Most high school students would say that they are constantly bombarded with homework every day. At the end of a 7 hour school day of sitting at a desk, the last thing they want to do is 4+ hours of homework. What teachers don’t understand is students are also receiving work for 6 other classes. Time at home shouldn’t be spent doing heaps of worksheets and documents, but with family and friends or winding down. 

The obvious shift to more online based learning is playing a part in providing students with their homework. High schoolers are also preparing for higher education and college. These are important factors for teachers to consider when distributing homework. This makes it seem necessary to assign some type of work every day. However, research has found that over 2 hours of homework a night can have an immense impact on the balance and stress levels of students’ lives, especially when the material wasn’t covered in class and teachers are requesting that they learn on their own. This is highly unnecessary and can really damage the happiness and even development of students.

Teachers often expect a lot of their students. In their minds, an hour or two of homework is just 20 minutes. Their unrealistic expectations are overwhelming and with so many classes all assigning homework, the workload really piles up. Many high school students play sports and spend time with their friends and families. There’s just not enough time in the day to complete the amount of homework busy students get. 

While it may not be beneficial to ban homework altogether, other solutions may be possible. The best thing a teacher can do is try to find a balance that works well for all students, but this is a next to impossible task as all kids learn and develop at different rates.  Students should be challenged while they learn the curriculum and students have been found to work and progress faster when they do so at their own pace. Self paced learning can show students and teachers how they learn best. However, not every student is capable of progress while engaging in self paced learning. This is why a solution to the homework debacle could be for teachers and students to collaborate. By coming to a decision together, students can be assigned a healthy amount of homework. This process is called collaborative learning.

Setting learning goals is also a very beneficial practice for students. It gives students something to work towards. Teachers collaborating and setting goals can give them something to work for and provide the motivation they need which also goes along with the collaborative learning method.

Working with other students can also be a valuable enrichment activity for students. Students can get ideas from each other which helps develop real world communication skills. They could have constructive conversations and improve their social skills as well.

Students who use collaborative learning styles can achieve many healthy habits. These may include healthy sleep schedules, regular eating habits, and spending time with their family and friends. All students are different, so finding ways to make homework an easier process is worth it, even if it’s a little extra effort and time.