Almost all students agree, homework is terrible. The consensus is often that kids just don’t want to do schoolwork at home, but that’s not a good enough reason to ban it. To answer why the idea of homework is dated, we must analyze what separates the culture of students from now and when homework became customary.
It’s unclear exactly when homework was invented, but according to Study.com, by 1905 the idea of homework had wormed its way from Germany into America, spreading across the country. From the start, it was unpopular among students and parents, and some even considered it a form of child labor. Several different laws have been passed to outlaw the practice, but none of them stuck. This is crazy because a student is legally required to be in attendance at school, but there is no law forcing them to do schoolwork during their free time away from the classroom.
The student life in 1905 was far different than it is today. Back then, students didn’t work, played less sports, and travel and AAU sports hadn’t even been thought of yet. Students were expected to be a student first, and schoolwork was the primary activity for them. It’s not uncommon for students to be involved in several clubs and activities after school nowadays. Expecting a student to complete work outside of class when they have a sports practice, a shift at work, and babysitting all after school is not realistic. Times have changed, and the role that education has in student’s’ lives should change with it.
Advocates of homework may see it as an essential part of a student’s education, pulling out statistics of academic achievement to prove their point. Yes, statistics like those on greatschools.org show that a student who completes work outside of class outperforms a student who does none by up to 69%, but they also state that “less is often more”. The reason this discrepancy exists is that homework allows students to complete work on their own and use problem solving skills. There is no reason that this stimulation of the mind must happen during the time a student is meant to have for other activities when it can occur during school hours. Class time should be used for this instead.
This article aims to advocate for a change in the way school works that frees students from the burden of outside-of-class work, but also maintains the best education possible. Homework as it stands forces students to take school home with them, and doesn’t make their free time really “free”.This causes academic burnout and can result in increased disinterest in school. Hopefully, a change can be made in the structure of education that allows for students to complete their individual work that stimulates the brain in school hours and not while they are at home.