Homework Woes and Wonders

Op/Ed

Homework+Woes+and+Wonders
 Many high school students ask why homework is counted as a grade? This is a question asked by many students, and it has varying answers from varying perspectives on the matter.

From a teacher’s point of view, homework is seen as a way for students to have extra practice on the day’s lesson, and to make sure the students were paying attention that day. Parents say homework is a way to get a grip on time management early on in life.

Students say, however, that homework is nothing more than busy-work, and often wonder if there is a legitimate reason for the extra assignments. It takes time out of everyone’s day, both the students and the teachers, that could be used for other things, like catching up on sleep or being with family.

What about students with jobs? They need that extra time to sleep or focus on projects for school, such as an essay. Rushing through math worksheets late at night will not help the students or their grades. It may even be detrimental to the student’s focus if they stay up too late doing their assignments and not getting the sleep they need.

Homework can also be seen as redundant to students that already understand the lesson and do not actually need that extra practice. They are instead using up time that can be used working on assignments for other classes and whatnot is instead being spent on busy-work.

I believe that homework is important to the development of time management skills, as well as moves the learning process along, but it should not be counted as a grade. A part of time management is deciding what needs to be given the most attention. Relearning something that you already have the gist of is a waste of time.