Krista Greer

Article Review
February 11, 2016
The Great Homework Debate
Tim Walker from NEA Today interviewed Dr. Harris Cooper, author of, The
Battle Over Homework: Common Ground for Administrators, Teachers, and Parents
to discuss homework issues in todays education world. Is it an unnecessary evil or
a sound and valuable pedagogical practice? Dr. Cooper told NEA Today that
homework levels and parental attitudes havent really changed dramatically over
the years.
The homework debate has been a battle in the 20 th century and has gone
through quite a cycle. Shortly after WW1, we thought it was important for kids to
exercise their brain like a muscle and homework was a good way to do that. Cooper
says that in the 1950s we were worried about falling behind the communists so
more homework was assigned to speed up our education and technology. In the
60s, homework put too much stress on kids so it began to fall in favor. In the 70s
and 80s, the Japanese economy exploded so we needed to assign more homework
to keep up with them. Now, with everything about education being scrutinized,
Cooper says the homework debate has come up again.
Cooper points out 2 interesting statistics in this interview:
1. The actual percentage of people who support or oppose homework
has changed very little over the years
2. The actual amount of homework kids are doing has changed very
little over the last 65 years.
He goes on to say that there has been a slight uptick of homework in the
lower grades but its not usually more than 10 more minutes per night. Cooper also
states that the driving force behind more homework in general is yearly testing and
its ties to success and teacher accountability.
So is homework effective? Most research shows that there is very little
correlation between homework and achievement in the early grades but as kids get
older, the correlation gets stronger. There is a point, Cooper states, where
homework just isnt effective. Most districts encourage their teachers to use the 10
Minute Rule when it comes to assigning homework. An example would be, 2 nd
graders should bring home not more than 20 minutes of homework per night. His
response continues to say that in middle school and high school 60-90 minutes of
homework per night is appropriate.
Another key factor in effective homework is parental involvement. It is
important in the early grades to make sure that parents can be involved and also
have the skills to help their child. If not, it causes instruction confusion and
abundant frustration.

All in all, Cooper says that the vast majority of educators do it right. We just
cant satisfy everyone because kids take homework home to differing environments
and parents with differing expectations.

I was surprised to see the cycle that the homework debate has gone through
throughout the years. I think that now days, its harder to just believe what they
experts say about homework or suggest what we assign for homework because
unlike the 50s, we have global access to information through the internet. We cant
just assume that were falling behind the communists and Japanese in education
because they tell us we are. We can actually see the data and statistics from across
the world and where the United States stands against other countries.
In the discussion of correlation between homework and achievement in the
early grades being low it makes me think about effective assignments being sent
home. Do we send homework with 1st graders so that they will learn addition? Or do
we send home a short little review so that they will learn responsibility and
accountability? As they get older I know that homework can be effective in terms of
reinforcing a lesson or strategy that was taught that day, but it is our job as
teachers to make sure that the assignments we send home are effective in that
goal. Our homework assignments should be meaningful and sporadic.
I also think that parental involvement in the early years is important. How can
we as teachers help avoid frustration with homework and instruction at home?
Weve discussed this in a few other classes here at DSU. I would hate for a student
to come to class not having done a homework assignment because after my lesson,
he or she still didnt understand it. We need to make sure our students have the
tools and knowledge to complete assignments we send home with them. And not
just the students, the parents also need to have access to resources to help their
students if they are struggling. This can come in many forms as technology provides
us with numerous outlets to use.
I agree with Coopers final statement that we cant satisfy every opinion on
homework. We just have to do what we believe is best so that our students can be
successful beyond our classrooms.

Resource:
http://neatoday.org/2015/09/23/the-great-homework-debate-whats-gettinglost-in-the-hype/