Does Homework Help Students?

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In the race to success, education is always considered to be the key to it. The education system is devised in a way that students are required to study at school in their initial stages and carry homework in the name of assignments. Homework is an exercise of reviewing the studies done at class and practising the same at home. It is a critical part of education.

Sometimes, it is felt that a majority of time, after schools and colleges,are spent in completing our homework leaving little or no time of socio-cultural activities. However, question is – does homework help students in the exam of life for achieving success? Did the education system with homework actually helped in achieving the following:-

  1. Patience to achieve long term goals
  2. Street Smartness
  3. Logical and analytical thinking
  4. Courage
  5. Self-esteem
  6. Self-motivation etc.

If not, do we expect our children to spend a quarter of their childhood behind homework for something which does not teach important life lesson in the name of future success? To add to it, even sample studies show doing timely homework and passing with flying marks do not make you successful.

  • Homework Review of studies or Completion of Incomplete Classwork?

Homework is an exercise of reviewing studies done at class and practising the same. It is a critical part of studies. However, in current scenario, students are given homework to solve incomplete classwork rather than reviewing and revising classwork. It requires parent intervention and support of reference books thereby reducing teacher’s work. So, the bulk homework has actually lost its motto of reviewing and revising of classwork and has become a victim of reference books as a source to clear exams.

  • Homework = Stress, frustration or depression

Different schools and colleges assign marks for completing the homework. It is a way to threaten students to complete homework to pass their academic year neglecting the fact that learning is more important than passing exams. This is indeed stressful for students and can affect their psychological growth which may be followed by lack of interest in studies, stress, obesity, depression frustration, lack of sleep and so on.

If just because homework is a reason for frustration, depression, stress etc, amongst students is it actually right to completely remove it from education system? Or should we rethink for homework to be completely scrapped because of its other benefits?

  • Homework — A mean to teach benefits of advance preparation in life exams

The education system is divided into semester, and homework is given to clear each semester. Thus homework is a mean to prepare students to pass their semester. This inculcates the habit of advance preparation for achieving goals in life. Further, it creates pressure on students which help them deal pressure situation in life without losing temperament.

  • Homework — A source to prepare for extensive studies

Extensive studies is required for students who wants to clear professional exams like doctors, CA, Lawyers, IAS officers etc. Homework develops a habit of an extra hour of study since childhood. This in turn will help them in clearing their professional exams. In case if the concept of homework is removed, will we have equal number of professionals? If not will the nation growth be at risk?

  • Homework or Gadget handicapped

Homework takes away that extra hour of free time from students after school and colleges. In the current world, major time of people is spent over gadget like TV, laptop, computers, mobile phones etc. So if the concept of homework is removed wont our kids spend that extra hour of free time over these gadgets? Being the responsible parents do we want gadgets be the substitute for homework?

Thus from the above, it is clear that though homework is stressful, depressing and majority of people lack interest in completing the same, it cannot be questioned to have an education system without homework. However, all it can be done is restructuring the concept of homework with restructuration in education system.

Ways for restoration into Education System

  • Introduction of subject that interest students

Currently, the educational system lacks the subject like sport, music, acting etc for academic grading. Such subject should be introduced and students should be given option to select each subject of their choice barring languages only as compulsory subjects. If students are asked to study the topic of their interest, they will give 100% even in completing their homework. Students can be taught life lesson with any type of subjects. It is not necessary to have a rigid subject wise syllabus for the same.

  • Counselling to identify students interest

For students who are too young or who fail to understand their interest can be assess on single paper having multiple subject covered in it which helps them to understand their interest. Alternatively, a counselling session can be kept to help students to identify their interest.

  • Restructuration in license system of education ministry

Nowadays we see new schools and colleges coming up each year. Education ministry instead of giving license for opening new schools should give license to schools to cover more subjects so that students can move forward to study only the subject of their choice right from school.

  • Quality over quantity

Quantity of homework is something that is stressing. The quantum of homework is so high that students do not get time for socio-cultural growth. In that situation, the number of subjects covered in school and colleges should be reduced say from 8 to 6. This in turn will reduce both classwork and homework giving students to also concentrate in extra-curriculum activity.

  • Practical over theoretical

It is true that homework and classwork are theoretical and it is difficult to practise them in reality. In that case homework should be such that in provided practical knowledge to students as well. To achieve these, the concept of project system is brought. However, projects are completed visiting online sites.

  • Reality Check

Homework linked with marks should act like a reality check for real life situation. Recently came across businessmanagement project in a degree-college wherein students were asked to raise funds by devising and executing a business plan to support a cause of an NGO.It was a fun-filled project where funds raised helped them to assess their entrepreneur skills.The concept of internship training is other-thing that can act as homework along-with practical knowledge for students.

  • Conclusion

In end all it can be sum, homework or no homework is not a question. The quality and the quantum of homework should be a matter of question. Homework which prepares students for life exams should always be welcome but it should never be linked with examination results or success by elders. It should not be neglected that knowledge is more important thanmarks. An educational system should be reviewed that helps in reducing the quantum of homework as well as it increases its quality. Preference should be given on practical growth rather then theoretical. An educational system to develop practical and logical thinking amongst students will provide personalities even better than Einstien who was smart lucky to be a successful inventor inspite of being a drop-out who never did homework.

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