A classroom teacher’s view on homework

LE: What is your position on the issue of research?
When I answer this question, I answer as an educator and as the parent of school age kids. I do see research as having a role in the educational process and I do not concur with Alfie Kohn (see article), who appears to believe research is worthless, or worse, has a negative effect. While Kohn asserts there is practically no research study that shows research to be useful, I did not see a convincing quantity of hard information to support getting rid of all homework.
Yes, the quantity of research should be based on the students age and grade level. As the majority of Kindergarten-3rd grade teachers are self-contained, it must be reasonably easy to give mathematics homework one night, checking out or spelling one night, etc to avoid overwhelming 5 to 8-year-olds. I see homework to extend learning.
Our book explains it can take 24 repetitions of a skill for a student to reach 80% proficiency. I think practicing skills is rewarding. Kohns comparison with tennis does not make sense to me. There are skills in tennis you need to practice to improve. There are basic mathematics abilities kids should practice to build a strong foundation before carrying on to higher-level mathematics skills. Kohn points out how students might progress at remembering, but not thinking. I see this as 2 various things; we require trainees to bear in mind certain truths and after that move on to utilizing those abilities as thinkers and problem solvers.
As a parent, it can be tough to squeeze in research some nights! My own children have brought home assignments I believed inappropriate or too prolonged for one night. We do the best we can, and if we have issues or issues, I reach out to the instructor. Understanding some students have little or no assistance in the house must be acknowledged by educators. Again, excellent teachers make it a point to know what some home circumstances may resemble and to modify appropriately. When possible, coworkers can work together, as described in two supplemental course posts, by establishing a discovering laboratory or including “Drop-In” times throughout the school day
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I do see homework as having a role in the academic procedure and I do not agree with Alfie Kohn (see post), who appears to think homework is useless, or worse, has an unfavorable impact. While Kohn asserts there is practically no research that shows homework to be beneficial, I did not see a convincing quantity of hard data to support doing away with all research.
Yes, the amount of homework must be based on the trainees age and grade level. As the majority of Kindergarten-3rd grade instructors are self-contained, it needs to be relatively easy to offer mathematics homework one night, checking out or spelling one night, etc to avoid overwhelming 5 to 8-year-olds. Research can be a divisive topic in the education neighborhood, and we hope you can value this teachers point of view.

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When considering homework, teachers discover it advantageous to interact their policy with the families of their trainees. After recently completing a Learners Edge course, Jennifer Lindsey, a 4th grade teacher from Pennsylvania, reviewed her research philosophy that includes the purposeful roles teachers and families play.

Research can be a dissentious subject in the education community, and we hope you can appreciate this instructors point of view. We want to hear your thoughts about research. What is your viewpoint? How do you interact with families about research?

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