Hordes of students dash out of their classrooms after the dismissal bell, exhilarated by their after school activities after a long tedious day of learning—this is an image most parents have in their heads. However, they do not realize that school has gradually become a burden for students and the overabundance of homework assignments has overshadowed the delight school can bring.
The snippets of conversation I catch in the hallways now are either about French quizzes and Spanish oral presentations, or English persuasive essays and history unit tests; it is as if all the vibrant hues of school life are being replaced by weariness and anxiety. We need to question our current learning system: Since when did our conversations transform from exciting weekend plans to dreary cycles of hard work? Since when did the dismissal bell become a mental note of additional schoolwork rather than a reminder of relaxation? And since when did people begin to debate over the necessity of homework assignments?
Most problems dealing with homework come down to a question of who controls a child’s free time. The majority of students, especially middle school and high school students, yearn to travel back in time and return to their old days when “homework was just coloring.”
Saisuki Putumbaka ‘16, who has always juggled a great deal of stress, protests against homework: “It is making my sophomore year extremely difficult and I don’t know how I will handle the rest of my high school life…I used to believe in homework, but now I feel like I only have a life when I am fencing and participating in club activities.”
Although some parents and teachers may argue that assigning homework is beneficial for students’ learning, Duke University has conducted a series of studies on the quality of homework and found almost no correlation between school assignments and long-term achievements in schools.
The quality of students’ homework should also always be more significant than its quantity. In fact, according to the National Education Association, a student should not be assigned homework that takes more than 10 minutes per grade level per night. In other words, sophomores should have no more than 100 minutes of work each night while seniors should be able to finish all work within 2 hours.
Mrs. Mitchell, an Honors Chemistry teacher, maintains a pragmatic view of homework: “I do not believe in heavy and busy work, but I do think students learn better when they complete just the right amount of work for the day. Homework should reinforce concepts learned in class. If a student doesn’t understand a specific concept, he or she is always welcome to find me for extra help.” She recommends that students adopt their own effective learning techniques so that the entire class progresses better and quicker.
But Lily Stark ‘15 believes that “students are not obliged to complete their homework unless they think extra practice is necessary.”
All of this leads me to conclude that students today are intelligent enough to do their own preparation of studies and homework should definitely be optional across the board. As competition grows among students, it has become necessary for them to study day and night; however, if students feel that homework has become a kind of burden instead of an effective way to prepare them, they should have the right to determine which assignments to complete for their benefit.
Home should be a sanctuary for communication and relaxation, not for completing piles of schoolwork.