Forget Homework

Why school homework? Old methods of teaching in the classroom, were that teachers assigned piles of homework as a necessary discipline. Students either didn't do it and conflicts arose, or else they did it and complained that it was too much. Not wishing to get into that kind of hassle, in my classroom, I didn't give homework when I could see that checking it and arguing with students  just didn't make sense. Unbelievably, there were "diligent" teachers, even  of Grade Three or Grade Two pupils, who assigned homework. That seemed even more ridiculous. An eight or nine year old child should be able to go home after a full day of school and play with other children: outdoors, preferably, not having to sit at a desk doing homework even for fifteen minutes. They need to go home without those pressures and socialize to become the good citizens schools hope to turn out. Any argument about it being a discipline, doesn't work for me. An example of schools that do not assign homework is in Iceland, and one of the principals of such a school says that hours of intense schooling call for the student to go home and enjoy family or friends. I completely agree. It seems entirely pointless for a teacher to give homework when education should happen in the school. Older students often have jobs after school or have family responsibilities or need practice time on another project.  If there is reading to do, I think, why not do it together in the classroom. I recall asking students to read chapters of an assigned text and next day learning that many of them just didn't do it. The reason was that they knew we'd be going over it anyway in the classroom. That made sense. Why not do the reading together and discuss it, when it's fresh in everyone's mind?  As to Math teachers assigning loads of questions when the student already knows how to solve the problems or doesn't, and can't be helped immediately, is, to me, also an impractical way to take up student time. The best teacher I had in Math was one who had students at the blackboard doing equations. The teacher could see where the student needed help and offered it or partnered him with another student. We soon got over being embarrassed. Today students might do their work on the computer and the teacher having direct access to what is being done, can actually teach as is required. It's just like the blackboard method. That does make sense. To regard homework as a discipline in "training" one to prepare for post secondary education, is also ridiculous. You don't need to train. When and if you go further, you'll do it because you want to do it. After all, you chose university and paid for the courses.  If you don't do your out-of-class work, you only punish yourself. What if we banished public school homework? Is it worth a try? There's your homework. Think on it.