Do Teachers Assign Too Much Homework?
Many students complain about how much homework they always have, but teachers often say that they are overreacting and need to just do the work. Students get a lot of homework every night and most have to balance their school work with the extracurriculars they are involved in. According to most students, teachers assign way too much homework.
Teachers assign one to two pages of homework each night and that may not seem like a lot, but it is. Almost all of the teachers assign about that much homework, so when you add it all up, it comes out to a lot more than you would think. Maddie Miller ‘20 says that, “I get home from practice at night and all I have time to do is eat and do my homework, and it’s really frustrating that I don’t have time for anything else.”
Teachers also encourage extracurriculars and sports, and a lot of kids participate in at least one, if not more, of these things. Ryan Holland ‘21 says that, “I am involved in football and basketball and I am always in a rush to get my homework done because I have so much of it at night. I am always so tired from practice and games so I feel like I’m not even understanding what I’m doing when I’m completing my homework.” Taking part in these adds on to the stress of getting their homework done. A study last year, from Whitby.com,showed that the impact of excessive homework on high schoolers included high stress levels, a lack of balance in children’s lives and physical health problems such as ulcers, migraines, sleep deprivation and weight loss. When students get home from practice or games at night, they still have all of their homework to get done before they get to go to sleep, and sometimes are up very late trying to get it all done.
Something else that shows students are getting too much homework is that they never get time to relax. They get home and are doing homework for hours on end. Studies by Whitby.com show that students should spend 10 minutes per grade level per night on homework. That translates into 10 minutes of homework in the first grade, 20 minutes in the second grade, all the way up to 120 minutes for senior year of high school. Even though this is what is supposed to happen, studies show that students work on homework for way longer than what they are supposed to, which leaves them no free time. Students work on homework from when they get home until they go to bed, without having time to do anything else. “When I get home from practice at night, I just want to go home, eat, shower, and go to bed because I am tired from my long school day,” says Drew Wasson ‘19, “It is also hard on the weekends because I have tournaments or have to work and then have to do so much homework on top of it.”
Since students get so much homework, they don’t focus as much on understanding the material, they just want to get it done so that they can do the rest of their homework for the night. By doing this, it defeats the purpose of homework. Teachers assign homework so that their students get more practice, but if they are just doing it to get it done, it won’t help them in the long run. When they do an assignment to get it done, it tells the brain that that is the way to do it, and they will keep having those mistakes on other assignments and tests, which causes frustration.
Teachers assign homework for students to get more practice. This is a good thing for students if they are getting the right amount of it. When they are given excessive amounts of homework, it is causing them to have bad outcomes, instead of learning the right way of doing things. They get way too much and it is not benefiting them in good ways.
If teachers want the students to get better at the things they are learning, they should still assign homework for practice, just not as much of it. A couple of problems, up to a page of homework per night, per class, would be a lot more reasonable for kids. Teachers need to focus on the kids getting better rather than giving them bucket loads of homework every night.
Students do not need 20-30 problems for each class, every night. Instead, they should get a couple of problems assigned so they can get practice, and then move on to their next subject without having to stress over getting it all done. They will then have time to relax and spend time with their families.
Rhonda Stout • Nov 9, 2020 at 10:51 am
I am a retired RN with a minor in Psychology I want to say that children are not allowed to be children anymore and teachers need to stop giving homework all together. We are trying to turn them into adults before their time. I believe we need to get rid of lockers and book bags and if you need a hardback book they should be shared by the classroom or done digital. There should not be anymore book and or licker fees and all homework should be done at school so that the teachers help the students that need it there in school. There are far too many parents that does not have a clue on home to help their students get their homework. There should be a metal detector at every door that allows anyone into the school. That way we can keep our children.
Edan Wert • Feb 23, 2022 at 7:36 am
I half way agree with you, I am a current student in high school. Some teachers do not explain enough on the work in class it can be confusing for students later on. I personally think that they should record lessons. Looking back at notes can stress students even more if they don´t themselves understand the notes they were told to copy down. But to much work on the computer without proper guidelines on those devices students can get easily distracted from work. Also some students learn better hands on for example math. Also backpacks are nice to have to carry things around, it is like a purse for students. Also some teacher still assign books, but I do understand some problems with backpacks. Backpacks are an easy way for students to bring unwanted items to school. Also I most definitely agree that most parents do not understand homework that is assigned.