Homework, homework, homework! Inside the educational arena, questions, concerns and discussions regarding best homework practices are popping up like moles in the arcade game, “whack-a-mole.” By the time answers start to gel around one of these questions, another pops up and demands an answer or, at the very least, spurs a dizzying quest to determine “best practices.”
How much is too much?
What kind of homework delivers the best results?
Why give so much? What about giving none at all?
What does the current homework load do to our students overall well-being?
The list goes on and on…
Here at Darlington, these kinds of questions were beginning to surface as the 2014-15 school year began. In fact, the opening meeting for Upper School faculty was devoted entirely to the issue of homework expectations, perceptions and realities. Faculty members in interdisciplinary groups brainstormed for answers to questions surrounding appropriate amounts of homework, purposes of homework, desired skills to develop as a result of homework, and other avenues for study that might be traveled in lieu of homework to achieve the same level of student success.
The intersection of this initiative by Upper School Director Matthew Peer and my graduate research could not have been more perfectly timed. One aspect of my program centers on teaching and learning. The research from this course describes the dramatic shift in philosophies during the last century concerning the favor of assigning heavy homework or no homework for the purpose of developing the successful student. The shifts likely had (and continue to have) more to do with the current definition of the successful student than anything else. The truth is that a successful student most likely emerges from a place in between these two opposite philosophies – where purposeful homework assists in the continuation of learning begun in the classroom and thereby produces true transfer of information and skills.
So then, the question to answer might be: how do we define the middle ground? The complex variables surrounding the student alone make creating hard and fast rules regarding homework impossible, not to mention the complexities of a teacher’s personal style and delivery, etc. Yet, a template for designing and prescribing homework might be helpful both in equity of time spent on homework across disciplines and in manageability on the part of the student to complete and digest said homework.
What might the middle ground look like for Darlington School? Such questions regarding homework cannot be answered thoughtfully if we are uncertain of where we are presently in terms of our practices. It is important that we develop as clear and true a picture as possible of our expectations, realities and practices. As a body of educators, it is our hope and desire to use our learning environments (in and out of the classroom) to create successful, well-rounded and happy Darlington graduates.
To that end, current Upper School parents, faculty and students will soon receive an email with a short survey attached. The homework question concerns all sides of the triangle. Each group is vital in creating a clear picture of where we are now in terms of homework practices, so that academic committees may consider what, if any, changes can be or should be made for our future.
This survey is not the only entry into this topic. There will be other venues of exploration and engagement to understand the face of homework and its role in our school and for our students. Please take time to share your voice! I appreciate your consideration of this topic and your partnership toward helping us be the best Darlington we can be.
