Topic: Should children have homework?

I. Introduction Children should not have homework for several reasons. II. Body Argument: 1. Homework creates stress for children. Children are under a lot of stress to get homework done correctly and on time. Exercises in school often make children tired. Homework can cause conflict between parent and children. 2. Homework takes children a large amount of time which should be spent on relaxing. Children need spend time with their family. Children should be outside playing sports and enjoy some activities with friends. Counterargument and Refutation: 1. Counterargument: Doing homework is a good way to develop responsibilities. 2. Refutation: Children end up copying off one another in attempt to finish all their assignments. Homework creates bad habits. III. Conclusion: Homework can do children harm. Education is one the most important part in our country and plays a necessary role in our daily life. Homework is a controversial topic of debate in education. Many people think that homework is an indispensable part of school life. Doing homework is a good way to develop childrens responsibilities. However, others believe that teachers should not give homework for children because of the following reasons.

Outline Topic: Should children have homework?

I. Introduction

Children should not have homework for several reasons

II. Body

*Argument:

1. Homework creates stress for children.

- Children are under a lot of stress to get homework done correctly and on time

- Exercises in school often make children tired

- Homework can cause conflict between parent and children

2 Homework takes children a large amount of time which should be spent on relaxing.

- Children need spend time with their family

- Children should be outside playing sports and enjoy some activities with friends

* Counterargument and Refutation:

1 Counterargument: Doing homework is a good way to develop responsibilities.

2 Refutation: - Children end up copying off one another in attempt to finish all their

assignments

- Homework creates bad habits

III Conclusion:

Homework can do children harm

Education is one the most important part in our country and plays a necessary role in our daily life Homework is a controversial topic of debate in education Many people think that homework

is an indispensable part of school life Doing homework is a good way to develop children's responsibilities However, others believe that teachers should not give homework for children because of the following reasons

The first reason is that homework creates stress for children Along with the survey data from 4,317 students of 10 high schools in upper-middle-class California communities, Pope found that fifty-six percent of the scholars regarded homework as a main reason of stress; forty-three percent considered tests stressor, thirty-three percent of the students are under a lot of stress because of getting good grades Only less than one percent of the pupils claimed homework was not a stressor (Parker C B., 2014) Children are under a lot of stress to complete assignment correctly and punctually Children are afraid of teachers’ punishment if they do not finish homework which teachers assign Tending to do homework, they may stay up late at night and have to get up early

in the next day to study so they lack of sleep and can not focus on studying Furthermore, activities and exercises in school make children tired so children do not want to have homework after they come back home Due to shortened recess time, children at primary school are not likely to have enough time to deal with what they have learnt As a result from this pressure, children bring home and accomplish homework which makes them feel more stressful (Cordz E ) Moreover,

homework can cause conflict between children and their parents which is the reason why children are constantly under pressure Parents want the children to do homework so they meet resistance from their kids; or parents are too busy to help children complete assignments while their children can feel stressful Many parents said that they are not ready for helping their children do

homework and that their children feel stressful when they try to support recurrently (Pickering, 2014)

Another reason is that homework takes children a large amount of time which should be spent on relaxing A research based on survey and students both showed the deficits of spending too much time on homework which is the possible outcomes of the physical underdevelopment and the cultivation of critical social life as well If a student seems to be given many

assignments, he/she will be so overwhelmed that his/her engaged parts in family relationship or friendship are easy to fade away (Parker C B., 2014) Students spend most of their days at school while parents are at work (Clifford, The Tyranny of Homework: 20 Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Assign Homework Over The Holidays, 2012) After going home, children tend to finish homework so they do not have time to talk with parents Family time is extremely

important to achievement, behavior and child development (Clifford, The Tyranny of

Homework: 20 Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Assign Homework Over The Holidays, 2012) They need to spend time with their family to learn some things which are not taught in school If children do not have homework, relationship between children and parents becomes more close-knit They can talk and solve the problem in their life as well as school together Moreover, children should go out and enjoy some activities with their friends to improve social

relationships Many people said that children need between 6 to 7 hours a day of fresh air and sunshine (Kravolec, 2014) Playing outside or participate in a sport is a good way to get them to value physical activity (Clifford, The Tyranny of Homework: 20 Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Assign Homework Over The Holidays) If they are free in the evening, they will have much time

to chat with friends and relax after a hard day Children need a balanced life “Children need

Some people may think that doing homework is a good way to develop responsibilities for children Children have to finish their homework before going to school They assigned their homework today and they need to hand in it on the next day It raises children's awareness about their responsibility This is partly true but homework can result in cheating Going home after school, some children may feel bored with homework, because they have study hard all day and they do not want to complete their homework They will start cheating: copying off one another

in attempt to finish their assignment Otherwise, homework can create bad habits for children Homework does not help children to become hard worker, because the work is not self-directed (Spencer, 2011) Children do not want to do homework, they start cheating, lying parents that they have finished all the homework

In conclusion, there is undoubtedly the potential harm to giving homework for children by their teachers Studies show that education should have extra-curricular activities and more games as a subject instead of doing homework Children are the future of countries so they need

to have good conditions to develop Teachers should not have give homework to create stress for children Go out and enjoy the world Play, sing and do not worry about homework

(862 words)

1 Clifford, M (2012) The Tyranny of Homework: 20 Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Assign Homework Over The Holidays Retrieved from

http://www.opencolleges.edu.au/informed/features/the-tyranny-of-homework-20-reasons-why-you-shouldnt-assign-homework-over-the-h

2 Cordz, E (n.d.) Does homework cause stress in children Retrieved from

http://www.outofstress.com/homework-and-stress/

3 Kravolec, E ( 2014) Should schools ban homework? Retrieved from

http://edition.cnn.com/2014/09/05/opinion/kralovec-ban-homework/

4 Parker, C B (2014, March 10) Stanford research shows pitfalls of homework Retrieved

from http://news.stanford.edu/news/2014/march/too-much-homework-031014.html

5 Pickering, R J (2014, March) Educational leader Retrieved from

http://www.lincnet.org/cms/lib05/MA01001239/Centricity/Domain/108/Homework.pdf

6 Spencer, J (2011, September 19) Ten reasons to get rid of homework and five alternatives

Retrieved from http://www.spencerideas.org/2011/09/ten-reasons-to-get-rid-of-homework-and.html

Stanford research shows pitfalls of homework.

By Clifton B Parker

Stanford report, March 10, 2014

A Stanford researcher found that too much homework can negatively affect kids, especially their lives away from school, where family, friends and activities matter

"Our findings on the effects of homework challenge the traditional assumption that homework

is inherently good," wrote Denise Pope, a senior lecturer at the Stanford Graduate School of Education and a co-author of a study published in the Journal of Experimental Education

The researchers used survey data to examine perceptions about homework, student well-being and behavioral engagement in a sample of 4,317 students from 10 high-performing high schools

in upper-middle-class California communities Along with the survey data, Pope and her

colleagues used open-ended answers to explore the students' views on homework

Median household income exceeded $90,000 in these communities, and 93 percent of the students went on to college, either two-year or four-year

Students in these schools average about 3.1 hours of homework each night

"The findings address how current homework practices in privileged, high-performing schools sustain students' advantage in competitive climates yet hinder learning, full engagement and well-being," Pope wrote

Pope and her colleagues found that too much homework can diminish its effectiveness and even

be counterproductive They cite prior research indicating that homework benefits plateau at about two hours per night, and that 90 minutes to two and a half hours is optimal for high school

Their study found that too much homework is associated with:

• Greater stress: 56 percent of the students considered homework a primary source of stress,

according to the survey data Forty-three percent viewed tests as a primary stressor, while 33 percent put the pressure to get good grades in that category Less than 1 percent of the students said homework was not a stressor

• Reductions in health: In their open-ended answers, many students said their homework load led to sleep deprivation and other health problems The researchers asked students whether they experienced health issues such as headaches, exhaustion, sleep deprivation, weight loss and stomach problems

• Less time for friends, family and extracurricular pursuits: Both the survey data and student

responses indicate that spending too much time on homework meant that students were "not meeting their developmental needs or cultivating other critical life skills," according to the researchers Students were more likely to drop activities, not see friends or family, and not pursue hobbies they enjoy

Does homework cause stress in children?

By Emily Cordz

Does Homework Cause Stress in Children?

Unfortunately, the answer to this question is yes The age where homework starts to stress children is becoming lower, some children even reporting concerning levels of stress due to homework in early elementary school There are many reasons for this trend, but one of the most common one is the amount of information children are expected to learn is increasing in complexity, and the rate they are expected to learn it is either remain the same or decreasing

For elementary schools, the shortened recess time puts more pressure on children without allowing them the time to work out their energy and digest what they have learned This

increased pressure is brought home and makes completing homework assignments a difficult task and very stressful for children

Middle and high schools continue the tough academic pressures Larger class sizes, shorter break times and strong pressures to perform well on standardized tests all place students under large amounts of stress All of these factors make completing homework assignments a dubious task In this setting a student who has questions on various parts of the lesson will have a much harder time getting that personal attention to answer their question, which in turn leads to hours

of frustration while trying to complete the homework assignment or an incomplete homework

Educational leadership.

Robert J Marzano and Debra J Pickering

Parent Involvemen

Another question regarding homework is the extent to which schools should involve parents Some studies have reported minimal positive effects or even negative effects for parental involvement In addition, many parents report that they feel unprepared to help their children with homework and that their efforts to help frequently cause stress (see Balli, 1998; Corno, 1996; Hoover-Dempsey, Bassler, & Burow, 1995; Perkins & Milgram, 1996) Epstein and colleagues conducted a series of studies to identify the conditions under which parental

involvement enhances homework (Epstein, 2001; Epstein & Becker, 1982; Van Voorhis, 2003) They recommended interactive homework in which

* Parents receive clear guidelines spelling out their role

*Teachers do not expect parents to act as experts regarding content or to attempt to teach the content

* Parents ask questions that help students clarify and summarize what they have learned Good and Brophy (2003) provided the following recommendations regarding parent involvement:

Especially useful for parent-child relations purposes are assignments calling for students to show or explain their written work or other products completed at school to their parents and get their reactions (Epstein, 2001; Epstein, Simon, & Salinas, 1997) or to interview their parents to develop information about parental experiences or opinions relating to topics studied in social studies (Alleman & Brophy, 1998) Such assignments cause students and their parents or other family members to become engaged in conversations that relate to the academic curriculum and thus extend the students' learning Furthermore, because these are likely to be genuine

conversations rather than more formally structured teaching/learning tasks, both parents and children are likely to experience them as enjoyable rather than threatening (p 395)

The Tyranny of homework: 20 reasons why you shouldn't assign homework over the holidays

Posted by Miriam Clifford

on Thursday, December 20, 2012

Here are 20 reasons why you shouldn’t assign homework over the holidays Perhaps one of your students will print this list and encourage you to reconsider your ideas about homework

1. Students are learning all the time in the 21 st century According to a recent article in

MindShift traditional homework will become obsolete in the next decade Thanks to

computers, learning is occurring 24/7 With access to software programs, worldwide

connections, and learning websites such as the Khan Academy, learning occurs all the time According to Mindshift, “the next decade is going to see the traditional temporal boundaries between home and school disappear.” Try to see if you can bridge the gap between school and home by getting students interested in doing their own research over holiday break Rather than assigning homework, create a true interest in learning They will often pursue learning about topics they like on their own After all, this is the way of the 21st century and information is everywhere

2. More homework doesn’t necessarily equate to higher achievement Yes, too much

homework can actually be a bad thing A 1989 Duke University study that reviewed 120

studies found a weak link between achievement and homework at the elementary level and only

a moderate benefit at the middle school level In a similar recent review of 60

studies, researchers at Duke U found homework was beneficial, but assigning excessive

amounts of homework was counterproductive The research found homework was more

beneficial for older students than younger ones The study was completed by Harris Cooper, a leading homework research and author of “The Battle over Homework: Common Ground for Administrators, Teachers, and Parents” Cooper suggests that teachers at the younger level may assign homework for improving study skills, rather than learning, explaining why many studies concluded less benefit for younger children Many teachers do not receive specific training on homework Cooper suggests that homework should be uncomplicated and short, involve

families, and engage student interests

3. Countries that assign more homework don’t outperform those with less

homework Around the world, countries that assign more homework don’t see to perform any

better A Stanford study found that in counties like Japan, Denmark, and the Czech Republic little homework was assigned and students outperformed students in counties with large

amounts of homework such as Greece, Thailand, and Iran American and British students seem

to have more homework than most counties, and still only score in the international average In fact, Japan has instituted no homework policies at younger levels to allow family time and personal interests Finland, a national leader in international tests, limits high school homework

to half hour per night Of course, there are other factors not taken into account in the study, such as length of the school day But in itself, it is interesting to see this issue from a world perspective