As such, no definitive scientific or academic answer can settle the argument between the two camps. However, a need for the re-conceptualizing of the homework notion grows by the day, especially with the achievement gap and digital divide existing in schools. How can such disparities get bridged? What role can homework play in bridging this gap?

Excellent Reads about Homework

Many people have grown accustomed to issuing or doing homework, especially if you fall under the student or teacher category. As such, it becomes crucial to understand the dark side when it comes to after-school assignments, besides learning the perennial myths that surround it. So what books can prove valuable in comprehending all this and debunking generational myths concerning homework?

• The End of Homework. The book focuses on ways homework can disrupt families, overburden kids, and limit their learning. It is authored by John Buell and Etta Kralovec. The two educators dared to contest a broadly acknowledged practice in schools in America. It’s their provocative dispute about voluminous homework proving better in the book, which featured in several women’s magazines, the Times, and the Newsweek. The same argument got aired on national TV networks and radio broadcasts. 
• The Homework Myth. The book tackles the aspect of kids getting too many bad things in the form of homework. It’s authored by Alfie Kohn and it provides an incisive analysis of misconceptions when it comes to learning. Further, the book dissects the misguided emphasis on competitiveness, which leaves kids with so little free time and more conflict within the family setup. Further, the book points to stories about parent’s retaliatory efforts and education institutions which proved that education excellence can become possible devoid of homework. 
• The Case Against Homework. The book focuses on homework and ways in which it can hurt kids. Further, it also looks at the ways parents can respond to the situation. It is authored by Sara Bennet and Nancy Kalish, who premise the truth to the lack of evidence about homework assisting academic achievement for kids in elementary school and very little evidence it helps advanced students. Further, it enumerates how the workload at night can have serious ramifications on families. It robs kids of their deserved sleep, exercise, and playtime. As such, it hinders proper emotional, neurological, and physical development that can lead to childhood obesity.   
• Closing The Book On Homework. The book tries to enhance public education and has John Buell as the author. It tries to debunk the claim about homework evoking long-term discipline. The claim has no backing when you factor in the broad empirical work. Further, other extracurricular activities or factors can similarly have crucial roles in contributing to the virtue of discipline in kids and young grown-ups.  
• Rethinking Homework. It focuses on the best practices, which can back different needs. Authored by Vatterott Cathy, it examines the homework role in the schooling culture over the years. 

Conclusion

You can always have questions concerning homework, but by reading these books, you will get reliable answers and insights on how to go about after-school assignments.

Writing can prove useful to students as an avenue of expression when it comes to their feelings, besides linking them with others in uncertain times. The Covid-19 pandemic has ensured that students have to stay at home to keep safe and healthy. As such, 123 Homework becomes useful to give them learning opportunities and can get them to express the world happenings with trusted peers and adults alike.

So what ideas can prove useful for writing assignments in the current environment?

1. Interviewing senior members within the community. The pandemic situation has seen older members in the community becoming more at risk than any other age group. As such, organizing an assignment where kids can listen from such elderly community members increases insignificance. You can have kids generate and conduct a model interview after coming up with interview questions. 
2. Folding stories. Within the traditional context of the activity, an individual writes one or two sentences on a paper and folds it to allow visibility of the last phrase or word. The subsequent person then continues writing the story before repeating the first step. It can prove possible to accomplish virtually by disclosing the last phrase or word to the next student. After everyone contributes, you can then share the story with everyone in the class.
3. Dialogue journals. It’s a journal that entails a student and a teacher writing continuously with each other. The process assists instructors to develop relationships with every learner besides observing the academic progress of the students when it comes to their writing skills. 
4. Learner-to-learner letters. You can organize things like letter-writing groups or pen pals and ask the learners to write each other letters using sample questions and prompts.
5. Writing to a choice author. Many times, an expert writer can represent an excellent correspondent to a kid fan. Further, such an author can give useful insight into the crucial features of a book. 
6. Adapting a piece of text to mirror existing conditions. You can assign students the task of rewriting a specific text to suit an existing and realistic situation.
7. Write a letter to an editor. It’s crucial to guide a student through crafting an excellent letter to a specific editor. It should reflect their thoughts about policies, leaders, and potential solutions to the Covid-19 pandemic. You can then post the submission on a class website, school, or district.
8. A student blog. Encourage your students to create and share mentor texts in the form of student journalism. You can also invite students to brainstorm column and article ideas while others assuming roles as section editors.
9. Slow-looking documentation. It refers to a prolonged observation occurring through the five senses. Students can use strategies in this method to write about specific observations.
10. Pandemic comics. It’s a graphic medicine genre that uses comics in exploring the emotional and physical effects of specific medical conditions. The art can prove useful to students in expressing themselves concerning the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
11. Pandemic journals. It entails students processing and documenting their experience for the coming generations.

Conclusion

It can prove useful to consider the eleven writing assignments during these Covid-19 times. What better way to sharpen your writing skills by immersing yourself with real and significant issues?

All this time, this concept has been sparking lots of heated debates revolving around its relevance. I believe that many of you would be quick to say that it reinforces learning, but I urge you to keep an open mind when we start discussing the other nasty side of homework.

In a world full of distractions as well as so many other things to do, it could be true to state that the human mind is having trouble concentrating on important tasks for long periods. And students are no exceptions.

For this reason, this article will cover a discussion of the main reasons why homework is important in a student’s life. 

Enhances learning

Practice makes perfect is one of the most common proverbs that we all use from time to time. This idea of doing something repeatedly is said to eventually turn into a habit, and we all know what they say about habits.

As a second nature, students are expected to gain fundamental life skills such as problem-solving abilities by regularly working on their homework assignments. This means that homework provides kids with one of the best platforms to become creative, especially when looking for answers and solutions.

To get them, students often have to dig deeper into their learning material and, in turn, end up learning more ways to approach a given problem. This way, therefore, homework helps to prepare students for upcoming tests.

Encourages self-initiative

As earlier stated, homework makes students research through reading materials for answers. Being away from school environments and constraints, kids have to be self-driven to complete their homework in time. It is, therefore, true to state that homework assignments spark a sense of self-initiative in students. As a result, kids become self-sufficient in doing research and solving problems independently.

Promotes flexibility

I know that many of us always find it hard to perform while under pressure. Well, don’t beat yourself up the next time you are cornered with a fast-approaching deadline. It is almost human nature always to take the easiest route in life. Nevertheless, students often have assignments that need to be done and submitted overnight. Luckily, this kind of necessity enables them to become more creative and innovative. Smart students often create a work plan and find extra free time to finish their homework as a way out. This, in turn, helps to nature good morals as well as bring up responsible citizens.

Final thoughts

The discussion about homework can go on for ages, especially when critics are involved. Otherwise, homework needs to be taken seriously because it could be the best tool to foster our students’ academic excellence. However, there is a concern that teachers need to be more deliberate and intentional when assigning homework assignments. We’ll only make homework effective if we all do our bit seriously. Assignment Geek has always been helping students who feel overwhelmed with their assignments. So if you feel you are getting too much homework and can’t cope with it on your own, feel free to get in touch with them.

However, everything has its negatives, and when it comes to homework, it’s not so different either. Homework only benefits a student when they choose to engage actively and when they are ready to learn. Too much homework may reduce the morale of students as they may view it as a task rather than an opportunity to increase their knowledge.

Adverse effects homework has on students. 

Adverse effects homework may have on a student’s life may affect their overall grades, social life, and even their health. Adding more time in terms of homework to the average 8 hours a student spends in class may cause them to feel unmotivated and overwhelmed. There’s a thin line between exploring frustrated and developing learning skills. There’s much importance of having homework even beyond the classroom setup, but caution is essential to ensure there’s no negative effect in this endeavor. Students will fail to meet different needs if they do too much homework, for example, social and physical activeness. In the long run, the quantity of homework a student gets impacts their grades more than any other factor.

What effect does homework have on a student’s health?

Homework affects students’ mental and physical health. Stanford University conducted research and found that 56% of students perceived homework as a primary stress factor. Effects of too much homework include lack of sleep (insomnia), exhaustion, headaches, and losing weight. Another effect of having too much homework is developing poor eating habits as families may opt for fast food and take-outs.

What effect does homework have on a student’s social life?

The purpose of having extra-curriculum activities is refreshing a student’s body and mind. Students who have significant volumes of homework means they will spend less time engaging with family members and friends. A student may end up feeling lonely and isolated without any support. It gets more challenging for older students who have to balance school work and part-time jobs. Too much homework leaves little or no time at all for a student to relax and socialize with peers, which increases stress.

What effect does homework have on a student’s grades?

It’s only natural for a student to feel burnt out after spending eight hours hunched over a desk. Piling extra homework on them may lead to a student failing to complete them or depending on the parents’ help. It means homework will lose its value, and the grades may dwindle as a result.

Excessive amounts of homework lead to a less active learning culture. On the other hand, active learning will promote the application and analysis of content taught in class in a real-life situation. Most of the time, homework doesn’t provide such opportunities and may lead to boredom and a general lack of developing skills in problem-solving.

How can parents help?

Parents should play an active role in your kid’s homework routine and understand where to offer support. You need to stick to a routine to set an organized and clear habit for your child when doing homework. It helps to employ this routine when homework assignments become time-consuming and difficult.

Conclusion. 

Homework is all about balance. There are many benefits a student can get from doing homework if done in the right way.

Schoolwork at home provides parents with a platform to interact and appreciate the material that their children are studying to give them another source of learning success. Glenda Faye Pryor-Johnson, a Memphis Parent and columnist, said that if your child does homework, you can hire a helper from Do My Homework 123 and go further to state that it is an incentive for parents to observe their children’s positive behaviors. Also, Pryor-Johnson outlines four attributes that kids learn when they complete the task given that can assist them in becoming highly attainable students. These four characteristics learned at home include responsibility, self-esteem, perseverance, and time management.

While these are not measurable on standardized test scores, persistence has attracted considerable attention as a critical tool for smart kids. A regular achievement such as coursework at home builds and boosts self-esteem, helping the students’ health and well-being. Obligation and management of time are incredibly desirable qualities that benefit students even long after their graduation.

The professors at NYU and Duke disagree with the assertion that homework is entirely unconnected to educational achievement and the students’ overall success

Response to the statement from the Center for Public Education of the National School Board Association. Stating that home assignment not comprehensively linked to student achievement, researcher and Diane Ravitch, NYU professor, argues that the real revelation of the research was that students who did not accomplish assignments or lacked the means to do so received poor results.

Further to that, Ravitch claims evidence from the study only reinforces the belief that homework helps those who complete homework. She also mentions additional assignment benefits: where else will students be able to interact with a text or compose an entire essay, thankfully? Class time constraints usually demand that these tasks are provided as assignments from outside.

Five findings confirm an essential relationship between the completion of the homework and academic achievement

Professor Harris Cooper of the Duke University acknowledges Ravitch’s evaluation, stating that over five experimental studies, the average kid who undertook homework had a significantly higher grade average than those who did not. Dr. Cooper and his associates reviewed hundreds of studies about whether tasks accomplished at home are advantageous in a 2006 survey in A Theoretical Synthesis, 1987 – 2003 Known as, “Does homework boost educational outcomes?

The study found 12 less authoritative studies that relate achievement to time spent on homework but monitor several other variables that could affect the outcome. Lastly, 35 studies were identified by the research team, which found a positive connection between academic achievement and but only after elementary school.

The required volume of homework varies according to the grade level

The book “Does homework improve academic achievement” describes the amount of homework provided as the students’ educational tool. While practice enhances academic performance at all grade levels, “after almost 90 minutes a night, schoolwork for junior high school students seems to attain the tipping point. The optimistic line keeps climbing for high school students between 90 minutes and 2.5 hours at homework a night; after that, it diminishes.

In conclusion, the assertion of Dr. Cooper — homework is necessary, but flexibility can and should be exercised when assigning it and when answering the legitimate concerns of homework critics. Although the act of completing assignments has advantages in creating good behaviors in students, home assignments need to prove beneficial to students so they can invest in and accomplish their goals.

Natural consequences.

It doesn’t help much to yell at your kid whenever they forget to do their homework; let them taste the natural consequences of not submitting homework on time instead. In elementary school, teachers may deny such students recess time while those in high school may accord extra assignments to students who hand in their jobs late. Also, dwindling grades is a consequence that results from not doing homework.

Remind your kids that they must complete homework on time and submit it whenever they get upset about the punishments they receive. It will make them complete their assignments on time and avoid further consequences in the future.

Home Homework.

An excellent way to help a forgetful kid is to create assignments on top of their school assignments. These assignments ought to have a boring effect, for example writing numbers 1 through to 100 in neat handwriting or even constructing sentences using new vocabulary and phrases. When you employ this punishment measure, they will want to avoid it at all costs, and therefore they’ll have to complete their assignments on time. Another way of incorporating this form of punishment is making them do unpleasant chores instead of giving them written work. An example may be asking then to wipe and clean the whole floor and doorknobs in the house. Naturally, the more boring a chore is, the higher chance the kid will want to avoid it by completing their assignments on time.

Reward System.

A better way to make your child do homework is by establishing incentives that motivate them. A simple way you can use to achieve this is by awarding them a point each time they submit their homework on time. After that, you can choose to redeem these points after they accumulate to a certain number for a price. If they don’t submit their homework in time, you can deduct a point from the points they have.

Every kid wants to get the reward, and you can be sure that they will complete their assignments. Similarly, they will add more effort into their school work, which will, in turn, make their grades better with time.

Make Them Pay.

You may wonder how exactly this will work out. Simply put, your kid has to pay a fine for not completing their homework on time or forgetting to complete it. For example, you can set the fine at $1 for any daily delay or a $5 for not attempting their homework ultimately. The amount you chose to fine your kids will depend on the allowance you give them.

What happens when they have exhausted all their allowance money, yet they’re still not motivated to do homework? You can choose to give them jobs around the house; they can do to pay off their “debt.”

Conclusion.

These methods all have the aim of assisting your kid for their benefit and education excellence. It isn’t meant to hurt them or abuse their rights. Hopefully, whatever method you choose to employ will bear good results.

Employ technology

It is said that practicing reinforces skills and knowledge acquisition. But what happens when one keeps reinforcing the wrong information? This usually happens when you keep learning the wrong thing or answers a question in the wrong way, thinking you are right. If you have any difficulty in solving a homework question, it is better to seek physics homework help online than to try and make errors. With the advancement in technology and the amount of information on the internet, you can always rely on smart devices when doing homework. There are websites created just for educational purposes, and it helps students during difficult times. Sites like Khan Academy or using search engines like Google can be of great help in answering difficult questions.

Engage in group work

Solving a problem as a group is much more comfortable and exciting than doing individual works. With group studies, students can discuss different methods of answering a particular question. These discussions can promote better understanding among students and become well informed. It enables students to learn new things from colleagues. Group studies also take away the boredom associated with doing the assignment as new ideas keep flowing. At the end of the discussion and completing your work, you become fulfilled and brainstormed with different ideas making it a great experience.

Assign reasons to every homework

Generally, humans would always want to have a reason or purpose of doing something. As a teacher, you can get your students’ interest in doing homework by telling them the purpose behind it. Be open to them and tell them, for example, that this homework is to test your reasoning, your creative skills, intelligence, and reading habit, etc. A student is more committed to doing such home tasks than generic ones that come with no purpose. It also helps the teacher to access the performance of your students at each subject.

The need for feedback

After submitting an assignment, a student would automatically expect to receive feedback/results of the work they sacrificed their sleep for. They would want to know how well they performed in that stressing homework. The results can boost their confidence level to do more the next time. Those who performed badly would also want to put in more effort in subsequent work. However, what happens when a teacher decides not to mark or give feedback to students? It discourages them, and they wouldn’t want to waste their time on subsequent works. They also develop apathy towards homework. As a teacher, let students know the worth of their time and labor by marking or giving feedback. If you don’t have time to do this, then don’t assign homework at all.

A study shows that some students undergo stress and may have adverse health implications due to loads of tasks assign them after lessons. This explains why homework is terrible in specific contexts. In this piece, we will share why homework can be bad for students’ development.

Why too much homework is bad for kids

The National Education Association (NEA) and National PTA (NPTA) consider standard homework to be 10 minutes according to the grade level. In essence, first-grade students can enjoy 10 minutes of home tasks with high school students having two hours. Both associations appreciate the importance of assignments, yet they believe that too much of it could be hazardous. In support of their stand, experts have warned that anything more than the standard 10 minutes per grade can harm kids in first grade.

Speaking with CNN, Stephanie Donaldson-Pressman indicated that aside from homework at lower levels not beneficial to kid’s grades or GPA, there’s enough evidence that it’s counterproductive and affects their attitude towards school. It may also affect their grades, social skills, self-confidence, and quality of life.That notwithstanding, some teachers disregard the standards and overburdens students with homework. Recent research found that an average of 28 and 29 minutes of homework are assigned first and second graders. Also, although kindergarteners are exempted from home tasks, they assigned about 25 minutes of task per night. The phenomenon creates stress among the kids and their families as well, especially when parents are not educated enough to help their kids out.

Why homework is harmful to high school students

Just like the kids, high school students also have their share of effects from homework. A 2013 research by Stanford University revealed that students from high-achieving communities suffer stress, exclusiveness, troubled life, and other health problems due to spending much time on homework. It is proven that more than two hours of assignment per night can be harmful. Students who undergo long hours of night tasks experience symptoms of stress, including sleep deprivation, headache, weight loss, stomach problems, and exhaustion. Some also resort to drug use to cope with the high-stress level

Most high school students have to sacrifice many social activities to get their assignments done. In effect, they are trading other important extracurricular activities for school activities. No time to help parents at home, socialize with friends, engage in hobbies, and many other things that can help nurture their talent and skills.

Conclusion

As discussed above, homework is bad with its health and social implications. There won’t be any benefit for both students and teachers if students perceive home tasks as a form of punishment or restriction mechanism. However, if teachers can comply with the 10 minutes per grade level standard, the effects will be minimized. It is also advisable to find an assignment helper or a writer homework help for kids to reduce stress and studying pressure. After all, quality is better than quantity.

Why home task is Good

A supporter of homework believes the practice is beneficial to students as it allows them to revisit topics or materials treated during lessons. Through homework, they can repeatedly go over the problem and understand it better through self-teaching. It is also a known fact that continuous practice improves skills. The principal of Signal Hill School in Voorhees, NJ, Sharon R. Stallings has emphasized on the need for students to always practice to become perfect.

The CEO of Philadelphia Green Woods Charter School, Jean Wallace, has stated, for teaching and learning to become effective, students must be able to apply what they learn in the classroom outside the school. If teaching and learning are effective, there should be a knowledge application. That is, students must be able to apply what they learn in school everywhere. One of the ways to achieve this is through homework. Many other supporters of home tasks have expressed the same views.

Most parents are oblivious of what their children learn in school. Homework, therefore, presents the right platform for parents to know what children learn in school. Some assignment requires extra help and parents can be the best source of this help.

Homework can teach students essential life skills like time management, research skills, self-discipline, and independence.

Students make good use of their time

Instead of engaging in unbeneficial activities, a student can use spare time to do homework. At least they can spend time on books than on television and playing games.

Why Homework can be Harmful

A critic of homework and author of The Homework Myth, Alfie Kohn, has opined that “Homework has been a major source of exhaustion, frustration, restriction on kids to pursue extra-curriculum activities, family conflicts, and, lost of interest in education.” He added, “It may be the greatest single extinguisher of children’s curiosity.” According to him, there is no proof that homework is beneficial to children at the elementary level.

Kohn also debunked assertions that homework promotes life skills. He said homework has little or no effect on children’s development, and it’s an illusion that it improve work ethics or self-discipline.

Studies have shown that too much homework can be counterproductive and affect children’s health. In recent research, some students complained of sleep deprivation, high-stress level, weight loss, and exhaustion. Some also admitted to using drugs to cope with the stress.

Finding free math homework help is not an easy thing to do. Most help will have to be paid for, but there are a few resources available. Most will be from agencies that are paid for by another entity. Usually schools and libraries. But there are a few other sources available.

1. Search engine searches
2. Key words
3. What to watch out for
4. What to look for

Search Engine Searches

First off, to look for free and reliable math homework help, using the search engines is important. Knowing how to use them is even more important. There are a number of types of search engines out there..

• Crawler-based; means that it uses software that crawls by means of a system called spider, robot, or just bots.
• Directory; is a system that uses humans to look at the sites and file them into a central directory that they believe it fits in.
• Meta; these use software that looks at results from other search engines

Most people use the crawler type as it is very effective. The second most common is the Meta, which is equally as effective, but requires more separating than the crawler.

Key Words

Using key words to find free and reliable math homework help, is very important. Here is an example of using key words for this search; “free+math+homework+help”. On Bing this turned up “3,850,000” results. Using the “+” between each word binds the phrase together in the search engine. Without it, the search engine will use each word separately. It also puts the sites that use that phrase exactly up front, and those hat use parts of it behind that. Doing it this way; “free math homework help” only returned “317,000” results. So using the most effective words and the way they are put in, gives the best results.

What to watch out for

Even using the right words, and in the right way will get less than optimal sites. Before clicking on any site read what is there. Some sites will say free trial, and bill for expensive prices. Others will have poorly written introductions, those could have viruses, or spyware. If any question about a site, do not click on them.

What to look for

Look for sites that have a professional feel to them. Some will be .ed, which means it is a school. Others might have a .org, which means it is an organization. But they will usually say in the introduction that they are a free service. If not, they will say that inside, or that they are a free trial.