As a newish teacher, I am still trying to figure out where I stand on it. I do agree that giving "busy" work as homework is bad/lazy/ineffective teaching. I want all the work my students do to be meaningful; I just don't know if homework can be meaningful.
First, doesn't it always seem that the students who need to do the homework are the ones who don't do it? Also, do you grade it for correctness or for competition? And then I think, kids deal with so much at home, should I add to the stress? I'm still on the fence, but I better figure it out soon... School starts in three weeks!
Where do you stand on homework? Does it work for you and your class?
I am NOT a fan of "busy work". So, I would never give homework just for the sake of giving homework or to please parents. I DO believe in children READING regularly--which I always expect from my kiddies. For math, I believe in practicing skills. However, if a student already mastered the skill, I do not want to bore them with "drill and kill", and if a student has no idea how to do the skill, I don't want to frustrate them. What I often do is differentiate my math homework based on their guided math groups. I also try to email the answers to parents, so that kids can check their own work and come in prepared to ask questions. I NEVER collect homework to grade. I just check off homework and then answer questions that the kids have. I also do bigger long-term projects and assignments... but I DO give ample time at school to work on it. I realize some students have NO support at home, while other parents DO THE ENTIRE PROJECT for their kid. So, I typically only base their report card grades on portions that reflect the STUDENT'S KNOWLEDGE. I am interested in hearing other thoughts!! This IS a hot topic!!
ReplyDeleteI used to give out a lot more homework, until I had school age children of my own. I soon realized how difficult it is for kids to actually get everything done, when they are so involved in commitments after school. Both my own children are heavily involved in dance and hockey, which I honestly feel is just as valuable (confidence, team building, physical activity, etc). Family time, or course, is also so important. Throw is a big at home project or large homework assignment, and my kids are swamped. The homework I now give at school is more stuff that the kids don't complete in class. I give them plenty of opportunity to get it done, but those who choose to waste their time end up with homework. I am not saying I never give homework, I just limit it, as I value extra curricular opportunities and family time so much.
ReplyDeleteI teach high school. I'm not against teachers giving out homework when it has a purpose. Based on my experiences with homework, I just HARDLY EVER give out homework. My students have jobs, extracurricular activities, and sometimes, brothers and sisters to take care of. When I used to give out homework (usually a reading assignment that I wanted to discuss the next day), I ended up reteaching it anyway because I couldn't get my students to complete it. I've just learned to manage my time better in my classroom so that I can get most everything done in class. I understand the need for homework in certain situations, but it just can't figure out a way to use it effectively. So for now, I'm mostly steering clear of it. :) I guess my philosophy is similar to The Creative Classroom Core's: I usually only give homework when I've given them plenty of time to complete it in class and they chose to use their time otherwise. Then, the assignment has to be completed on their time.
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