The Homework Myth - Chapter 3

Did I really put this book down for a month? Now that I have some time, I am going to try to read a chapter a day for this week. That will put me right around finishing up next week.

Chapter Three - Does Homework Provide Nonacademic Benefits?

In my own practice, in addition to reinforcing or practicing what has been learned at school, I have thought of the traits of responsibility, time-management, independence, among others as reasons I have justified assigning homework. Who wouldn't want to our kids to develop into adults with these traits?

Kohn presents the arguments for homework as:

• Homework shows the parents what the students are learning at school
• Parents helping their children with homework helps parents demonstrate their interest in their child's' learning
• Homework has character-building potential

Kohn counters with:

• Homework can be confusing for parents as well as the students
• Parents can show an interest in their child's education through a discussion
• There is no evidence that homework has any positive academic or personal trait-building effects 

It all falls down on a lack of unbiased evidence in favor of homework. Realistically, does homework really work? I have assigned [what I know think of as] mindless homework. I still see a need for drills-based homework for those students who need it, but that too, I am assigning less and less. I have instead started to assign projects for my students to do at home [uploading pictures to our blog, making something, etc.] related to our units, or another subject.

This reminds me of a few years back. I was doing weekly spelling tests. I was using Words Their Way and I had four spelling level groups working on different lists. Every day I would meet with these groups and go over the spelling pattern, and I had a different activity for them to do with the spelling words. I felt it was a good system I had going.

The problem with it was that I tried, a few times, giving the students the spelling test a few weeks after they took it the first time. All test scores were down which told me that the students were not really learning, but rather memorizing for the test.

How do you give homework? How do you do spelling in your classroom?