For elementary-level students, research suggests, classwork is enough and homework is just burden
Homework reminds me of those times almost 30 years ago when I struggled with my sons, every night after school, trying to get them to complete their homework. I remember how much they hated it. I also remember my irritation and yelling at them for not concentrating. It was almost like homework was something for me to do, not them. So one day, at a parent-teacher meeting, I asked their class teacher, ‘Why the homework if they are doing well in class?  And is the homework for me or for them?” The teacher had a good laugh and she agreed that it was just a ritual and that if the child did not feel like doing it, it could be skipped. 

From that time I stopped putting pressure on my children to complete their homework and started pacing the homework to their ease. Gradually I started to see a pattern. It was easier for me to get them to work during the weekend.  I made a kind of agreement that they would do the work first and then they could go to play or watch TV. This worked but one thing kept bugging me for a long time.  After spending the whole day at school why do children still need homework? I for one do not understand this fascination with homework. I was against homework after school, while homework for weekend, I felt, was justified. But the attitude of other parents is just the opposite.  

Some time ago I was talking to my friends while visiting their school and they mentioned that parents constantly push teachers to give their children more homework. I don’t understand. Children work all day in school and come back home and still there is no respite. No time for them to rest, take it easy and to enjoy themselves. Being at home is the time spent with parents, siblings and just rejuvenating for the next day. But the irony is, homework is such an accepted practice it’s hard for most adults to think beyond it or even to question its value. For them school, children and homework come together.   

It’s almost like schools don’t make sense without homework for children.  Parents tend to evaluate a school on the amount of homework it gives their children. What they don’t understand is that homework is actually wrecking our children.  

Yes, homework does have an impact on our children but contrary to parental belief, it’s not a positive one. Various researchers have found that there is no evidence that homework improves academic performance of elementary-level students. That means all those hours of lost playtime, power struggles and tears are for nothing. But the irony is that many families go through the same unhelpful nightly ritual. For elementary-level students, research further suggests, classwork is enough for superior learning result and that homework is just extra burden. There is nothing in the researches that supports the belief that homework benefits average kindergarteners or first-graders. If you don’t believe me, take look at the academic achievement of students from Finland: a country renowned for some of the most high-achieving students in the world. Here children don’t begin elementary school until the age of 7, and don’t normally receive homework until they are teenagers. Now that is something to be seriously considered.  

Parents need to reflect and see how much of the homework is done by their children.

Most young children can’t competently read the instructions that accompany their homework. So practically it’s the parents who have to do the homework. Most parents are not trained educators and hence not well equipped, emotionally or intellectually, to tutor restless, frustrated young children. Under such circumstances it’s unrealistic to expect most kindergarteners or first-graders to complete homework assignments on their own. Particularly after they’ve finished a day at school, they are in no mood for homework.

They would rather relax and take it easy after a day’s restricted routine.

The supporters of homework will advocate: homework teaches responsibility, reinforces lessons in school, and creates a home-school link, between teachers and parents. But they don’t realize that children learn responsibility during their daily routines in multiple ways. For a 6-year-old to remember to bring his/her school bag and lunchbox home is a sure sign of being responsible. It takes responsibility for an 8-year-old to complete his/her daily routine and get to school every morning. So homework does not contribute much towards building responsibility in a child. So why so much homework? 

I cannot imagine a child full of energy and enthusiasm being tied down with homework.

On the contrary, I can imagine an excited kindergartener rushing home with all that new information and experience from school ready to flow out of them. Tying them down with homework seems inhuman to me. Crushing their enthusiasm seems like a crime to me. I know parents are angry with me, but then something that has no benefit has no place in this crucial time of children’s life.  

After school is the time to establish strong bonds with parents, not to do tiresome homework. If assignments don’t promote greater love of school and interest in learning, then it has no place in an elementary school-aged child’s day. Parents please understand that good sleep, family relationships and active playtime are also vital for a child’s balanced development and wellbeing. This directly impacts a child’s memory, focus, behavior and learning potential.

Finally, I cannot emphasize enough that afterschool time is precious for a child’s healthy development and that reading at home works better than traditional homework at the elementary level. This includes parents reading aloud to children as well as children reading by themselves. The key is to make sure it’s joyous. If a child doesn’t want to practice reading skills after a long school day, let the child listen to you instead. Any other projects that come home from school should be optional and occasional. 

I think elementary school children deserve better: a ban on homework. Now that sounds a bit drastic but with no academic benefit, there are definitely better uses for after-school hours than doing homework. I think elementary school children need some breathing space at home after school. Now that is not so hard to understand, right?

usha@pokharel.net

 
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