3 Questions for High School Teachers to Ask Before Ditching Homework
A Texas teacher's no-homework policy went viral this month after a parent shared the news on Facebook.
Brandy Young teaches second grade at Godley Elementary School in Texas, but some high school teachers may be wondering if it makes sense to stop assigning homework to their teenage students.
They should ask themselves the following questions to make the decision.
1. Why do I want to eliminate homework? Ramy Mahmoud, a science teacher at Williams High School in Plano, Texas, says simply appeasing parents because of pushback may not be the best idea, but teachers who want to change their homework policy to increase equity among students are on the right track.
Throughout his 12-year high school teaching career, he's given lots of homework and no homework -- now he gives some.
Mahmoud says assigning no homework was successful since it helped maintain equity -- every student had the opportunity to get the resources he or she needed to be successful, which isn't always possible with homework. Students have different support systems and environments at home, which may give some teens an advantage when completing homework.
Alice Keeler, a former high school math teacher at a charter school in California, said via email she taught students math without homework and saw no drop in test scores -- but rather an increase in positive relationships with students and parents.
While the research she read showed homework was correlated with minor improvements, she said, correlation is not causation. She said homework causes severe stress and family fighting. It is not worth it to her.
Learn [how parents can help teens de-stress.]
If teachers are considering significantly changing their homework policy, Mahmoud encourages them to have a discussion with their school's administration beforehand.
2. How will I make sure students receive adequate instruction without homework? When Mahmoud stopped assigning homework, he found himself running out of time to cover everything in class to the depth that he wanted to.
Now, he leads a " flipped classroom." At home, students complete assignments that introduce them to concepts that will be covered in depth in class the next day, says Mahmoud, who also teaches aspiring educators at the Teacher Development Center at the University of Texas--Dallas.
Keeler said teachers considering eliminating homework need to think about how students can be more actively involved in their learning so they get the independent practice they need.
Teachers also could consider how to use technology to increase efficiency to allow more time to engage with material -- for example, distribute directions so students are never sitting and waiting for the teacher to say what to do next, said Keeler, who now teaches aspiring teachers in the credential program at California State University--Fresno.
Get [tips on balancing high school teaching and extracurricular duties.]
3. Are there benefits to homework for high schoolers? High schoolers need some homework because they need to learn how to study independently, says Harris Cooper, a professor of psychology and neuroscience at Duke University and author of "The Battle Over Homework: Common Ground for Administrators, Teachers, and Parents."
When they go to college, they'll spend less time in class and more time studying on their own.
Teachers should be concerned about the amount of homework they assign, he says. Be mindful of work students will receive in other classes and consider coordinating homework assignments with other teachers, if possible, so that students don't get overloaded.
Teachers could also consider long-term assignments -- the kind of work students will do in college and in the workforce -- and stick to the 10-minute rule: Typically, students should receive 10 minutes of homework for each grade they are in. A ninth grader, for example, should have no more than 90 minutes of homework a night, he says.
"Homework can be like medicine," he says. "If you don't take enough, it has no effect. If you take too much, it can kill you. So get the dose right."
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Alexandra Pannoni is an education Web producer at U.S. News. You can follow her on Twitter or email her at apannoni@usnews.com.
