Homework without heartache......

Well, Johnny can dance and Johnny can love

But Johnny can't read

Johnny can push and Johnny can shove

Johnny can hang out; Johnny can talk tough

Johnny can get down and Johnny can throw up

Lyrics by Don Henley

I regularly hear or read these objections:

‘there is no point of setting homework for the sake of it’,

‘children need to have a childhood, why rob them of their evenings’

‘research shows that homework doesn’t make much difference’.

‘I couldn’t possibly cope with all the marking if I set homework every week’

‘half the class won’t do it anyway, so what’s the point’

Well, I would argue with all of these points:

There is always a ‘sake’ because homework can and should always be an integral part of the learning process.

It is perfectly possible to do homework and have time to engage in all kinds of other activities if the homework is sensible and thought through.

Research doesn’t really deal fully with the nature of homework being set; we are not just talking about any old task – we are talking about great homework that feeds into lessons and provides exciting opportunities for student-led learning and creativity.

The assumption that all homework needs to be teacher-marked is ludicrous and.......

The point about homework is to offer learning opportunities and generate a culture of high expectations; half the class will do it and they should not be held back because of the others.

1) Bridging between teacher-led and student-led learning

2) Extending learning time.

3) Creating Opportunities for Creativity and Choice.

4) Developing the skills required for independent learning

5) Reducing the diverging effect of home support: i.e. it’s about equal opportunities.

6) Communicating the values of the school and the teacher

So, to finish, in the routine flow of school life, I would urge teachers to put time and energy into setting great homeworks, mixed in with some more routine consolidation tasks. A balanced diet! Don’t get overly bogged down in setting detentions and so on; reserve sanctions for those who are very, very persistent in not doing any work in between lessons. The greatest sanction of all is that they miss

out on learning…. that message can’t be stressed too much. As soon as homework is associated directly with punitive sanctions, the battle has been lost – and you get a canteen full of students copying out last minute bits of work just to have something to hand in! My most well-worn teacher-cliche, as I refuse to accept the scrappy, half-hearted, last-ditched effort: “You are not doing it for me, you are doing it for yourself!”

Tom Sherrington September 2, 2012⋅

If you've a lesson to teach me, I'm listening, ready to learn. There's no one here to police me, I'm sinking in, until you return. If you've a lesson to teach me, Don't deviate, don't be afraid. Without the last corner piece I can't calibrate, Let's get it ingrained

Lyrics by Arctic Monkeys.

If anyone is interested in joining a working party to look at how we can drive this forward please contact me at:paul.rayburn@sheredes.herts.sch.uk