Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, soccer, dance, baseball, martial arts, music, painting…

Parents believe that extracurricular activities develop the cognitive, kinesthetic, and social skills that support children in the classroom. But, we also know they are choices appropriately made by our children based on their interests—what they love doing.

This is certainly not the case for homework. I’ve written previously about the idea that no research shows homework develops anything but stress, conflict, and frustration.

The controversial Alfie Kohn wrote a book, The Homework Myth, that supports the case for eliminating homework. Kohn writes that homework like competition and rewards, is another misguided educational activity proven to offer no benefits to learners.

Social psychologist Harris Cooper has done synthesis on the research which is slowly making an impact on education policy. Cooper’s book on the topic is The Battle Over Homework.

What is the real value in homework? Should we ask whether a homework assignment helps the learner reinforce skills or concepts learned in class? Offers the learner an opportunity to discover more about a topic? Helps the teacher to see whether the learner understands a lesson?

Do learners benefit when teachers make homework assignments more relevant or engaging? Can teachers create better homework assignments for every child, despite differences in home environments?

Or can we do away with homework altogether?

A post about homework at School Zone: “I taught English in California for years and years, and the best homework assignments for my students was simply their reading assignments.”

Research shows that homework reading assignments of 20 minutes per night improve reading and writing, concepts and vocabulary acquisition, and overall school performance. And, reading seems to be the only type of homework touted for its benefits to learners in studies on homework.