Let’s talk about homework

Homework is not something I ever thought I would speak about.

When I was a child, I hated it. It was too much, the consequences of not doing it were severe, my teachers never really acknowledged my effort or thinking.

It didn’t get much better when I became a teacher either.

No one spoke about homework and yet I was expected to set it. I never had any training on it or what features affected its effectiveness. On the other hand, I had a lot of training on improving my lessons, questioning, marking and feedback.

Many people quote the research on homework, either to support the setting of it or to argue that it isn’t beneficial. The trouble with the research on homework, however, is the variability in methodology, ages of participants and types of homework. Extrapolating the results of these studies to suit our own biases (either for or against) simply does not work.

While the research on homework is lacking, we do have a better understanding of how we learn.

It wasn’t until the pandemic that I realised how little my students valued independent learning and I started to view homework differently. I then spent time reflecting on how we expect students to revise on their own and be prepared for assessments but not really training them in these skills.

Don’t get me wrong, I have definitely worked in schools where we spoke about ‘revision skills’ and ‘how to revise’. We shared the idea of flashcards, mind-mapping, notes.

In our lessons, we teach something new and then provide opportinities for our students to practise and rehearse, coming back to it and building on it over time. This same principle applies to independent study skills.

We teach our students how to revise and how to retrieve knowledge and then we give them plenty of opportunities to practice. And part of that practise comes through homework.

But there are many factors to consider when setting effective homework. When we consider these factors together, we have a greater chance at setting homework that can positively influence student learning.

To develop a positive homework culture, we need to consider different viewpoints:

The teacher’s viewpoint

• does the teacher value the homework that they set?
• does the teacher believe the homework they set will have an impact on student learning?
• can the teacher sustainably set homework regularly?
• can the teacher sustainably provide useful feedback regularly?

The student’s viewpoint

• does the student value the homework they are set?
• do they have a quiet space and time to complete homework?
• do they feel motivated to complete the homework?
• do they see themselves succeeding at the homework?
• do they understand why they are set homework and how it will benefit them?

The parent’s viewpoint

• does the parent understand why homework is set?
• do they know how they can support their child with homework?
• do they see how the homework will benefit their child?

The school’s culture

• what is the language used when discussing homework?
• how are students shown they can succeed at homework?
• how is the homework explicitly linked to class learning?
• how are students shown that the effort they put into homework is valued and recognised?
• how are students held accountable for insufficient effort?
• how do leaders support staff to cultivate a sustainable homework culture?

These are only some of the questions we need to ask ourselves when developing a culture of long-term learning through homework.

There is much to think about when we think of great teaching- the same applies to great homework! I have taken the research and considered the many factors affecting homework to develop a framework that schools can use to build a positive culture and put all of this together in The Homework Conundrum, the first book in the Teacher CPD Academy book series.

It is my hope that conversations about learning include homework, so it is truly a part of classroom learning. So, let’s talk about homework in schools, in CPD and in the classroom.

Featured image from The Noun Project: https://thenounproject.com/creator/imron46/