Features
Homework: Too Much or Not Enough
Mary Gosche, Human Development Specialist, Cape Girardeau County and Southeast Region, University of Missouri Extension
The mothers in my office do not look forward to the starting of school because of the busy balance of homework, music lessons, other after-school activities, and sports activities. But as students head back to school it is definitely time to think about homework. Here is the cycle: teachers assign and grade it; parents remind their students about it and maybe assist with homework; teenagers especially complain about it, enjoy it or forget it, and maybe complete it. Researchers agree that homework is an essential ingredient of a student's school success.
How much time is being spent on homework?
A recent study found that students in middle and junior
high school spend about 45 minutes while elementary
school students on the average spend about 35 minutes on
homework. Another study had another tale to tell, 41% of
elementary school students and 37% of middle/junior high
students do not do any homework on a typical day. This
second study showed that on the average, elementary
school students spend 63 minutes on homework, and the
middle/junior high students spend 77 minutes per day.
Who does homework?
Seventy-five percent of students whose mothers had a
college degree do homework, versus 49%-59% for students
whose mothers have less education. Private school
students (87%) are more likely to spend some time doing
homework than those in public school (58%).
How much is too much-and how much is not enough?
Doing little or no homework in school can have negative
long-term effect on children. Recent media attention
suggests that many American children are spending too
much time completing homework assignments. This may be
true for some students in this country. However,
cross-cultural comparisons reveal that American children
complete much less homework than children in other
countries, such as Japan and Tawain.
It is critical to examine homework time in the
relationship of students' after-school activities, as
well as leisure activities such as watching television.
Many children do no homework because their after-school
time is consumed by other activities, such as sports
teams and music lessons. Homework may act as an
additional stressor in the student's busy life as well
as their parent. On the other hand, students who do
little or no homework may be participating more in
passive leisure activities, like watching television.
Parental monitoring is the key in determining how
homework fits in the balance of family life.
Homework can enhance learning and achievement and
develop independent work and study habits. Teachers and
parent should try to be sensitive to the multiple
demands on the students' time, while at the same time
recognizing the potential benefits of homework.
Source: University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension, The Ups & Downs of Adolescence, Homework-Yuck! August 2000.
Last Updated 05/05/2009
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