Memories are funny things. You seem to only remember the things you hated most. And in terms of school, for those past it, the one thing you remember distinctly is the homework. Homework, homework, homework, is that all that ever happens?
That is a million dollar question that parent and researchers alike have been playing tug-o-war with, and the 7th graders of GALA have just tackled this issue as well.
GALA’s homework policy allows for around 20 minutes of homework per class per night, yet other schools within the district obviously exceed that limit, so the compromise the 7th graders came up with was 2 hours a night, tops.
Not to generalize or, but seeing the writers as 7th graders, most of the grade chose, predictably, that there should be less homework a night. And the point is valid. Looking past GALA, homework is often strenuous, unnecessary, and tedious. And while it does help with understanding, those against homework ask to what point. They point out the endless studies that show homework causes sleep-deprivation, lack of eating, stress and overall unhappiness. And is knowing what x is in yet another problem really worth all that?
Yet the select contrarians, such as myself, disagree. If all these things are side effects, something isn’t right. It could be the student or the assignment, but something is certainly arie. Homework was created for a reason, and as long as educators don’t stray too far from them, it should be all right. There are only 7 hours in a school day, at least an hour or more taken up by non-academic classes. That leaves little time to learn all the needed content, and homework is a way to get all the ‘busy work’ out of the way so that in class time, deeper learning can take place.
Alas, no opinion is necessarily correct, as every learner is different, but statistically speaking, according to an EJ 2017 poll, over 60% of students and 40% of parents don’t associate homework with happiness, but there is yet a poll that shows if the majority thinks that homework is successful, if not pleasant, which appears to be the consensus at GALA.
The verdict? Homework isn’t bad, it’s useful, but only when it’s not so called ‘busy work,’ the worksheets and worksheets of the same problems over and over again, long after you’ve mastered the concepts. Thankfully, the homework assigned at GALA is far from the busy work most students endure, but some still find it tiresome, understandable as we are only kids.
But whether you campaign against homework or beg for more; whether you call it your job or your pleasure; whether you find it a blessing or a burden, you have to agree, it’s definitely a battleground.
Maya Henry, 2024- GALA Spotlight Writer
Photo Credit: My Homework Help
A reverberation of GALA student voices 