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Post by Sandy Pines on Feb 15, 2010 15:40:01 GMT -5
Is homework necessary? Should teachers lay off, or is homework a necessary element of learning?
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Post by Sandy Pines on Feb 15, 2010 15:56:26 GMT -5
I believe that teachers should lay off the homework. Not because I'm very lazy and never do my homework, but I don't believe it's truly teaching us anything. If a student does not understand a topic that the teacher is going over, how would homework help? It is true that a student can read through the chapter but sometimes even the text book doesn't explain it to where the student can understand.
Since I say that homework should be removed completely, teachers would want to bring up the following issues: Grades lowering, Tests make up almost all the % of the class, and less focused in class.
My solution to solve these three problems is simple. Instead of having homework, students should have access to a recording of the lesson on the school's website. If a student does not understand a lesson they can go home or to a local library to review the lesson over. There should also be an instant access phone number (possibly a free cell phone provided to the teachers from the school) that all students may access just in case they have any questions.
My solution to 'being less focused in class' is to actually interact with the class. Teachers should hold class debates or class anonymous surveys on topics that they don't understand instead of lecturing to a class for an hour and a half with most of the class asleep. This would help students be more comfortable speaking in front of crowds and to be opinionated instead of being robots with text books telling them how they should be and what they should know.
This helps correspond to the last issue, 'tests making up most of the class grades'. These 'class debates' or 'class surveys' should take over the homework grades just in case someone isn't a good test taker. Teachers should also interact with the class by holding fun projects worth quiz grades.
Also, to help with the bad grades on tests It'd be awesome if teachers told us exactly what was on the test, such as making a study guide that has all the same questions on it as the test except that the questions are in a random order. Teachers in my school fail to tell me what is on a test, so I go and study at home which in turn I find out I'm studying the wrong material.
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Post by em on Feb 15, 2010 19:50:02 GMT -5
let me prelude this by stating that I am a senior in college and these are observations based on my experience at the college level.
I find much value in having homework, if the assignment and the course are designed well. Most well designed homework, especially in college papers, has the point of exploring ideas and cementing knowledge. I enjoy writing papers because writing gives me a chance to explore ideas and try to solve a puzzle.
However, my most significant issue with courses and homework is only having one method of delivery. As a tutor, I've worked with many students who cannot access the material presented because it is only in audiological form and their strength is visual or kinesthetic. For example, I am a visual learner, I learn best when I see something in images, pictures, notes and writing. While having a call in line and an audio recording would help you, it would be of no help to me at all. If more professors used mixed methods of providing information - lectures, games, discussions, notes, etc - and support was provided through multiple channels, more students could benefit because the information would be presented in their strongest learning style. (Also, at the college level, we discuss and debate all the time, which also helps with memory retention and understanding - discuss, teach and understand. I also recommend forming study groups with fellow students to continue the debate).
Also, in college, tests make up a fraction of the grade. Usually it is a combination of participation, quizzes, tests, projects and papers, depending on the major and the course.
As to text books not explaining to where the student can understand, critical reading skills are important and can be developed, and discussions with friends, tutors and teachers can be beneficial to increasing understanding. Some text books are poorly written and explain concepts poorly.
I have issue with this suggestion. For me, the point of information is to learn to use and apply, not to beat a test. If the test had all the same questions as the study guide, the student wouldn't retain the information for longer than to beat the test. I've had three classes with a professor who used this exact method. I remember nothing from the class and put no effort into it because I didn't need to remember any of the information. I'd rather read more than necessary and remember more than remember nothing. It's possible to have straight A's on your transcript and not be able to apply any of it in the real world.
I've found that most professors usually drop hints, emphasize parts of lectures or give out study guides with key themes to give students a clue about what material will be on exams. If a student is paying attention, he should easily be able to pick up on what matters to the professor and adjust his studies accordingly. I've also found that studying extra material, while tedious and time consuming, even if it doesn't appear on the test, is often beneficial at a later date.
One important area that was not addressed was student interest and engagement. It's not easy to be a professor - from tutoring and class teaching experience, I can assure you, getting a room of disinterested kids who do not want to be there in the first place to pay attention and be engaged with the information is the most difficult thing in the world. very rarely will you find a class that is completely engaged with the material and participating in discussion - part of why teachers lecture is because no one will talk, or it's the only format they know. Disinterested and uninvolved students also bog down the interested students and prevent them from participating in a conductive learning environment - been there, done that. You will get out of classes and learning exactly what you put into it.
Some homework is poorly designed and does not meet its mark; however, most homework, if approached with interest and gusto, can easily have a point and be a learning experience in and of itself.
Hopefully college will be a better experience for you, Sandy!
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Post by littlebopeep on Feb 16, 2010 13:27:13 GMT -5
I'm going to keep this brief: I think homework is necessary - one needs practice to apply the concepts learned, and to help the brain memorize stuff/ think etc.... however, I think many times today, the amount of homework has gone overboard!
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Post by Josh on Feb 25, 2010 13:12:16 GMT -5
I agree that homework to a certain extent is necessary. I think that many teachers and professors go overboard and assign way too much so that it is no longer helpful but an annoyance that the student want to "get through".
However, like LBP said, homework is a necessary practice. Just as practice is needed in any sport or hobby, homework is a needed practice in any given subject.
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Post by thebandit on Mar 1, 2010 18:20:19 GMT -5
I agree with both LBP and Josh. Homework IS necessary, especially like reseasch papers and essays. But I also agree with Sandy Pines. The professors should have debates during class, and create in-class projects to make the class INTERESTING, and also help the students learn how to communicate with each other. The reason so many students hate school is because it's so tedious.
However, I do believe that professors do go overboard with homework by assigning ridiculous amounts of it or irrelevent projects that hardly teach you anything. I also think that some professors, depending upon what they teach, (for example, History, English, or a foreign language) waste time by teaching way TOO much on culture instead of teaching you the stuff you took the class for.
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