The role of homework in your child’s education

Most students are set homework as a default. Schools may have different homework policies, which can also vary by student age. In general, homework expectations increase as students enter intermediate and then high school. Students can struggle to understand why they need to do homework, or parents can struggle to support their child to complete difficult or confusing tasks in what free time they have.

So what is the role of homework, and how can you help your child navigate it?

Reinforcing learning

The expectation is, for many countries worldwide, that homework reinforces what students learn in school. It is now commonly agreed by educational researchers that retention of learning drops quickly if not reinforced by regular practice.

Expanding the scope of school activities

Schools have limitations in what they can guide students to do in class, such as pursuing individual research projects, self-directed writing, and community trips. Sending a student home with an activity such as this helps to enlarge the scope of the student’s educational experiences.

Building self-discipline and study routines

A key aspect of homework is how it encourages students to build good routines around their education and practice doing something unwelcome in order to achieve a good outcome. Many future life experiences rely on sustained effort that is not always pleasant, such as building the qualifications to enter a desired job, maintaining good physical health, having a long term satisfying relationship, and contributing to the community.

Busywork and stress

However, homework is not necessarily helpful. Homework should be pertinent to your child’s learning, suitable for their age and stage, and achievable in the time available. Simply doing work for the sake of it may not reinforce any learning. Homework can also cause your child stress, with the pressures to complete it and to do a good job. This is particularly a danger in high school where students are preparing for external assessments.

Inappropriate or stressful homework experiences can, unfortunately, reinforce a negative feeling and attitude towards study and make it more of a struggle for your child and the family. Ultimately, this will also negatively impact your child’s learning, whether in school or out.

Tips for a positive homework experience

So what can you do to help? Here are some tips for supporting your child to have a positive and useful homework experience.

Create a set time and place to study. Homework becomes part of the daily routines of your child, and this can minimize time management issues and avoidance.
Model a learning mindset. Your child’s attitude to learning rests on how you behave towards it too. By showing that you value learning in your own life, you demonstrate to your child that despite difficulties, learning is intrinsically important in life, not just in childhood.
Make the study environment as pleasant as possible. Learning happens most when students are engaged in their work. Elements such as lighting, music, stationery, snacks, and rewards can help to make doing homework a much more pleasant part of your child’s daily routine. Adjust these so that they are not distracting but allow your child to relax into the studying process.
Communicate with your child’s teachers. Understanding the role of specific homework tasks, as well as which topics and skills your child needs to work on, can allow you to guide your child’s approach to their homework.
Take action when things go wrong. Inevitably there will be successes and disappointments in your child’s education. Some issues, such as misunderstanding a homework task, or running out of time to complete all homework, are minor and can be gradually worked on. If major issues crop up, such as your child struggling to learn at all, seek out information and advice. While educational issues are rarely urgent, they do need to be addressed sooner rather than later, so that your child can keep developing their knowledge and skills for the future.

Focus Education NZ