Homework has been given to students throughout their entire career in schooling, but there are pros and cons to homework. There has been controversy surrounding the topic. For example, some say homework is beneficial to success later in life, while others argue that it causes stress and interferes with their daily lives.
There are many pros to teachers assigning homework. If a teacher is running behind schedule for various reasons, they can give homework to help get back on track. Homework can also vary depending on the teacher’s style of teaching and the class they teach. Another benefit of homework is that it teaches students responsibility. Later in life, students will have tasks to complete that are important. Teachers also wouldn’t want to teach their students to be lazy when it comes to important tasks in the future.
One con of homework is that some students have extracurricular activities after school, such as sports. Most sports have practices several days a week, plus games that vary in time, so it’s not always fair to these students. This could cause students to stay up late to finish homework, leaving them tired and exhausted the next morning. Another con is that if many teachers assign homework at once, it can cause a buildup. In high school, classes are more difficult, especially with dual enrollment and weighted classes, so multiple classes with homework on top of that can be overwhelming for students.
There can be many negative effects on the body from homework. One effect is sleep deprivation. Staying up late doing homework can cause sleep anxiety, from worrying about the work, which could lead to sleep deprivation. The stress of having to worry about homework can also cause anxiety. The pressure to get homework done affects many students and can impact their mental health. In a study at Stanford University, 56% of the students surveyed said that homework was a primary source of stress.
Homework can be hard to balance with extracurricular activities, but there are solutions to the problem. For instance, most students have at least one study hall every other day, which gives them a good amount of time to start homework. Additionally, most extracurricular activities are around two hours for practices, leaving time to do homework throughout the rest of the day.
Harris Cooper, a professor at Duke University, researched the correlation between homework and academic performance. He found a positive correlation, meaning students who had homework performed better academically. This is because homework fosters a more studious habit in students, helping them develop self-discipline. However, he also found that homework can cause mental and physical fatigue, which can lead to a lack of motivation toward school.
Senior Chad Smerk stated, “I don’t think homework is necessary to give. But, if you don’t finish your in-school work, you should finish it at home.”
Junior Tanner Schwiderske said,
Teacher Jessica Levonick stated, “I personally don’t assign daily homework in my classes for a variety of reasons, but mainly because I think students’ personal and family time is sacred. There are reasons why homework is necessary and needed, but the expectation that high school students—many of whom have jobs and extracurriculars—should have homework every day for each of their classes is unrealistic. It adds up to several hours after school, and it becomes a burden.”
As you can see, students are willing to complete homework as long as it isn’t excessive and unnecessary. Also, not every teacher agrees that homework should be given out every day in every class.
