to traditional family roles or to have stay-at-home parents – rather, our occupation-oriented society is structured inadequately which causes problems with how homework is meant to function. 

For those who work in entry level positions, such as customer service and cashiers, there is an average 240% turnover per year due to lack of pay, poor conditions, work-life balance, and mismanagement. Family incomes continue to decline for lower- and middle-class Americans, leaving more families to work increased hours or multiple jobs. In other words, families, especially poor families, have less opportunities to spend time with their children, let alone foster academic “gains” via homework.

Even for students with ample resources who attend “elite schools”, the amount of homework is stressful. In a 2013 study in The Journal of Experiential Education, researchers conducted a survey of 4,317 students in 10 high-performing upper middle class high schools. These students had an average of more than 3 hours of homework a night. In comparison to their peers, they had more academic stress, notable physical health problems, and spent a worrying amount of time focused entirely on school and nothing else. Competitive advantage came at the cost of well-being and just being a kid.

A similar study in Frontiers of Psychology found that students pressured in the competitive college admissions process , who attended schools assigning hours of homework each night and promoting college-level courses and resume building extracurriculars, felt extreme stress. Two-thirds of the surveyed students reported turning to alcohol and drugs to cope.

In fact, a paper published by Dr. Suniya Luthar and her colleagues concluded that upper middle-class youth are actually more likely to be troubled than their middle class peers . There is an extreme problem with academic stress, where young people are engaging in a rat race toward the best possible educational future as determined by Ivy League colleges and scholarships. To add fuel to the fire, schools continue to add more and more homework to have students get ahead – which has a massively negative impact on both ends of the economic spectrum.

A 2012 study by Dr. Jonathan Daw indicated that their results,

“...imply that increases in the amount of homework assigned may increase the socioeconomic achievement gap in math, science, and reading in secondary school.”

In an effort to increase engagement with homework, teachers have been encouraged to create interesting, creative assignments. In fact, most researchers seem to agree that the quality of assignments matters a whole lot . After all, maybe assigning all of this homework won’t matter as long as it’s interesting and relevant to students? Although this has good intentions, rigorous homework with increased complexity places more impetus on parents. As researcher and author Gary Natrillo, an initial proponent of creative homework , stated later:

…not only was homework being assigned as suggested by all the ‘experts,’ but the teacher was obviously taking the homework seriously, making it challenging instead of routine and checking it each day and giving feedback. We were enveloped by the nightmare of near total implementation of the reform recommendations pertaining to homework…More creative homework tasks are a mixed blessing on the receiving end. On the one hand, they, of course, lead to higher engagement and interest for children and their parents. On the other hand, they require one to be well rested, a special condition of mind not often available to working parents…

Time is a luxury to most people. With increased working hours, in conjunction with extreme levels of stress, many people don’t have the necessary mindset to adequately supply children with the attention to detail for complex homework. As Kralovec and Buell state,

To put it plainly, I have discovered that after a day at work, the commute home, dinner preparations, and the prospect of baths, goodnight stories, and my own work ahead, there comes a time beyond which I cannot sustain my enthusiasm for the math brain teaser or the creative story task.

Americans are some of the most stressed people in the world. Mass shootings, health care affordability, discrimination, racism, sexual harassment, climate change, the presidential elections, and literally: staying informed on current events have caused roughly 70% of people to report moderate or extreme stress , with increased rates for people of color, LGBTQIA Americans, and other discriminated groups. 90% of high schoolers and college students report moderate or higher stress, with half reporting depression and a lack of energy and motivation .

In 2015, 1,100 parents were surveyed on the impact of homework on family life. Fights over homework were 200% more likely in families where parents didn’t have a college degree. Generally, these families believed that if their children didn’t understand a homework assignment then they must have been not paying attention at school. This led to young people feeling dumb or upset, and parents feeling like their child was lying or goofing off. The lead researcher noted, 

All of our results indicate that homework as it is now being assigned discriminates against children whose parents don’t have a college degree, against parents who have English as a second language, against, essentially, parents who are poor.

Schooling is so integrated into family life that a group of researchers noted that “...homework tended to recreate the problems of school, such as status degradation.” An online survey of over 2,000 students and families found that 90% of students reported additional stress from homework, and 40% of families saw it as nothing more than busy work. Authors Sara Bennett and Nancy Kalish wrote the aptly titled The Case Against Homework which conducted interviews across the mid-2000s with families and children, citing just how many people are burdened with overscheduling homework featuring over-the-top assignments and constant work. One parent remarked,

I sit on Amy's bed until 11 p.m. quizzing her, knowing she's never going to use this later, and it feels like abuse," says Nina of Menlo Park, California, whose eleven-year-old goes to a Blue Ribbon public school and does at least three-and-a-half hours of homework each night. Nina also questions the amount of time spent on "creative" projects. "Amy had to visit the Mission in San Francisco and then make a model of it out of cardboard, penne pasta, and paint. But what was she supposed to be learning from this? All my daughter will remember is how tense we were in the garage making this thing. Then when she handed it in, the teacher dropped it and all the penne pasta flew off." These days, says Nina, "Amy's attitude about school has really soured." Nina's has, too. "Everything is an emergency and you feel like you're always at battle stations."

1/3rd of the families interviewed felt “crushed by the workload.” It didn’t matter if they lived in rural or suburban areas, or if they were rich or poor.

Learning this way is also simply ineffective because well, that’s just not how kids learn! Young people build upon prior knowledge. They use what they know to make what they’re currently doing easier. Adding more and more content to a student’s plate – having to connect the dots and build upon more information – especially with the distractions of home life is unrealistic. Plus, simply put…it’s just not fun! Why would I want to spend all of my free time on homework rather than hanging out with my friends or playing video games?

Even with all that said – if other countries demonstrate educational success on standardized testing with little to no assigned homework and limited school hours (nevermind the fact that this is measured through the questionable method of standardized testing), shouldn’t we take a step back and analyze the system as a whole, rather than figure out better homework policies? If other countries do this with limited to no homework , why can’t everyone else?

Investigating Systemic Problems

Perhaps the solution to academic achievement in America isn’t doubling down on increasing the work students do at home, but solving the underlying systemic inequities: the economic and discriminatory problems that plague our society. Yes, the United States tends to fall behind other countries on math and reading scores. Many countries impose increased workloads on students because they are afraid that they will fall behind economically with the standard of living to the rest of the world. But perhaps the problem with education doesn’t lie in not having enough “rigorous” methods, but with how easy it is for a family to simply live and be content.

Finland, frequently cited as a model education system which grew to prominence during the 2000s through popular scholars like Pasi Sahlberg, enjoys some of the highest standards of living in the world:

• Finland’s life expectancy is 81.8 years, compared to the US’ 78.7 years . Unlike Finland, there’s a notable difference between the richest and poorest Americans . The richest Americans are expected to live, on average, nearly 15 years longer than the poorest. Further, America’s life expectancy is declining, the only industrialized country with this statistic .
• Finland’s health care is rated best in the world and only spends $3,078 per capita, compared to $8,047 in the US.
• Finland has virtually no homelessness , compared to the 500,000 (and growing) homeless population in the United States .
• Finland has the lowest inequality levels in the EU , compared to the United States with one of the highest inequality levels in the world . Research has demonstrated that countries with lower inequality levels are happier and healthier .

These statistics reflect that potentially — instead of investing hundreds of millions of dollars in initiatives to increase national test scores , such as homework strategies, curriculum changes, and nationwide “raising the bar” initiatives — that we should invest in programs that improve our standard of living, such as universal healthcare and housing. The solution to test scores is rooted in solving underlying inequities in our societies — shining a light on our core issues — rather than making teachers solve all of our community’s problems.

This doesn’t mean that there’s no space for improving pedagogy, schooling, or curriculums, but at the end of the day the solution cannot solely be by improving education.

‍ Creating Future Workers

Education often equates learning with work. As a teacher, I had to stop myself from behaving like an economics analyst: telling students to quit “wasting time”, stating that the purpose of the lesson is useful for securing a high salary career, seeing everything as prep for college and career (and college’s purpose as just for more earnings in a career), and making blanket assumptions that those who aren’t motivated will ultimately never contribute to society, taking on “low levels” of work that “aren’t as important” as other positions.

A common argument exists that the pressure of homework mirrors the real world – that we should assign homework because that’s “just the way things are.” If we want kids to succeed in the “real world”, they need to have this pressure.

But this mentality is unhealthy and unjust. The purpose of education should be to develop purpose. People live happier and healthier lives as a result of pursuing and developing a core purpose. Some people’s purpose is related to their line of work, but there is not necessarily a connection. However, the primary goal for education stated by districts, states, and the national government is to make “productive members of society” – those who are “prepared for the future” through “college and career readiness.” When we double down on economic principles, rather than look to developmental psychology and holistic care, to raise young people, it’s no wonder we’re seeing such horrific statistics related to childhood .

Further, the consistent pressure to solely learn for future economic gain raises generations of young people to believe that wealth is a measurement of success, and that specific lines of work create happiness. Teachers and parents are told to make their children “work hard” for future success and develop “grit.” Although grit is an important indicator of overcoming obstacles , it is not developed by enforcing grit through authoritarian classrooms or meaningless, long tasks like homework. In fact, an argument could be made that many Americans accept their dramatically poor work-life balance and lack of access to needs such as affordable health care by being brought up in a society that rewards tasks of “working through it” to “eventually achieve happiness.”

Many families have shifted from having children participate in common household chores and activities to have them exclusively focus on their school work. Americans have more difficulty than ever raising children, with increasing demands of time and rising childcare costs . When teachers provide more and more homework, they take away from the parents’ ability to structure their household according to their needs. In fact, children with chores show completely positive universal growth across the board , from time management skills to responsibility to managing a healthy work-life balance. 

Of course, this is not to say that it is all the teacher’s fault. Educators face immense pressure to carry out governmental/school policies that place test scores at the forefront. Plus, most families had homework themselves – so continuing the practice only makes sense. Many of these policies require homework, and an educator’s employment is centered on enacting these changes. Barbara Stengel , an education professor, noted that the reason why so much homework isn’t necessarily interesting or applicable to a student’s lived experience is because “some of the people who would really have pushed the limits of that are no longer in teaching.” The constant pressure on teachers to raise test scores while simultaneously being overworked and underpaid is making many leave the profession. Etta Kralovec and John Buell add:

As more academic demands are placed on teachers, homework can help lengthen the school day and thus ensure ‘coverage’ — that is, the completion of the full curriculum that each teacher is supposed to cover during the school year…This in itself places pressure on teachers to create meaningful homework and often to assign large amounts of it so that the students’ parents will think the teacher is rigorous and the school has high academic standards. Extensive homework is frequently linked in our minds to high standards.

Therefore, there’s a connection to be made between the school- or work-life balance of children and the people who are tasked with teaching them. 8% of the teacher workforce leaves every year , with one of the primary reasons being poor work-life balance . Perhaps teachers see an increased desire to “work” students in their class and at home due to the pressures they face in their own occupation?

The more we equate work with learning, and the more we accept that a school’s primary purpose is to prepare workers, the less we actually succeed at promoting academics. Instead, we bolster the neoliberal tendencies of the United States (and others like it) to work hard, yet comparably to other countries’ lifestyle gains, achieve little.

This is why so many families demand that their children have ample amounts of homework. In fact, the majority of parents believe their students have just the right amount. They’re afraid that their kids are going to fall behind, doomed to a life within an increasingly hostile and inequitable society. They want the best for their children, and taking the risk of not assigning homework means that someone else may take that top slot. The same could be said for many parts of the “tracks toward college and career readiness” that professor William Deresiewicz refers to as “zombication” – lurching through each stage of the rat race in competitive admissions: a lot of assignments, difficult courses, sports, clubs, forced volunteerism, internships, and other things to pack our schedules.

The United States must examine the underlying inequities of peoples’ lives, rather than focus on increasing schools’ workloads and lessening children’s free time for mythical academic gains that lead to little change. Teacher preparation programs and popular authors need to stop promoting “interesting and fun ways to teach ‘x’!” and propose systemic changes that radically change the way education is done, including systemic changes to society at large. Only then will the United States actually see improved livelihoods and a better education system for all.

And what could be done instead? Much of the research and writing on homework tends to conclude that we should find a “happy middle ground” to continue the practice of homework, just in case it does indeed work. However, based on the decades of studies we have on this issue…I’m not really sure. It seems the best practice, by far, is to eliminate homework altogether outside of incredibly niche and rare scenarios. If a student asks for more things to do at home because they want to explore something that interests them, great! But that doesn’t need to be mandated homework.

Human Restoration Project believes that the four recommendations of the late educator and scholar Ken Robinson allows young people to learn for themselves and make the most of their lives:

• Let children spend time with their families. The single strongest predictor of academic success and fewer behavioral problems for a child, 3-12 years old, is eating as a family. Make planned time during the day to catch up with children, talking to them about what they’re learning, and encouraging them to achieve.
• Give children time to play outside or create something, preferably not always with a screen. Let them dive into their passions and plan a trip to a library, park, or museum. Explore free online resources to discover new skills and interests.
• Give children opportunities to read by themselves or with their family. One of the best ways to learn about the world is developing a lifelong love of reading. Children who prioritize reading are more motivated to learn and see drastically improved academic outcomes.
• Let children sleep! Elementary students should sleep at least 10 hours each night and adolescents, 9 hours. Being awake and ready to tackle each day keeps us energized and healthy.

If you’re interested in learning more, see The Case Against Homework by Nancy Kalish and Sara Bennett, The Homework Myth by Alfie Kohn, The End of Homework by Etta Kralovec and John Muelle, or one of the many citations linked in the show notes.

You can also watch a modified video version of this piece on our YouTube channel:

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Kohn, A. (2007). The homework myth: Why our kids get too much of a bad thing . Da Capo Lifelong Books.

Kralovec, E., & Buell, J. (2001). The End of Homework: How homework disrupts families, overburdens children, and limits learning . Beacon Press.

Leonard, N. R., Gwadz, M. V., Ritchie, A., Linick, J. L., Cleland, C. M., Elliott, L., & Grethel, M. (2015). A multi-method exploratory study of stress, coping, and substance use among high school youth in private schools. Frontiers in Psychology , 6 . https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01028

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McGuire, J. (2023). The President Of Ireland Wants To Get Rid Of Homework & Honestly, He's Onto Something. Romper. https://www.romper.com/life/president-of-ireland-michael-d-higgins-homework

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I've read a lot about it being called a zero-sum game, right? This idea that we cannot both win. It's just not possible. I'm like, who said? There are all kinds of games and activities you play where you think someone has to lose, and then you realize, did you have to? The sharing of the orange. You all have seen these activities, but wow. I don't want to talk about where it came from, but I am curious. It's so ingrained in this country, and probably other countries, but I don't know.

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The Case for Homework

• Posted September 29, 2016
• By Matt Weber

This fall, the start of the new school year seemingly brought with it a trend of teachers forgoing homework assignments in order to allow their students more time outside of school for family and play. A number of these announcements took off on social media, with many parents supporting the stance and wishing that their own child's teacher would follow suit. While few would dispute the importance of family and play time for young children, it may be shortsighted to believe that eliminating homework altogether is the answer.

"All children should be doing homework," says Duke University Professor Harris M. Cooper , who has researched and wrote on the topic for over 25 years. While Cooper acknowledges that an excess of homework is both unnecessary and potentially detrimental, the upside of homework is too great to ignore. Not only is it important in reinforcing skills learned during the school day, it also teaches time management, study skills, and independent learning, as well as keeps parents connected to their children's learning.

"Really good homework assignments" in subjects such as math and science, says Cooper, also highlight skills children use in other areas of their life — in sports, games, and everyday tasks like grocery shopping with their parents. "A really good teacher is one that takes the skills that [their students] are learning in the abstract — or more abstract — in their classroom, and uses homework to show them these are the skills they need to enjoy things they do even more," says Cooper.

In this edition of the Harvard EdCast, Cooper evaluates the dissatisfaction with homework practices and discusses all of the reasons why, for children, homework is essential.

About the Harvard EdCast

The Harvard EdCast is a weekly series of podcasts, available on the Harvard University iTunes U page, that features a 15-20 minute conversation with thought leaders in the field of education from across the country and around the world. Hosted by Matt Weber, the Harvard EdCast is a space for educational discourse and openness, focusing on the myriad issues and current events related to the field.

An education podcast that keeps the focus simple: what makes a difference for learners, educators, parents, and communities

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• Child Development

Should Homework Be Abolished?

The french president proposes banning homework. is he right.

Posted October 18, 2012

French President François Hollande proposed banning homework as part of his plan to reform the French educational system. But is he throwing out the baby with the bathwater?

Hollande believes homework favors the wealthy and disadvantages children from poorer socioeconomic backgrounds because wealthier parents are more likely to have the time and means to support, monitor, supervise, and assist their children when they are doing their homework. The reality of such distinctions aside, such an all-or-nothing approach misses the more practical problems ALL students face when dealing with homework—the sheer volume of homework they are assigned.

I’ve written about this question previously (read, How Much Homework is Too Much ?) and stated that there are few if any studies that demonstrate the effectiveness of piling on excessive amounts of homework on students, especially when it comes to children in elementary and middle school.

When children are assigned too much homework, it taxes not just them but their parents as well. Further, children who are assigned hours of homework a day are often unable to engage in the kind of socializing and play that are essential for healthy child development . One easy guideline to keep in mind is that children should be assigned no more than 10 minutes a day of homework per grade level. A sixth grader should be doing no more than an hour of homework a day, and a senior in high school should have no more than two hours a day of homework. However, such is rarely the case, especially (but not exclusively) when it comes to private schools.

The French President’s initiative notwithstanding, homework is not likely to be abolished in the United States anytime soon. So what can or should parents do when they have concerns about the amounts of homework their children are assigned? First, parents should try and come together so they can address homework concerns to schools as a group. Second, they also need to become informed about studies that have examined the impact of homework on children. They should also be ready to inform their children’s teachers and principal, many of whom aren't aware of these findings, or in some cases, that such studies even exist.

If your children are doing excessive amounts of homework and you want to learn how to advocate for them you have to become a squeaky wheel, and not just speak up, but learn to do so effectively! For more on how to complain effectively as well as on how complaining psychology impacts our advocacy efforts, check out The Squeaky Wheel .

View my short and quite personal TED talk about Psychological Health here:

Copyright 2012 Guy Winch

Follow me on Twitter @GuyWinch

Guy Winch, Ph.D. , is a licensed psychologist and author of Emotional First Aid: Healing Rejection, Guilt, Failure, and Other Everyday Hurts.

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Debate on Homework Should be Abolished | Should Homework be Abolished? – Is It Truly Required?

March 7, 2022 by Prasanna

Debate on Homework Should be Abolished: Homework takes up a major part of a child’s life. The 21st century has been a period where students are troubled with homework given on various days for various subjects. Children go through days and evenings on book reports, numerical statements, writing papers, and making science posters or projects. Consequently, homework is an unavoidable piece of the educational system.

After decades of debate, people still argue over the necessity of homework. For some people, it is seen as “burdening the kids” or even “working at home for parents”. These people are right. Without homework, the life of both students, and even parents, would be way better.

You can also find more  Debate Writing  articles on events, persons, sports, technology and many more.

Below I will provide various disadvantages of giving students homework to affirm my opinion on why homework should be abolished from schools.

While we debate on whether homework should be abolished from school it is required to understand that students are given an excessive amount of homework from all subjects and on various assigned days. Homework is an important part of being successful both inside and outside of the classroom, but too much of it can hinder success. Students who invest a lot of energy in homework are not generally ready to address different issues, such as being truly and socially dynamic.

Students these days are managing a lot of homework – spending almost double the amount of time on finishing their homework after school. In a debate on whether homework should be abolished one ought to understand that in case there is lesser homework or no homework by any means, students will be more able to complete their given tasks and have a more prominent feeling of achievement.

While we debate on whether homework should be abolished from school, I might want to highlight that for a student going to class resembles regular work like most of us adults. Schools for the most part start at the beginning of the day around 8 am or even 7:30 am and end at 4:30 pm. That is around 9 hours of work that children are spending in school each day. Include the extracurricular exercises or even the homework which amounts to an additional 2 hours in a youngster’s day. The student on a normal day is going through no less than 11 hours of school-related work. To top it all students are given homework and expected to present their work on the immediately following day. Is this not a ton of stress that we are putting our youngsters through?

Homework is unpleasant. According to research, it has been found out that most students think about homework as an essential cause of stress, while under 1% of students said homework was not a stressor. It has been seen that many school-going youngsters face indications of stress that are lack of sleep, weight reduction, and stomach-related issues.

Along these lines, in a debate on homework should be abolished we can share that no homework approaches no pressure. Without homework, students don’t have to spend all their time sitting before their work area being worn out and stressing over whether they will be able to submit their work the next day.

While we debate on whether homework should be abolished, I might want to mention that teachers believe that the more homework they give, the quicker students will improve and recollect what they have learned. In any case, that isn’t the situation. Normally the more homework students get, the less they are required to take part in learning. This makes homework a demon driving students into an edge of pressure, not a device for urging them to find out additional information. Investing an excess of energy in homework is connected to a reduction in scholarly execution.

Investing an excessive amount of energy in homework implies that students are not gathering their required necessities and other basic fundamental abilities. Students with a lot of homework are bound to stay away from taking part in activities outside-of-school like games, playing instruments, or even learning a new language. Besides, if students invest all their energy doing homework constantly, they probably won’t have the option to acquire fundamental abilities for their future, like being independent, figuring out how to cook, using time productively, or in any event, associating with others. Numerous students feel compelled to pick homework over learning different skills. Thus, while we debate whether homework should be abolished, it ought to be understood that in case students are not given homework, they could invest more energy into their advantages. Students could take up exercises like moving, playing computer games, and painting and simultaneously have the option to find a way into the general public when they grow up.

Family time, shared nights, end-of-the-week trips, and meals are missed by students who are continually investing energy in homework. Then again, without homework, there would be all the more family bonding time, which makes families closer. Lastly, the main thought to be examined in a debate on homework should be abolished will be that homework upsets the sleep cycle. As per research conducted it was discovered that there is a connection between homework completion and sleep disturbance, kids who had less homework would be wise to schedules and had more steady sleep cycles.

Supporters of homework are driving kids away from learning, making them less successful in and out of school, and destroying their childhood by intruding on weekends, vacations, family mealtimes, children’s sleep time, playtime, and downtime.

Most students feel a burden with all their unnecessary homework. They soon feel numb and unmotivated rather than experiencing engaging school life. Hence, I conclude on a note to say that homework should be abolished in the need of the hour.

FAQ’s on Debate on Homework Should be Abolished

Question 1. What is homework?

Answer: Homework is an out of the class task assigned to students as an extension or an elaboration of classwork. There are three kinds of homework – practice, preparation, and extension.

Question 2. What are the disadvantages of homework?

Answer: There are numerous disadvantages of homework. The main disadvantage being it disturbs the rest pattern of the students. Homework adds as a significant worry for youngsters who often fall prey to stress-related health issues. Due to homework, numerous kids are compelled to give a secondary seat to extra-curricular activities that they appreciate and have a great time doing.

Question 3. Does assigning homework cause pressure in kids?

Answer: In research, it has been found out that most students think about homework as a primary cause of stress. It has been seen that many school-going kids face indications of stress that are lack of sleep, weight reduction, and stomach-related issues. The tremendous pressure and wellbeing-related issues are all due to the assignment of homework.

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Why (Most) Homework Should Be Banned

The 30-minute rule is there to justify giving a lot of homework

Anthony Malcolm ‘23 , Staff Writer December 8, 2022

There are plenty of reasons why (most) homework should be banned. I’ll start out with some general facts and look at homework in general, then go into some detail about our school.

Stanford conducted a study surveying over 4,300 students in 10 high performing high schools in California. More than 70% of the students said they were “often or always stressed over schoolwork,” with 56% claiming that homework was the main stressor. But here’s the kicker: Less than 1% said homework was not a stressor. 

The researchers then asked the students if they had exhibited symptoms of stress like headaches, exhaustion, sleep deprivation, weight loss, and stomach problems. More than 80% of the students reported at least one stress related symptom recently and 44% claimed they experienced 3 or more symptoms. The study also found that students who spend a lot of time working on homework experience more stress, physical health problems, and a lack of balance in their lives. The study claimed that any more than 2 hours of homework per night was counterproductive, and that the students who spent too much time on homework were more likely to not participate in activities and hobbies, and stop seeing friends and family. 

A smaller NYU study claimed that students at elite high schools are susceptible to chronic stress, emotional exhaustion, and alcohol and drug abuse. About half of the students said they received at least 3 hours of homework a night on top of being pressured to take college level classes and participate in extracurricular activities (sound familiar?). The study claims that many of the students felt they were being worked as hard as adults, and they said that their workload seemed inappropriate for their development level. The study reported that the students felt that they had little time for relaxing and hobbies. More than two thirds of students said they used alcohol or drugs, primarily marijuana, to cope with the stress.

Back to the Stanford study for a second; many of the students claimed that the homework was “pointless” or “mindless.” The study argues that homework should have a purpose and benefit, which should be to cultivate learning. One of the main reasons is that school feels like a full-time job at this point. We, as in BC High students, are in school from 8:25 till 2:40; most of us have some sort of extracurricular activity on top of that, and most of us have significant commutes, which means we are getting home much later. On top of a rigorous day at school, an afterschool activity, and a commute, we have to deal with a varying amount of homework every night. Sometimes it is 2 hours, sometimes 3, sometimes even 4. I will give you an example of a day in my life last year to provide a specific example, because we are not a one size fits all community. 

I live in Middleboro and Bridgewater, so I ride the train to school which takes 50 minutes to an hour. A spring day last year would start by waking up at 5:30 and then leaving my house to get to the train at 6:30-6:35, getting on the train at 6:50, getting off the train at 7:50, and arriving at the school before classes started at 8:20. I would go through the school day and stay after for track practice. After track, I would most likely get on the train at 5:00 and get home at 6:15. I would eat dinner, shower, and then start my homework around 7:30-8, and usually I would finish somewhere between 10:30ish to 11:30ish. Can you see how that can be misconstrued as a full-time job?

Some of you might be thinking (especially any teacher reading this), why didn’t you use the 30-minute rule? Well, because most (and I mean MOST) of the time the 30-minute rule is an ineffective rule that justifies giving students a lot of homework. If you use the 30-minute rule and don’t finish a homework assignment, it still has to be completed sometime, and you’ll be behind in class. It is only effective when a teacher plans for the 30-minute rule and tells you to stop at 30 minutes to get an idea of how long an assignment takes their students. The 30-minute rule is there to justify giving a lot of homework because if you say in class that the homework took a long time, you will probably be told about the 30-minute rule. But if you used the 30-minute rule, you would have an unfinished homework assignment which means, depending on the class, you would be lost and behind, and you would still have to do it at some point. If you should have to justify giving a lot of homework, then it is probably too much. 

Parker, Clifton B. “Stanford Research Shows Pitfalls of Homework.” Stanford University , 10 Mar. 2014, http://news.stanford.edu/news/2014/march/too-much-homework-031014.html . 

Communications, NYU Web. NYU Study Examines Top High School Students’ Stress and Coping Mechanisms . http://www.nyu.edu/content/nyu/en/about/news-publications/news/2015/august/nyu

-study-examines-top-high-school-students-stress-and-coping-mechanisms . 

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Homework could have an impact on kids’ health. Should schools ban it?

Professor of Education, Penn State

Disclosure statement

Gerald K. LeTendre has received funding from the National Science Foundation and the Spencer Foundation.

Penn State provides funding as a founding partner of The Conversation US.

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Reformers in the Progressive Era (from the 1890s to 1920s) depicted homework as a “sin” that deprived children of their playtime . Many critics voice similar concerns today.

Yet there are many parents who feel that from early on, children need to do homework if they are to succeed in an increasingly competitive academic culture. School administrators and policy makers have also weighed in, proposing various policies on homework .

So, does homework help or hinder kids?

For the last 10 years, my colleagues and I have been investigating international patterns in homework using databases like the Trends in Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) . If we step back from the heated debates about homework and look at how homework is used around the world, we find the highest homework loads are associated with countries that have lower incomes and higher social inequality.

Does homework result in academic success?

Let’s first look at the global trends on homework.

Undoubtedly, homework is a global phenomenon ; students from all 59 countries that participated in the 2007 Trends in Math and Science Study (TIMSS) reported getting homework. Worldwide, only less than 7% of fourth graders said they did no homework.

TIMSS is one of the few data sets that allow us to compare many nations on how much homework is given (and done). And the data show extreme variation.

For example, in some nations, like Algeria, Kuwait and Morocco, more than one in five fourth graders reported high levels of homework. In Japan, less than 3% of students indicated they did more than four hours of homework on a normal school night.

TIMSS data can also help to dispel some common stereotypes. For instance, in East Asia, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Japan – countries that had the top rankings on TIMSS average math achievement – reported rates of heavy homework that were below the international mean.

In the Netherlands, nearly one out of five fourth graders reported doing no homework on an average school night, even though Dutch fourth graders put their country in the top 10 in terms of average math scores in 2007.

Going by TIMSS data, the US is neither “ A Nation at Rest” as some have claimed, nor a nation straining under excessive homework load . Fourth and eighth grade US students fall in the middle of the 59 countries in the TIMSS data set, although only 12% of US fourth graders reported high math homework loads compared to an international average of 21%.

So, is homework related to high academic success?

At a national level, the answer is clearly no. Worldwide, homework is not associated with high national levels of academic achievement .

But, the TIMSS can’t be used to determine if homework is actually helping or hurting academic performance overall , it can help us see how much homework students are doing, and what conditions are associated with higher national levels of homework.

We have typically found that the highest homework loads are associated with countries that have lower incomes and higher levels of social inequality – not hallmarks that most countries would want to emulate.

Impact of homework on kids

TIMSS data also show us how even elementary school kids are being burdened with large amounts of homework.

Almost 10% of fourth graders worldwide (one in 10 children) reported spending multiple hours on homework each night. Globally, one in five fourth graders report 30 minutes or more of homework in math three to four times a week.

These reports of large homework loads should worry parents, teachers and policymakers alike.

Empirical studies have linked excessive homework to sleep disruption , indicating a negative relationship between the amount of homework, perceived stress and physical health.

What constitutes excessive amounts of homework varies by age, and may also be affected by cultural or family expectations. Young adolescents in middle school, or teenagers in high school, can study for longer duration than elementary school children.

But for elementary school students, even 30 minutes of homework a night, if combined with other sources of academic stress, can have a negative impact . Researchers in China have linked homework of two or more hours per night with sleep disruption .

Even though some cultures may normalize long periods of studying for elementary age children, there is no evidence to support that this level of homework has clear academic benefits . Also, when parents and children conflict over homework, and strong negative emotions are created, homework can actually have a negative association with academic achievement.

Should there be “no homework” policies?

Administrators and policymakers have not been reluctant to wade into the debates on homework and to formulate policies . France’s president, Francois Hollande, even proposed that homework be banned because it may have inegaliatarian effects.

However, “zero-tolerance” homework policies for schools, or nations, are likely to create as many problems as they solve because of the wide variation of homework effects. Contrary to what Hollande said, research suggests that homework is not a likely source of social class differences in academic achievement .

Homework, in fact, is an important component of education for students in the middle and upper grades of schooling.

Policymakers and researchers should look more closely at the connection between poverty, inequality and higher levels of homework. Rather than seeing homework as a “solution,” policymakers should question what facets of their educational system might impel students, teachers and parents to increase homework loads.

At the classroom level, in setting homework, teachers need to communicate with their peers and with parents to assure that the homework assigned overall for a grade is not burdensome, and that it is indeed having a positive effect.

Perhaps, teachers can opt for a more individualized approach to homework. If teachers are careful in selecting their assignments – weighing the student’s age, family situation and need for skill development – then homework can be tailored in ways that improve the chance of maximum positive impact for any given student.

I strongly suspect that when teachers face conditions such as pressure to meet arbitrary achievement goals, lack of planning time or little autonomy over curriculum, homework becomes an easy option to make up what could not be covered in class.

Whatever the reason, the fact is a significant percentage of elementary school children around the world are struggling with large homework loads. That alone could have long-term negative consequences for their academic success.

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18 Advantages and Disadvantages of Homework Should Be Banned

Homework has been a part of the schooling experience for multiple generations. There are some lessons that are perfect for the classroom environment, but there are also some things that children can learn better at home. As a general rule, the maximum amount of time that a student should spend each day on lessons outside of school is 10 minutes per each grade level.

That means a first grader should spend about 10 minutes each night on homework. If you are a senior in high school, then the maximum limit would be two hours. For some students, that might still be too much extra time doing work. There are some calls to limit the amount of time spent on extra limits to 30 minutes per day at all of the older K-12 grades – and some are saying that homework should be banned outright.

Can teachers get all of the lessons taught in an appropriate way during the 1-2 hours per subject that they might get each day? Do parents have an opportunity to review what their children learn at school if none of the work ever gets brought back home?

There are several advantages and disadvantages of why homework should be banned from the current school structure.

List of the Advantages of Why Homework Should Be Banned

1. Homework creates a longer day for students than what parents work. There are times when parents need to bring work home with them after a long day of productivity, but this time is usually part of a compensation package. Students do not receive the same luxury. After spending 6-8 hours at school, there might be two more hours of homework to complete before getting through all of the assignments that are due. That means some kids are putting in a longer working day than their parents. This disadvantage means there are fewer moments for going outside, spending time with friends, or pursuing a hobby.

2. There is no guarantee of an improved academic outcome. Research studies provide conflicting results when looking at the impact of homework on a student’s life. Younger students may benefit from a complete ban so that they can separate their home and classroom experiences. Even older students who perform projects outside of the school benefit from time restrictions on this responsibility. Design flaws exist on both sides of the clinical work that looks at this topic, so there is no definitive scientific conclusion that points to a specific result. It may be better to err on the side of caution.

3. Homework restrictions reduce issues with classroom burnout for students. Homework stress is a significant problem in the modern classroom for K-12 students. Even kids in grade school are finding it a challenge to maintain their performance because of the pressure that daily assignments cause. About 1 in 4 teachers in North America say that there are direct adverse impacts that happen because of the amount of learning required of students today. It can also cause older students to drop out of school because they can’t stay caught up on the work that they need to do.

When students have a chance to have time to pursue interests outside of the classroom, then it can create healthier learning opportunities in the future for them.

4. Banning homework would give families more time to spend together. One in three American households with children say that the homework assignments that teachers give are the primary source of stress in their home. When kids must complete their work by a specific deadline, then there is less time for families to do activities together. Instead of scheduling their time around their free hours, they must balance homework requirements in their plans. There are even fewer moments for parents to be involved in the learning process because of the specific instructions that students must follow to stay in compliance with the assignment.

5. Student health is adversely impacted by too many homework assignments. Kids of any age struggle academically when they do not have opportunities to finish their homework by a specific deadline. It is not unusual for school administrators and some teachers to judge children based on their ability to turn work in on time. If a child has a robust work ethic and still cannot complete the work, the negative approach that they might encounter in the classroom could cause them to abandon their learning goals.

This issue can even lead to the development of mental health problems. It can reduce a child’s self-esteem, prevent them from learning essential learning skills, and disrupt their ability to learn new skills in other areas of life outside of the classroom. Even the risk of self-harm and suicide increase because of excessive homework. That’s why banning it could be a healthy choice for some people.

6. Banning homework would help students get more sleep. Teens need up to 10 hours of sleep each night to maximize their productivity. Students in grade school can need up to 12 hours nightly as well. When homework assignments are necessary and time consuming, then this issue can eat into the amount of rest that kids get each night. Every assignment given to a K-12 student increases their risks of losing at least one hour of sleep per night. This issue can eventually lead to sleep deficits that can create chronic learning issues. It may even lead to problems with emotional control, obesity, and attention problems. Banning homework would remove the issue entirely.

7. It would encourage dynamic learning opportunities. There are some homework projects that students find to be engaging, such as a science fair project or another hands-on assignment. Many of the tasks that students must complete for their teachers involves repetition instead. You might see grade school students coming home with math sheets with 100 or more problems for them to solve. Reading assignments are common at all grades. Instead of learning the “why” behind the information they learn, the goal with homework is usually closer to memorization that it is to self-discovery. That’s why it can be challenging to retain the data that homework provides.

8. Banning homework would provide more time for peer socialization. Students who are only spending time in school before going home to do homework for the rest of the evening are at a higher risk of experiencing isolation and loneliness. When these sentiments are present in the life of a child, then they are more likely to experience physical and mental health concerns that lead to shyness and avoidance.

These students lack essential connections with other people because of their need to complete homework. The adverse impact on the well being of a child is the equivalent of smoking more than a pack of cigarettes each day. If kids are spending time all of their time on homework, then they are not connecting with their family and friends.

9. Some students do not have a home environment that’s conducive to homework. Although some kids can do their homework in a tranquil room without distress, that is not the case for most children. Numerous events happen at home that can shift a child’s attention away from the homework that their teacher wants them to complete. It isn’t just the TV, video games, and the Internet which are problematic either. Family problems, chores, an after-school job, and team sports can make it problematic to get the assignments finished on time.

Banning homework equalizes the playing field because teachers can control the classroom environment. They do not have control over when, where, or how their students complete assignments away from school.

10. It would eliminate the assignment of irrelevant work. Homework can be a useful tool when teachers use it in targeted ways. There are times when these assignments are handed out for the sake of giving out busy work. If the content of the work is irrelevant to the lessons in the classroom, then it should not be handed out. It is unreasonable to expect that a student can generate excellent grades on work that is barely covered in the classroom.

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development reports that given students just four hours of take-home assignments per week has a detrimental impact on individual productivity. The average U.S. high school already pushes that limit by offering 3.5 hours of extra assignments per week.

List of the Disadvantages of Why Homework Should Be Banned

1. Teachers can see if students understand the materials being taught. Homework allows a teacher to determine if a student has a grasp on the materials being taught in the classroom. Tests and school-based activities can provide this information as well, but not in the same way. If the data sticks outside of the educational setting, then this is an excellent indication that the process was effective for that individual. If there are gaps in knowledge that occur in the homework, then the learning process can become individualized to ensure the best possible results for each child.

2. Homework can reduce the stress and anxiety of test-taking. Students often study for tests at home to ensure that they can pass with an acceptable grade. Walking into a classroom only prepared with the notes and memories of previous lessons can create high levels of fear that could impact that child’s final result. Banning homework could place more pressure on kids to succeed than what they currently experience today. This disadvantage would also create more labels in the classroom based on the performance of each child in unfair ways. Some students excel in a lecture-based environment, but others do better at home where there are fewer distractions.

3. Assignments can be an effective way to discover learning disabilities. Kids do an excellent job of hiding their struggles in the classroom from adults. They use their disguises as a coping mechanism to help them blend in when they feel different. That behavior can make it a challenge to identify students who many benefit from a different learning approach in specific subjects. By assigning homework to each child periodically, there are more opportunities to identify the issues that can hold some people back. Then the teachers can work with the families to develop alternative learning plans that can make the educational process better for each student because individual assignments eliminate the ability to hide.

4. Parents are more involved in the learning process because of homework. Parents need to know what their children are learning in school. Even if they ask their kids about what they are learning, the answers tend to be given in generalities. Without specific examples from the classroom, it is challenging to stay involved in a student’s educational process.

By sending homework from the school, it allows the entire family to encounter the assignments that their kids are doing when they are in school during the day. Then there is more adult involvement with the learning process, reinforcing the core ideas that were discovered by their kids each day.

5. Homework provides opportunities for students to use deeper research. The average classroom in the United States provides less than 60 minutes of instruction for each subject daily. Generalist teachers in grade school might skip certain subjects on some days as well. When there are homework assignments going home, then it creates more chances to use the tools at home to learn more about what is happening at school. Taking a deeper look at specific subjects or lessons through independent study can lead to new thoughts or ideas that may not occur in the classroom environment. This process can eventually lead to a better understanding of the material.

6. The homework process requires time management and persistence to be successful. Students must learn core life skills as part of the educational process. Time management skills are one of the most useful tools that can be in a child’s life toolbox. When you know how to complete work by a deadline consistently, then this skill can translate to an eventual career. Homework can also teach students how to solve complex problems, understand current events, or tap into what they are passionate about in life. By learning from an early age that there are jobs that we sometimes need to do even if we don’t want to them, the persistence lessons can translate into real successes later in life.

7. Assignments make students accountable for their role in the educational process. Teachers cannot force a student to learn anything. There must be a desire present in the child to know more for information retention to occur. An education can dramatically improve the life of a child in multiple ways. It can lead to more income opportunities, a greater understanding of the world, and how to establish a healthy routine. By offering homework to students, teachers are encouraging today’s kids how to be accountable for their role in their own education. It creates opportunities to demonstrate responsibility by proving that the work can be done on time and to a specific quality.

8. It creates opportunities to practice time management. There can be problems with homework for some students when they are heavily involved in extra-curricular activities. If you give a child two hours of homework after school and they have two hours of commitments to manage at the same time, then there are some significant challenges to their time management to solve. Time really is a finite commodity. If we are unable to manage it in wise ways, then our productivity levels are going to be limited in multiple ways. Creating a calendar with every responsibility and commitment helps kids and their families figure out ways to manage everything while pushing the learning process forward.

Verdict of the Advantages and Disadvantages of Banning Homework

Some students thrive on the homework they receive from their teachers each day. There are also some kids that struggle to complete even basic assignments on time because of their home environment. How can we find a balance between the two extremes so that every child can receive the best possible chance to succeed?

One solution is to ban homework entirely. Although taking this action would require teachers and parents to be proactive in their communication, it could help to equalize the educational opportunities in the classroom.

Until more research occurs in this area, the advantages and disadvantages of banning homework are subjective. If you feel that your child would benefit from a reduced workload, then speak with the teacher to see if this is an option. For teens and older students, there is always the option to pursue a different form of education, such as a vocational school or an apprenticeship, if the traditional classroom doesn’t seem to be working.

Homework Should Be Banned

Should students be given homework tasks to complete outside school? Or are such tasks pointless?

All the Yes points:

Homework has little educational worth and adds nothing to the time spent in school. some schools an…, homework is almost always done when a child is already tired from a long day at school. as a result…, setting homework does little to develop good study skills. it is hard to check whether the homework…, homework produces large amount of pointless work of little educational value, but marking it ties up…, homework puts students off learning. studies have shown that many children find doing homework very…, homework takes a lot of time up. being young is not just about doing school work. it should also a…, homework is a class issue. in school everyone is equal, but at home some people have advantages bec…, all the no points:, yes because….

Homework has little educational worth and adds nothing to the time spent in school. Some schools and some countries don’t bother with homework at all, and their results do not seem to suffer from it. Studies show that homework adds nothing to standardised test scores for primary/ elementary pupils. International comparisons of older students have found no positive relationship between the amount of homework set and average test scores. If anything, countries with more homework got worse results!

No because…

Homework is a vital and valuable part of education. There are only a few hours in each school day – not enough time to cover properly all the subjects children need to study. Setting homework extends study beyond school hours, allowing a wider and deeper education. It also makes the best use of teachers, who can spend lesson time teaching rather than just supervising individual work that could be done at home. Tasks such as reading, writing essays, researching, doing maths problems, etc. are best done at home, away from the distractions of other students.

Homework is almost always done when a child is already tired from a long day at school. As a result few students are at their best when they sit down in the evening to yet more work. Homework ends up being done in a hurry, by students fighting fatigue, and poor quality work is produced. Worse still, students who have been up late trying to finish off their homework, then come tired into school the next day, and so are less ready to learn. Really, what is the point?

Having homework also allows students to really fix in their heads work they have done in school. Doing tasks linked to recent lessons helps students strengthen their understanding and become more confident in using new knowledge and skills. For younger children this could be practising reading or multiplication tables. For older ones it might be writing up an experiment, revising for a test, reading in preparation for the next topic, etc.

Setting homework does little to develop good study skills. It is hard to check whether the homework students produce is really their own. Some students have always copied off others or got their parents to help them. But today there is so much material available on the internet that teachers can never be sure. It would be better to have a mixture of activities in the classroom which help students to develop a whole range of skills, including independent learning.

Homework prepares students to work more independently, as they will have to at college and in the workplace. Everyone needs to develop skills in personal organisation, working to deadlines, being able to research, etc. If students are always “spoon-fed” topics at school they will never develop study skills and self-discipline for the future.

Homework produces large amount of pointless work of little educational value, but marking it ties up much of teachers’ time. This leaves teachers tired and with little time to prepare more effective, inspiring lessons. The heavy workload also puts young graduates off becoming teachers, and so reduces the talent pool from which schools can recruit.

Teachers accept that marking student work is an important part of their job. Well planned homework should not take so long to mark that the rest of their job suffers, and it can inform their understanding of their students, helping them design new activities to engage and stretch them. As for recruitment, although teachers do often work in the evenings, they are not alone in this and they get long holidays to compensate.

Homework puts students off learning. Studies have shown that many children find doing homework very stressful, boring and tiring. Often teachers underestimate how long a task will take, or set an unrealistic deadline. Sometimes because a teacher has not explained something new well in class, the homework task is impossible. So children end up paying with their free time for the failings of their teachers. They also suffer punishments if work is done badly or late. After years of bad homework experiences, it is no wonder that many children come to dislike education and switch off, or drop out too early.

If homework puts students off learning, then it has been badly planned by the teacher. The best homework tasks engage and stretch students, encouraging them to think for themselves and follow through ideas which interest them. Over time, well planned homework can help students develop good habits, such as reading for pleasure or creative writing.

Homework takes a lot of time up. Being young is not just about doing school work. It should also about being physically active, exploring the environment through play, doing creative things like music and art, and playing a part in the community. It is also important for young people to build bonds with others, especially family and friends, but homework often squeezes the time available for all these things.

Again, just because some teachers are bad at setting homework that is not a reason to scrap it altogether. Homework needs to be well designed and should not take up all of students’ spare time. Recent American surveys found that most students in the USA spent no more than an hour a night on homework. That suggests there does not seem to be a terrible problem with the amount being set.

Homework is a class issue. In school everyone is equal, but at home some people have advantages because of their family background. Middle-class families with books and computers will be able to help their children much more than poorer ones can. This can mean working class children end up with worse grades and more punishments for undone or badly done homework. On the other hand pushy parents may even end up doing their kids’ homework for them – cheating. And homework is one of the most common causes of family arguments.

Education is a partnership between the child, the school and the home. Homework is one of the main ways in which the student’s family can be involved with their learning. Many parents value the chance to see what their child is studying and to support them in it. And schools need parents’ support in encouraging students to read at home, to help with the practising of tables, and to give them opportunities to research new topics.

Teachers don’t understand the students’ pain and struggle they are going through, they just assign some exercises, look at the solution and present it the next day.

Students spend up to a third of their day working hard at school; they deserve to have a break. Not only do students deserve to have a break, but they also deserve to have time for themselves to indulge in extracurricular activities like, sports, music, and swimming, etc. So homework must be banned

Homework should be giving as much as the student can take but not so much that students will have bad filling about books.

I think that kids like me spend a lot of time playing video games . I also think that some kids get torn by homework especially during quarantine. Kids are forced to do school from home and homework from home as well. This can be hours and hours of work and can be very stressful.

If you keep your mind fully on studies you don’t need o do homework but if you don’t follow the class then you need to do homework as it makes us revise what you have studied in school but obviously the sclools give us a lot homework in our holidays which is not needed.But what if your child has not understood a thing in school? if you do homework the child will ask you the thing that he has not understood.So homework is needed but not always.

at the top it looks like shes crying of homework that is just toter

i dont like it because it is a waste of time plus no one cares about it thats why it is boring

i think homewrok is waste of time because you might get stressed and it just takes away time with your family

Homework should be a choice. School is already stressing enough and students need to be able to have a life outside of school so they can relax and not have to worry about school anymore. If a student needs help then they could ask for some extra work in order to be able to help themselves.

Kids, remember that homework is a waste of time, its just extra work school gives you

you are so right

I don’t think it is right in many situations. You see, homework are meant to make you better, not worse, but too much is just tiring.

who said it was making you worse?

But Homework Does More Bad Than Good. Many Even Try Suicide Because Of Homework. 

Then how teachers will understand that which student did understand the lesson and which one not?? . Homework is the way to understand that which student is improving and which one is not. Who lazy and bad student they talk like that.

Well the 7-8 hours that students are already in school apparently doesn’t let them do a ten minute knowledge check on the topic.

homework should be banned from schools because it makes students very tired . It puts more pushers on the child and the child does not wasn’t to do it . The child is already tired from school and they get more work . It is very stressful for a child Excess homework causes children to feel ‘burnt out’ Do you thing my worth opponent is excess of homework good for a child? No it is not good for a child as it leads to coping and negative attitude in them it ruins the child’s life. its also a waste of time. you could be doing something you love like hanging with your friends, or spending quality time with your family homework takes all the time . homework is an unnecessary pain to parents, teachers, and most of all, students. Homework is worthless. It does nothing but creates a monstrous picture of our studies in our minds

uhm what is homework ???

homework sucks

i have homework and find that it has help me a lot with my school work. i believe that some teachers are the cause of not liking homework but you never really know. personally i love homework and think it shouldn’t be banned

I just wanted to say that I had an exam question received late at night which i had forgotten about, about the topic of homework being banned. THIS SAVED MY FRICKING LIFE! THANK YOU WHOEVER MADE THIS!

So you plagiarized?

well, thank you for the comments and opinions it totally helps a lot to make a research about “banning homework”

I am a 5th grade student. Simply put, I absolutely HATE homework! It is stressful and leaves me no time to independently read! (I love to read) I did some research, and found that countries/states with no homework don’t do bad, but actually do good. Finland has banned homework, yet it is deemed the “happiest country” and comes at the top of exams. Ban homework!!!

I’m in 6th grade and I agree with you all except reading I like games

Personally, I don’t quite have the same opinion. It’s different for everyone. I also dislike homework, but I have to do it because I think it’s important

In my opinion, homework should not be banned entirely. The workload should be lessened. Often times, the amount of work children have to do can deprive them of sleep, which can lead to many negative side effects such as depression. Often times, the children at the schools I’ve been to have had to drink coffee or other caffeinated beverages to get through the day, and needed melatonin to sleep, just to wake up 4 hours later. This is mainly due to the homework weighing down on them. Homework should still be assigned in schools, but the amount of homework given to students should be lessened.

here is a summary of whats above about why homework should be banned. I added a few things. Also, its in my own words so if anybody wants it for their school classwork they can copy it and put it in their classwork.

 I think homework should be banned. Because first it’s hard to see if a student homework is really done by himself. Second many people copy other friend work and get many helps from their families. It would be much better to have a mixture of work (activities) in the class which will help the student to develop skills which includes learning independently. Also, there is evidence, did you know that an estimated of 17 percent of kids don’t do their homework. And an estimated 20 percent of kids copy their homework from other students. Moreover, did you know that over 70% of kids don’t like to do their homework.  Even a famous Author named Justin Coulson does want homework to be banned. He said, “They spend enough time in class.”  

the entire internet thanks you

i think either classwork or homework should be banned cause in my country you have to do like atleast 4 homeworks ( do note that i am in 6th) and on average per day you hae to do 6 homeworks plus whatever extra work your teacher gives you ( unless they are nice like my eng teacher ). schoolwork consumes 6 HOURS of my screen time plus 2 or 1 hour of hw screentime. i am a lucky kid cause i can do 11 homeworks in 1 day but that is just not fair. my hobbie is ti play games and stream that but parents say that it takes up 3 hours of my time. one question i ask you, doesnt school take up doeble the fricking time schoo – 6hours + 1 hour of hw + 1 hour of extraa work. games = 3 hours ( at max ) + 1 hour of tv ( i watch like once in a week ) now you only tell me what is affecting my health more, school or games ? i wake up late at 830 thinking that today is a good day but all of a sudden school f@#ks with me and screws me up.

schoo – 6hours + 1 hour of hw + 1 hour of extraa work.this 

We are doing a debate for school on whether we should have homework or not so me and my group decided to search it up. 😉

i believe it shouldnt be “banned” as im a kid. i sometimes enjoy homework, sometimes i don’t. but i believe its not all positive. i get done with online school, i do my homework, but man am i exhausted. i think homework should only be done as a punishment.

Yes, I am always against the motion.

Your having fun then ur mom asks “have you done your homework yet!”

It turns out, homework was made as a punishment by an Italian pedagog Roberto Nevilis for his students. So for those who disagree that homework should not be banned, have empathy for students who have to take up their social time only for homework. Like many people commented, it’ll waste their childhood.

STOP THE HOMEWORK STOP THE HOMEWORK STOP THE HOMEWORK STOP THE HOMEWORK

ofc it should be banned. I spend HOURS a day trying to complete a simple math problem because my brain was fried at school. school is the majority of my day. I dont want to spend the little time I have with my busy parents and busier siblings alone doing friggin spanish or something. Optional homework is fine, since that is available for the people who have time for it. But for people like me who have siblings to look after and dinner to cook, adding homework to the mix is too much. And now with covid, the workload DOUBLED. fall of 2020 better be better because this spring just wasnt it. Before you fuck up my brain and drive me crazy, please think about how we are entering high school and thats just a little stressful. Think about how we have responsibilites. smh

Please don’t use insult words.

homework is the worst

I hate homeworks

Homework shouldn’t be ban, but too much homework should. No more then an hour of homework. Kids can’t handle that stress like adults can.

uhm. no HOMEWORK! HOMEWORK IS GONNA MAKE US SUICIDE IF WE CONTINUE THIS. AHHHHHHHHHHH

Don’t you know that homework is a punishment? Look it up. You shouldn’t be doing school at home. You should be doing school at school. Just a little homework is still considered a punishment. I hope homework doesn’t become a regular thing, oh wait it is.

hw’s so bad ,i hate hw✄

Homework should be banned it should be banned you telling me that they don’t have “enough time” to learn what they need to learn. It takes time out of a students life. You people say that childhood is most precious Well how can they have one if they are spending hours upon hours on homework. It waste their free time and their parents time to spend on them. Is homework that important to take away a Childs freedom huh. huh explain it explain it I want to know. homework is a waste of time Childhood is something you can’t get back. 8th grade has already made it to were I might have a mental breakdown. Yes I am a 8th grader so your hearing the opinion of one. Homework should be banned. I spend 8 hours at school and 3 hours on homework even more. Why should school have the authority to stick its fucking fingers in my lives and other students. Its no wonder why students our stressed and mentally unstable. Home should be a time to spend time with family, relaxing, maybe spend a hour or hour and thirty or so to have me time. These are the many reasons why my school system and others are fucked up. so get your fucking head on straight when you think about whether homework is good for kids or not

I also forgot that some parents don’t care I live with my grandparents and my Nana once said to me that this was more important than eating and that point if I run away its she needs to know its her fault

Homework should be limited if not banned. I’m in 6th grade and have a mental breakdown at least once a week. I get about 10 pieces of homework A DAY. I get home from school at 3 and am working on homework till 8. I get to spend about 10 MINUTES with my family before going to bed.

Limited? It should be banned. Pretty stupid for a 6th grader.

I’m in 5th grade. I have to study 7th grade work. :(

It turns out, homework was made as a punishment by an Italian pedagog Roberto Nevilis for his students. So for those who disagree that homework should not be banned, have empathy for students who have to take up their social time only for homework. Like many people commented, it’ll waste their childhood.

whos the author

love him/her

What is school for if all the learning is done at home?

Its not school its just work!

i hate homework.

me too teachers suck

Hello have you guys heard about coronavirus? Search an article on this website!

I have my father keeps on searchin’ stuff ’bout it. I am bored coz of it.😒

Yes of course

stop trying to sell your rubbish nobody cares

ofc we heard. were not dumb

I really do think that homework should be banned. First off kids work 8 hours in school and they have to do homework right when they get home. A lot of kids stress doing homework when they get home because they wan’t to spend their free time.

I think that homework should be banned cause as a senior in high school I can honestly say that this has been my best year yet without worrying about the amount of homework and how long it would take me. I have done better this year because the lack of homework has taken a lot of stress off and has given me time to work on assignments that we do in class and get ahead. SO yeah I think homework should be banned.

Thanks for hearing me out yours truly, Cookie monster

Thanks for hearing me out yours truly, alex

Homework Should Be Banned Yes because… Homework is almost always done when a child is already tired from a long day at school. As a result… Homework is almost always done when a child is already tired from a long day at school. As a result few students are at their best when they sit down in the evening to yet more work. Homework ends up being done in a hurry, by students fighting fatigue, and poor quality work is produced. Worse still, students who have been up late trying to finish off their homework, then come tired into school the next day, and so are less ready to learn. Really, what is the point?

Homework is practice. But too much is no good. At the same time, it every student of mine has 30 minutes of homework from each lesson he attends in a day, it adds up to 3 thirds of his school day, leaving little room to explore other interests. I also believe that teachers need to add value to the cirriculum by adding things that are left out, like how to learn, using imagination and teaching budgeting, house work and other subjects deemed unsuitable for class environment.

It’s not a practice it’s a punishment.

i think homework should be banned because statistics show that homework can cause disengage students from families and cause anxiety/depression

Finland is known as the happiest country in the world for students and thats because kids arent even given a hint of homework and the graduation rate is 93% while in the US kids are given 50 minutes of homework a day and the graduation rate is 73% what does that tell you about the effect of homework

That tells us nothing about the effect of homework. There may be correlation, but that does not mean causation.

bruh.. its a website on why homework should be BANNED not the effects of homework

homework should be banned because it causes unnecessary stress

In China, every student should do homework for 2 to 3 hours.

Shut up and go to China.

BRO you guy only need 2-3 hours in Vietnam we have to do it more than 3.5 hours :P

Alright, I’m here at finland, and I live here, and I go to school. You see, there’s alot of homework. And extra in quarentine. So, the “kids arent even given a hint of homework” is kinda false. We DO get homework. Alot actually, if I say so myself. But it’s not alot. I can deal with it.

Stop spreading false information.

Finally someone with a brain.

U r angílina harry ?

it more like anywhere from 1- 8 hours of homework jsut depends on the day and the teacher

Reason 1: Studies tell us that homework doesn’t help us at all on standardised test scores for elementary students. International comparisons of students that are older have noticed no good relationship between the amount of homework set and average test scores. Also countries that have more homework have worse results on tests! So if you get worse results on your test, what’s the point?

Reason 2: Homework is mostly done when a child is already tired from School. The result is that few students are are ready for homework when they sit down in the evening to . Homework ends up being done in a hurry, by students fighting fatigue, and poor quality work is produced. Even worse , students who have stayed up late trying to finish their homework, come to school tired, and are less ready for work. So really, what is the point? That’s why homework should be banned.

Homework takes away from family time. If your son/daughter is so tierd after school and they have to do homework and don’t do good u would want too help and that’s cheeting. Then you cant do family stuff like play games together or eat diner together. Homework is like a dementor, sucking tha happiness out of life

homework gives self-confidence and self-motivation to a student to do well.it checks our ability and capacity to do well

In other words, destroys our self confidence

Oh look the most downv- I mean disliked comment on the page.

Homework is almost always done when a child is already tired from a long day at school. As a result few students are at their best when they sit down in the evening to yet more work

all homework does is just help you redo the hard lesson ALL OVER AGAIN and barely even helps you. a school that abolished homework didn’t suffer from it, and a school with more homework got worse grades! it also makes it hard for teachers to prepare for learning just from marking homework. what is the point of doing one hard page of homework when you barely even get celebrated for it? its just pointless work for hours instead of going outside to play, doing creative things like music and art, helping your friends and family or watching TV and playing video games.

Homework Shouldn’t be banned It improves your child’s thinking and memory. It helps your child develop positive study skills and habits that will serve him or her well throughout life.

NO, it doesn’t If there is one person you need to hear from about homework, It’s kids who actually have homework. Homework has done nothing good for me except for putting pressure on me and when I don’t do it, my grades go down even when I do well in class it’s just the homework that hurts kid’s grades for no reason.

That is not true because they need to spend time with family as well as that they also need excersice so you are wrong and I don’t think anyone would disagree with my dession.

How does it improve children’s thinking and memory? How does it help them develop positive study skills if they have to miss out on family time, sport etc. The only thing that would do is make children hate homework for taking them away from other activities.

This is more disliked than the reply I said was the most disliked.

MY friend, you have chosen the wrong place to talk about your opinion :P

I think homework should be banned the students do enough work in class. Another reason is I believe it takes away from time spent with family,friends,sports or even just playing outside.

Statistics show that homework causes: -Stress,headaches,stomach problems -Also arguments between parents and children -Lack of sleep -Can affect “physical health” and “mental health” -Less than 1% of students say homework is not a stressor.

In some countries teachers don’t bother giving homework and their results turn out to be perfectly fine!

I have anxiety cause of overwhelming homework and I sleep at 3:00am finishing it. Sometimes I don’t even do it and that what makes my grades suffer. If it weren’t for homework, I would probably get better grades

Homework should be banned because not all families have good educational facilities and students have also varying family pressure. The often work on errands and not always get adequate time. Also many schools give very hard topics in homework.

‪Homework should be banned as our children do enough in school… there is too much pressure on children to grow up quick, they do not get the time to rest, have fun and be children… I would also like to add when it comes to after school or weekends I like to spend quality time as a family doing fun things not push them into doing additional school work that is what teachers are paid for and to do in school time!!‬

Homework shouldn’t take so long as to hardly spend any family quality time together. Each school is different in the amount of homework they give, and if a school is giving a lot of homework, that should be changed, and it should be lessened, but not banned. If it’s banned, then what are they going to do all day? Just play with no intellectual mind whatsoever? How will that prepare them for the real world? Not to mention, summer break, winter break, fall break, and spring break is a time of relaxation. What’s the harm in giving homework on school days. After all, school is a place of education, and if the homework is given correctly and efficiently, it shouldn’t be a problem.

if school is a place of education why should a home be the same? and clearly you forgot about holiday homework, which turns a relaxing break into a time of stress as these assignments often take much longer to complete. and also that, in the UK at least) only 12 weeks of a year are spent in breaks which means 76% percent of a year is spent in school and doing homework. and not to mention the time teachers say homework takes is often underestimated.

The problem is, homework ISN’t given correctly and efficiently… Secondly, whose job is it to help children learn? The government? No, it’s the parents job to look after their children. If the children are ‘playing with no intellectual mind whatsoever’, who’s job is it to fix that? Certainly not the government…

Excuse me? Did you get say

“Not to mention, summer break, winter break, fall break, and spring break is a time of relaxation. What’s the harm in giving homework on school days.”

Well obviously YOU haven’t had the packets and packets of the homework that my teachers have given me on those “ times of relaxation “. So next time, maybe refresh your memory.

homework should be either an option or banned because children are kept up late trying to finish it.Those how do finish are tired and grumpy and will most likely get growled at and those how don’t finish will either get a growling or detention and or is tired. When kids do homework they don’t get time for there self and to top it off they won’t get time to do anything when at college and high school.

School equal? You must be insane.

Homework is not worthless guys.Homework is such a thing that helps us to check our abilities.It also helps us to revise the lectures of school.If anyone says that they do not get time to play or spend time with their family than manage yourself.Make a time table and follow it.Homework also teaches us to tackle with the suitation .If anyone rather says that he/she got glasses because of this homework than just think that getting glasses by using electronic things is more good than getting glasses than studying ?? just think with calm mind!! and write what you feel about……..

how would you manage yourself with such little time i mean if you get about 30 minutes of homework for each class 30 times 7 is 3 1/2 hours and if you get home at 3 then it is 6:30 when you are done ad you also have to eat i go to bed at 7.

Homework is worthless.It does nothing but creates a monstrous picture of our studies in our minds. Albert Einstein once said “Imagination rules the world but our current educational system has changed the word “imagination” with “education”. Moreover, Albert Einstein also said that “Playing is the highest form of research” so we should first focus on laying which leads to creativity. And through creativity, we can automatically have knowledge; the knowledge we get through playing will forever be cherished not the knowledge we get through mountains of memorizing

Homework is turning children into couch potatoes as they spend an increasing amount of their time in their bedrooms instead of playing outside

I am currently a sophomore and I have to deal with homework on a day to day basis, plus the additional packet I must complete every week. It is not hard but it is very time consuming and I barely spend time with anymore. I am to the point of bring too and I’m constanly having suicidal thoughts. I can’t do this anymore.

I know its hard and i know it sucks, but hang in there. You’ve got only got a few more years left but at the same time you don’t have to look at this as a completely terrible time, life is a journey not a destination. What that means is that you should not expect the future to hold bliss. Every single moment is one which you can enjoy. Happiness is a state, be open to it and it will come. So what do you wanna do Now? do you have a hobby? Maybe you wanna read that book. you do that! Hang out with some pals? Go right ahead. Learn something new? what are you waiting for?! Live life in the Now, the best way you know how. That will automatically benefit your future as well. Now, a lot of people say, work hard. I say work efficiently. Try and get your homework done in as little time as possible, with effective output. Using methods of effective work: I highly recommend watching Thomas Frank on you tube for this.

Good luck :)

Homework is an unecesary pain to parents, teachers, and most of all, students. it causes disfunction in mental health, and could even effect families private lives. its also a waste of time. you could be doing something you love like hanging with your friends, or spending quality time with your family, but NO! honestly… i dont think homework should be banned… i think it should be optional. i hope you found this helpful.

Homework is almost always done when a child is already tired from a long day at school. As a result few students are at their best when they sit down in the evening to yet more work. Homework ends up being done in a hurry, by students fighting fatigue, and poor quality work is produced. Worse still, students who have been up late trying to finish off their homework, then come tired into school the next day, and so are less ready to learn. Really, what is the point

I think homework is a bad learning tool for multiple reasons: A)If the student can do the homework than it was a large waste of time. B) if the student cannot do the homework, they would ask thier parents for help, therefore makeing the homework usless for the fact that the parent did the homework. C) if the student cannot do the homework and does not do it, that will lower thier grades without learning what the right the right thing to do, therefore makeing the homework usless.

Homework is a class issue. In school everyone is equal, but at home some people have advantages because of their family background. Middle-class families with books and computers will be able to help their children much more than poorer ones can. This can mean working class children end up with worse grades and more punishments for undone or badly done homework. On the other hand pushy parents may even end up doing their kids’ homework for them – cheating. And homework is one of the most common causes of family arguments

I don’t know if homework should be banned completely, but it most certainly should be lessened. Kids are coming home with hours of homework and no time to have social relationships. Homework should be optional. If a student is struggling they can choose to do homework, but if they aren’t struggling they don’t need to waste their time doing home that doesn’t help them.

i think its a no because its part of the education and its like practicing what you’ve learnt. hope you guys are thinking the same way.

Why would we be thinking the same?

If the kids didn’t get the topic by the end of class then they should have homework, but if they did understand it, then what it the point of having it. That just takes up their time to spend time with friends or family. Why should kids get homework on weekends as well? The weekends are the days when kids actually get to do something besides school, they get to have fun or rest. And they should be aloud to do that. The kids go to school to learn and do good quality work, but when they do work at home they just do sloppy work and don’t get a lot of the questions right. And that is because they have other things to do. Homework should be band.

Homework can cause actual pain. Yes, that´s right. Lugging around that 10-20 pound book bag everyday can cause severe back, shoulder, and neck pains, and could even possibly lead to something worse. Every time I bring home my book bag from school, it weighs around 15 pounds with all of the homework inside of it. Please NO MORE HOMEWORK

Most schools now do homework on computers provided by the school, or they have block schedules, that way the student doesn’t have to carry as much around with them. Homework is normally a few papers, and maybe a book. If you really have that much pain, only take the things for the classes you need that day. Also, be sure to be using a backpack with two straps and not a messenger bag.

Undoubtedly, homework hinders learning. There are only 3 outcomes possible when doing homework: A) You do the homework, proving you were able to do it in the first place and the work was therefore unnecessary B)You do the homework even though you were unable to do so, thus learning to solve the problem the wrong way. C) You do not do the homework because you were unable, and therefore did not learn anything.

I disagree with this point, especially with point b. There is a textbook and the internet for a reason. A student can find out how to do it. Resources exist. Therefore, your point C becomes the student’s problem. Now to attack A. If the person already knows the topic, he or she still needs practice. For example, practice reduces occurrence of mistakes. My test scores have significantly improved once I started doing homework, even though I already and always knew the concept. Also, the voting system is biased, as all pro homework stuff have negative votes.

Now you for your response on point A I disagree because You don’t really need to practice If you’ve already been practicing the whole day in school and you’re not going to forget the whole topic in one day.

sorry but homework is gay

Homework or rather busy work is not as useful of a tool as it may seem. There is no clear evidence supporting the claim that homework improves the grades or the understanding of the students

We would love to hear what you think – please leave a comment!

I think homework should be banned because at first kids think “let’s get this over with.” Then later on they realize all of that was for nothing because sure it prepares you for the test but what about the hours you spent on 1 page of homework!

Homework can affect both students’ physical and mental health. According to a study by Stanford University, 56 percent of students considered homework a primary source of stress. Too much homework can result in lack of sleep, headaches, exhaustion and weight loss.

Amid Growing Debate About Homework, One School Bans It

Some research questions the value of homework prior to high school.

— -- More than 550 students at a Massachusetts elementary school will have less to carry home in their backpacks this year.

There will be no homework.

Kelly Elementary School in Holyoke has banned homework for the year with the intention of giving students all the instruction and extra help they may need during the school day.

“We want kids to go home tired; we want their brains to be tired,” Jackie Glasheen, principal of the school, whose kindergarten through 8th-grade students are nearly all poor and Hispanic, told ABC News. At home, she said, “we want them to engage with their families, talk about their school days and go to bed.”

Glasheen and the team of teachers who came up with the idea to end homework are among a growing number of U.S. educators and parents questioning the value of having children do schoolwork at home.

A Texas elementary school teacher last month drew wide attention by eliminating homework.

Brandy Young, 2nd-grade teacher at an elementary school in Godley, wrote parents in a letter shared widely on social media, that after "much research over the summer," she would not assign any homework except for uncompleted classwork.

"Research has been unable to prove that homework improves student performance," she wrote in the letter handed to parents at a meet-the-teacher night Aug. 16.

"Rather, I ask that you spend your evenings doing things that are proven to correlate with student success," she wrote. "Eat dinner as a family, read together, play outside and get your child to bed early."

Texas Teacher Announces No-Homework Policy for Class

Nj teacher writes encouraging messages on students' desks before their exam.

Kelly Elementary School eliminated homework under circumstances uncommon in most schools.

Beginning this fall, nearly all schools in the Holyoke district, which has among the lowest standardized test scores in Massachusetts, are extending their school days by two hours. Elementary school students now go to school from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., instead of the previous 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Principal Glasheen said her school surveyed its teachers, parents and students before implementing the homework ban.

"The toughest stakeholder group was the teachers," she said. "Some of them felt [students] need that extra practice. They need that extra work."

But Glasheen said the longer school days will give students more instructional time.

“Face time with a teacher … is going to impact their learning more than doing skill-and-practice work at home,” she said.

Not many schools are lengthening their school days by as much as the Holyoke district. But even without the longer days, a number of educators and researchers say homework is more of a hindrance than a help to students.

Author and education researcher Alfie Kohn says homework routinely produces frustration, exhaustion, family conflict, a loss of time for other activities and diminished excitement about learning.

“In classrooms and schools where little or no homework is assigned, results have been extremely positive in terms of students’ academic performance as well as their attitudes about learning,” Kohn told ABC News. “‘No homework’ should become the default, with homework assigned only on those days when there is compelling reason to believe that a given assignment will benefit most students.”

Kohn, whose books include "The Homework Myth: Why Our Kids Get Too Much of a Bad Thing," said research has failed to demonstrate any benefit to assigning homework, at least until students are in high school.

But Robert Pondiscio, senior fellow at the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, an education policy think tank in Washington, D.C ., said the question of homework's value is not cut-and-dried. Pondiscio, who is also an adviser at Democracy Prep, a New York City charter school network, said homework may have a greater benefit for low-income students than affluent students.

“I still think we’re in a situation in this country where we have a far greater problem of expecting too little -- not too much -- of kids, and homework falls into that,” Pondiscio told ABC News.

The benefits of assigning homework also depend on what you want it to achieve, Pondiscio said. Homework may not lead to a higher grade on a test within six months, he said, but it can encourage behaviors and foster skills that yield long-term benefits such as practice in time-management

“Whenever I hear ‘homework doesn’t work,’ my first response is, ‘Well what do you want homework to do?’” Pondiscio said. “We always want to press the easy button in these discussions, and there isn’t one.”

Kelly Elementary School Principal Glasheen has heard from some critics of her school's homework ban who echo Pondiscio, telling her, "'You're letting kids off the hook,'" she said.

But she's also gotten support. The far-flung responses she's received suggests how widespread is the debate over homework's value.

“I have heard from principals from southern California, Dallas, Brazil," she said.

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Follow our news, recent searches, commentary: should holiday homework be banned, advertisement.

The June school holidays have started, but many students and families are experiencing a familiar mix of anticipation and dread, says Dr Eugenia Koh-Chua, a former lecturer and mother of two.

This audio is generated by an AI tool.

Eugenia Koh-Chua

MELBOURNE: The June school holidays  have started for primary and secondary schools as well as junior colleges.  With school out, the fun should begin - but does it really?

While many look forward to a respite from the daily grind of school , the burden of holiday homework hangs over them.

For many parents and tutors, the mid-year break is also the perfect time for an extra academic boost. Let’s not forget June holiday boot camps and intensive revision programmes arranged by teachers and enterprising tuition centres for Primary 6 students taking their Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) this year.

The term “holiday homework” itself is contradictory, prompting the question: Should school breaks be a protected sanctuary from homework, or is the expectation of holiday assignments an unavoidable reality?

A BAN ON HOMEWORK? 

The debate surrounding holiday homework extends beyond the borders of Singapore.

In the Philippines, legislative attempts to enforce a weekend homework ban have been ongoing since 2016.  In 2021, the Chinese government enacted the Double Reduction Policy , which includes a limit on homework and a ban on private tutoring classes.

Meanwhile, in Poland, a ban on graded homework for students in lower primary took effect in April. Homework for children in upper primary levels is optional and does not count towards a grade.

These efforts share a common goal: To alleviate the burden of excessive homework and promote greater student well-being.  However, the effectiveness of these measures remains questionable.

In China, the mandate has driven the industry underground and led to exorbitant rates , exacerbating educational inequity. The Chinese experience suggests the potential pitfalls of using a simplistic solution like a hard legislative ban to address a complex social issue.

Drawing lessons from these global examples, I wonder: Should the focus shift from eliminating homework to understanding why parents and schools perceive it as necessary?

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Is homework beneficial.

While the debate on homework rages on, educational research has acknowledged the many potential benefits it serves.

Homework helps to reinforce academic concepts at home, develops time management skills, and encourages independent learning in children. 

Learning at home can offer a more adaptable environment that caters to individual student’s learning pace and needs, particularly benefiting those who thrive with additional support.  Moreover, homework functions as a crucial link between school and home, allowing parents to stay informed of their children’s academic progress.

At the same time, however, an Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) survey published in 2017 showed that 66.7 per cent   of parents with primary school children agreed or strongly agreed that they were stressed over assisting with homework and ferrying them to and from school, and tuition or enrichment classes.

Additionally, nearly 94 per cent of parents in the study expressed a need for the primary school curriculum to be more manageable, reflecting the struggle many parents face in grasping the modern curriculum while balancing work demands in typical dual-income Singaporean households.

In my doctoral study on Singaporean parents’ tensions within education reform, one parent candidly remarked on this struggle: “I don’t think I can impart the (knowledge) skills to them. And I don’t want my children to lose out."

Consequently, many parents delegate homework guidance to educational experts - tuition teachers.

Families spent an estimated S$1.4 billion (US$1 billion) on tuition in 2018, based on data from the last Household Expenditure Survey in 2017 and 2018, up from S$1.1 billion in 2012 and 2013.

These insights highlight parents’ challenges in supporting their children’s learning at home due to a lack of knowledge, skills, time, and energy. Consequently, schools must consider these factors when designing and assigning homework.

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Perceived benefits of after-school learning.

Research consistently emphasises the importance of play in nurturing the holistic development of children. What then motivates parents to enrol their children in tuition classes during school holidays?

Many parents I’ve spoken say they feel like they have “no choice” as they mitigate the pressures of a high-stakes education system.

They question how much play alone can contribute to children’s social-emotional well-being if they fail to perform academically. One parent stated, “I don’t need (my child) to be at the top, but I don’t want him to be at the bottom either”.

Parental guilt also motivates many to enrol their children in out-of-school classes. As one parent explained: “If my kids are idle or roaming around at home, I will feel bad as a parent … because it feels like my child is wasting his life away”.

Teachers participating in my doctoral study also reluctantly acknowledge the value of tuition classes for “weaker students”. Unfortunately, in a class size of 40, teachers lack the time and staffing to cater to each child’s learning needs while covering the school curriculum.

They also cited pressure from school leaders and managing familial expectations to assign homework as an indicator of a “good teacher”.

FIND HARMONY, NOT BALANCE 

Amid the ongoing discussion on finding the right balance between work and play for students, the term “balance” implies a rigid 50-50 split between “work versus play”, overlooking the unique needs and strengths of each child, family, and school.

Rather than fixating on achieving a static “balance”, might it be better to consider striving for a harmonious blend between work and play? This approach encourages families and schools to identify the optimal mix that suits their specific contexts, fostering an environment where children can thrive in both learning and well-being.

The ideal combination of work and play will naturally vary in each family, classroom, and school, based on their diverse values, cultures, and aspirations. Nonetheless, this optimal mix should be viewed as fluid and dynamic, constantly adapting to suit the evolving needs of children.

Student agency is an essential ingredient in this optimal blend. Schools should actively seek student input on their homework experiences and understand their preferences for how it is assigned and evaluated.

This not only empowers students but also ensures that homework policies are responsive to their needs and interests.

Schools could consider moving away from compulsory holiday homework towards recommended assignments. Allow parents to determine and decide the homework load that best suits their child based on their family values and aspirations.

Many teachers are already offering non-mandatory assignments in the Student Learning Space online portal during mid-year and end-of-year school holidays. However, it is crucial to complement these assignments with online explanatory videos that provide solutions.

This approach is essential to support struggling students and enhance their self-efficacy by ensuring they understand how to approach and solve the questions independently at home.

Ideally, homework tasks should prioritise inquiry-based learning, embracing a play-based approach that fosters engagement and creativity.

Given the absence of time constraints in the classroom, these tasks can encourage students to explore core learning concepts with scaffolding prompts, developing learner autonomy, and stimulating greater engagement and creativity.

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Through collaborative efforts, schools and families can create a supportive environment that fosters student success and well-being.

In an ideal scenario, if schools and families can embrace a unified approach to revamping homework practices and reimagining the objectives of holiday assignments , we may just be able to find that sweet spot between work and play during the June holidays.

Dr Eugenia Koh-Chua is a sessional lecturer and educational researcher at Swinburne University of Technology (Melbourne). She is a mother of two and a former lecturer in Singapore.

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Planning is one of the keys to success in college.

Pros and Cons of Banning Homework

Homework has been in existence now for several generations throughout the learning period. Its inception was based largely on the fact that there were things children could learn better from both school and/or home environment.

This contentious topic has led to many propositions with the widely adopted one suggesting that according to their grade level, students should use a maximum of 10 minutes per grade level. Overall, many still argue whether homework should be abolished from the school systems or not.

Pros for banning homework

• Constrains students’ free time

Having to sit down and do homework for an extra 2 hours on the initial 8 school hours make students have longer workdays and limit their time for developing other skills. Banning homework, therefore, allows these students to engage in other personal development activities like hobbies

• It won’t necessarily make you smarter

Studies show that younger students are better placed to benefit from the abolishment of homework, as it will separate class and outside experiences.

• Reduced classroom burnout for students

Banning homework assignments would reduce homework-related stress and frustrations that wear out students.

• More family time

Homework is becoming more and more demanding by the year forcing students to be unavailable for most family events. Banning homework would help free up their time and allow for more family time.

• Help avert adverse health impacts

Tight homework deadlines and bulky assignments often cause health issues such as mental health, depression that leads to suicidal tendencies. Banning homework would help mitigate these adverse health threats.

Cons for banning homework

• Homework is an important assessment tool

Homework is an important indicator used to measure students’ ability to apply whatever they have learned in class. Doing away with them would deprive teachers of the means to assess their students’ progress.

• It prepares kids for tests

Homework reinforces materials learned in class and enables students to memorize important concepts and theories. This way, it minimizes anxiety, especially during tests. Banning homework would, therefore, put more pressure on kids to excel in their examination tests.

• Homework helps in identifying learning disorders

Students are masters of disguising their learning struggle and homework provides adults with the opportunity to uncover this lie and help them appropriately. If homework were to be banned, this would disadvantage many students with actual learning disabilities.

• Homework promotes parental involvement

Homework offers family members a unique opportunity to be involved with their kid’s educational process. To some it is an important bonding session and taking it away from the picture would deprive them of the means of monitoring their kid’s educational progress from home.

• Homework fosters deep research skills

By doing homework assignments, students get the opportunity to do independent research and learn more in the process. By abolishing homework, kids will no longer have this necessary tool to help build their research skills.

The verdict

Homework assignments have a good and bad side and entirely banning them still has consequences. Based on the discussed pros and cons of banning homework, we advise that you work closely with your kids’ educators in making their homework more effective.

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