The+Homework+Debate+in+5th+Grade

2. The following chart has come from these webpages: http://education.calumet.purdue.edu/vockell/edpsybook/Edpsy2/edpsy2_homework.htm http://www.iowaparents.org/learning-at-home/homework http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=8059 http://www.npr.org/programs/morning/features/2003/mar/homework/index.html 1. The assigning of homework and the amount of homework has become a big debate over the past few years. Students as young as first grade are coming home with homework assignments to complete. School handbooks are citing requirements of how much time students should spend on homework a night. But is this homework really necessary? This debate takes shape in my practice because at the fifth grade level students often complain about having homework, or too much homework, or question why they need to have homework. They believe it's a law that they should not have homework on Fridays, and how dare I even think to assign something to be done over the weekend. I assign homework almost every evening in English Language Arts and Social Studies. Sometimes it might be something such as studying, and other times it might involve reading or writing in some way. However, I think homework should serve to be review for what the students have learned during class that day. I don't think teachers should assign homework for the sake of assigning homework, because 1. who has time to correct all of that work and 2. give the students something meaningful to practice and reinforce what you have already taught them. This way, you can say this to the students and then they begin to realize why they have homework and why it is helpful for them (hopefully!).
 * **Assign homework** || **Don't assign homework** ||
 * Parents expect homework || Kids needs downtime ||
 * Extends time available for learning || Can be a source of tension in the family ||
 * Can be adapted to learning styles || In lower income districts, this can cause kids to fail ||
 * Improved grades and test scores || Not always focused as an instructional event ||
 * Enhanced retention || Only good if students do it ||
 * Provides feedback || Kids can copy and then they don't learn ||
 * Establishes good study habits || Depends on the amount that is given ||
 * Develops family connects || Some people think homework is evil ||
 * Well-planned homework can enhance effect of direct instruction for SPED students || Drill and practice doesn't help kids understand ideas ||

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 * 3. Position Paper: