Inquiry

In my experience, I have witnessed an epidemic: students do not complete their homework. After days of frustration, I realized it was the same students who had not done their homework, but more alarmingly perhaps was that it was the same students who had homework to begin with. Many students completed the work in class and, generally, homework in my classroom is restricted to unfinished work. Only students who did not complete their work during the allotted class time were assigned homework. Not surprisingly it is these students who should perhaps not be doing homework or at least not for the reasons proposed. What I mean here is that these students typically do not complete homework in class for one of two reasons: either they are not able to focus in class and misuse time or they don’t understand the concept or materials. By sending these students home with unfinished work, it merely passes the burden onto the parent to either focus their attention or assist them in their work. While it would be ideal for a parent to assist in their child’s education, this is not always practical. Conversely, parents may offer too much support, completing the homework for the student in which case the student does not learn on their own (or at all). Home also offers more distractions, less structure, and varying assistance. As a result, homework is very often not completed or not completed by the child themself. This poses the question then of why we assign homework at all.

For my project, I propose to inquire on the role of homework in the classroom. To guide my inquiry, I will ask a series of questions to root out the meaning, origins, and purpose of homework. These questions might include: What is the purpose of homework? Does it help students? If so, how? Why do we assign homework? What are the positive and negative effects of homework on students? On parents? On teachers? Who wants homework to be assigned? What is the impact of homework? Who gets homework? Why? Who is homework for? What are the challenges of homework?

This question is both of interest to me personally and pertinent in my practicum classroom as well as I assume it will be in my own teaching style. My current view is that assigning homework for the sake of doing homework is redundant and impractical. Instead, homework should be reserved for unfinished work. I believe, however, that homework mustbe checked on a regular basis and that there should be consequences for unfinished work (if even to stay in at recess to complete their work). That being said, one of the most compelling questions or focus of my inquiry will surround whether or not homework is mandatory. I’d like to discover if, as teachers, we are legally required by either the school, district, or ministry to assign homework. The answer of this question will obviously have a profound impact on my teaching practices.

In order to answer this question and the others I have proposed to explore, I will have to delve into both curriculum and policy documents. At this point, I have yet to discover any concrete evidence of policy regarding whether homework is mandatory and if there is a required amount of homework. Some districts comment on it, but it does not appear that my district, Surrey (#36), has any such regulations. I expect that I won’t find any clear-cut answers, but rather will place myself within the debate, actively engaging with both sides of the argument. I realize that there will certainly be times when homework is a useful tool, such as completing long-term projects or preparing for future lessons. By recognizing and understanding both sides of the debate, I hope to formulate an educated opinion as to where my beliefs and practices will fall.

 

To read my inquiry paper, please follow this link: Tanya Winship Inquiry Paper