Life-based Reasons Why Homework Should Be Banned

Do students of secondary school in Kazakhstan really have strong reasons for not doing homework given at school? The debate over homework is a long-standing one, and it raises questions about its effectiveness and necessity. While it is considered a tool for reinforcing knowledge gained in the classroom, its value is often contested by students and educators alike.

Real-Life Arguments for Eliminating Homework

Homework is the study that students do at home to prepare for school. It is considered a tool for reinforcing the knowledge gained in the classroom. However, in most cases, work given by teachers at school is considered to be useless and consequently left undone. According to the 2007 MetLife Survey of the American Teacher, this issue is common for most countries, including Kazakhstan. According to the research of the Ministry of Education and Science Republic of Kazakhstan, 48% of students don’t do home tasks given at school (Ministry of Education and Science Republic of Kazakhstan, 2020). This clearly justifies the existence of the problem. Therefore, individuals, governments, and international organizations should pay attention and take some actions to handle it.

Reasons for Homework Failure

Reasons for homework failure have been debated for a long time because there are many factors that influence the development of the issue. According to Bowman (2016), the main causes of the problem are:

• Homework is time-consuming
• Students don’t have a homework plan
• Value of homework is misunderstood
• Feedback is not always provided

Positive Aspects of Homework

Actually, homework assignments have many positive aspects, because of which it is still considered a basic and efficient tool for increasing the academic performance of the student in the majority of countries. Doing homework increases academic achievement, develops time-management skills, and teaches students how to problem-solve. Moreover, homework assignments also help to identify students' strengths and weaknesses, which they can work on and hence, increase their academic performance. Homework increases a student’s skill proficiency, provides opportunities for students to identify and learn to use resources, such as the library, Internet, reference books, and other community resources, and teaches how to apply previously learned skills to new situations or other areas of interest.

Negative Aspects of Homework

However, there are some negative aspects of homework assignments. Time is considered to be the most important factor that disputes the homework debate. It becomes a big problem for students, who desire to participate in afterschool activities, do hobbies, or just relax and spend time with their families and friends. Time constraints do not allow them to do everything at once, which means that they have to sacrifice everything in order to be prepared for the lesson. That’s why for students, who have already spent hours at school gaining knowledge and tons of new information, doing homework becomes less of a priority than their personal interests. Doing home tasks is also hazardous for youngsters’ health. It encourages a sedentary lifestyle, which might lead to increased obesity levels in the future. Furthermore, exercising days and nights all over the place leads to nervous exhaustion and mental diseases. Another worth-reminding point is that in most cases, homework negatively affects a student’s academic performance, though it is intended to do the opposite. Here, the amount of homework and time spent on completing it are important components of high academic achievements. For example, pupils of the age of 15 in Finland, a country which is recognized as a leader in education quality, spend 2.8 hours per week doing homework, whereas in Kazakhstan this mark reaches 8.8 hours per week (OECD, 2019).

Conclusion

For decades, the homework standard has been a “10-minute rule,” which recommends a daily maximum of 10 minutes of homework per grade level. Second graders, for example, should do about 20 minutes of homework each night. High school seniors should complete about two hours of homework each night. The National PTA and the National Education Association both support that guideline (Cooper, 2006). Given the diverse perspectives on homework, it is crucial to consider both its benefits and drawbacks, adapting practices to better suit the needs of students.

References

• Bowman, R. (2016). The Homework Debate: What Parents Should Know. Education.com.
• Cooper, H. (2006). The Battle Over Homework: Common Ground for Administrators, Teachers, and Parents. Corwin Press.
• Ministry of Education and Science Republic of Kazakhstan. (2020). National Report on the State and Development of the Education System of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
• OECD. (2019). Education at a Glance 2019: OECD Indicators. OECD Publishing.