1. Why is homework a dirty word?
Lauren Nourse
College of Education, Touro University - California, Mare Island, Vallejo, CA 94592
Introduction
The necessity of homework is a hotly debated topic.
Some teachers firmly believe in the value of
homework. Others do not.
Some research supported the idea that homework
reinforces and helps to cement curriculum
introduced in the classroom. Other research
suggested that that students are overwhelmed with
too many hours of homework and that most
homework is a waste of time and leads to major
stress within families.
In an effort to combine the needs of the teacher to
have students do some work at home to keep the
classroom curriculum moving forward, and the
desire of the student to be using some form of
technology for most of their after school hours, the
research set out to investigate the possibility of
adapting routine weekly science homework to the
web.
Traditional?? OR The New Bandwagon??
?
Paper and Pencil OR Computer
Comparison of Homework Completion Rates Chapter 2
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
PP On-Line only
Students Group
%ofstudentscompleting
0,1,2,3,4assignments
4 Assignments
3 Assignments
2 Assignments
1 Assignments
0 Assignments
Conclusion
Research supports the notion of homework for a variety
of reasons: integrates separately learned skills and
concepts, dispels the notion that learning occurs only in
school, supllmenet in-school academic activities,
reinforces school learning, prompots greater self
direction and self discipline, and more. Yet students are
finding more justifications for not completing this work.
Can using computers and the internet bring these Digital
Natives to regain an interest in completing their
homework?
In spite of the huge growth in access to the internet
through home computers and hand-held devices, this
research indicates that students at this middle school are
not ready to embrace the technology for routine school
use.
Homework continues to remain “ a dirty word.”
Literature cited
Bednnett, S, & Kalish, N. (2006). The Case against homework: how homework is hurting our
children and what can we do about it. New York: Crown Publishers.
Bempechat, J. (2004). The Motivational benefits of homework: a social-cognitive
perspective. Theory into Practice, 43(3), 189-196.
Bonham, S, Beichner, R, & Deardorff, D. (2001). Online homework: does it make a
difference?. The Physics teacher, 30, 293-296.
Bonham, S, Deardorff, D, & Beichner, R. (2003). A Comparison of student performance
using web and paper-based homework in college-level physics. Journal of Research in
Science Teaching, 40(10), 1050-1071.
Bryan, T, Burstein, K, & Bryan, J. (2004). Improving homework comletion and academic
performance; lessons from special education. Theory into Practice, 43(3), 213-219
Cooper, H, Robinson, J, & Patall, E. (2006). Does Homework improve academic
achievement? a synthesis of research, 1987-2003. Review of Educational Research, 76(1),
1-62.
Corno, L. (2000). Looking at homework differently. The Elementary School Journal, 100 (5),
529-548.
Kohn, A. (2006). The Homework myth; why our kids get too much of a bad thing.
Philadelphia, PA: De Capo Press.
Kralovec, E. & Buell, J. (2000). The end of homework: How homework disrupts families,
overburdens children, and limits learning. Boston: Beacon Press
Landing-Corretjer, G. (2009). Listen to me! An exploration of the students’ voices regarding
homework. Doctoral Study, Walden University.
Marzano, R, & Pickering , D. (2007). The Case for and against homework. Educational
Leadership, 64(6), 74-79.
Mendicino, M, Razzaq, L, & Heffernan, N. (2009). A Comparison of traditional homework to
computer-supported homework. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 41(3),
331-358.
Schuster, N. (2009). The Impact of Homework and Homework Preferences in Ninth Grade
Geography. University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse.
Simplicio, J.S.C. (2005). Homework in the 21st century: The antiquated and ineffectual
implementation of a time honored educational strategy. Education. 126(1), 138-142
Acknowledgments
This researcher would like to thank professor Pamela Redmond for her
patience and support. I would also like to thank my fellow cohort
members for their grace and humor throughout the project. In addition,
completion would not have occurred without the tremendous support of
my family, Dan, Marilyn and Elaine.
For further information
For more information please contact
lnourse@martinez.k12.ca.us
Conclusion
Analysis of the results of the Chapter 1 versus Chapter 2
research showed a deterioration of homework turn in rates when
an on-line option was offered to the students. Additionally,
student scores on the final exam for the research period (Chapter
2) were substantially lower than for the pre-research period
(Chapter 1).
The research indicates that the homework turn in rates were not
increased when students were offered option for methods of
completion.
However, those that chose to use the on-line component for
homework turn in had a higher percentage of homework turned
in (88% compared to 77%) and averaged higher test scores
(70.7% compared to 59.8%).
Since those who turned in homework on-line had higher
completion rates than those using paper and pencil and also
scored higher on the chapter final exam, a conclusion can be
drawn that completing homework did lead to improved test
scores overall.
Percentage of Homework Completion
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
55
1 2 3 4 5
Non-Completion by Class Period
Percentage
Pre Study
During Study
All Students Ch 1 VS Ch 2
-5
-4
-3
-2
-1
0
1
2
3
4
1 5 9 13 17 21 25 29 33 37 41 45 49 53 57 61 65 69 73 77 81 85 89 93 97 101 105 109 113 117 121 125 129 133 137 141 145 149
Students
Ch2compliance
minusCh1
compliance
The chart below compares student compliance
between the two focus chapters.
Materials and Methods
Step 1: Investigate homework turn in rates prior to start of
study (Chapter 1)
Step 2: Analyze test scores for unit preceding study
(Chapter 1)
Step 3: Administer student study preference survey
Step 4: Get student commitment on method of completing
homework
Step 5: Evaluate homework turn in rates during course of
research (Chapter 2)
Step 6: Analyze test scores for unit post study (Chapter 2)
Step 7: Compare turn in rates and test scores of students
who turned in homework on-line and those who chose the
familiar paper and pencil format.
Diagnosing
Students do not complete
homework assignments
Diagnosing
Students do not complete
homework assignments
Action Plan
Students need to be
given optional
methods to turn in
completed homework
Action Plan
Students need to be
given optional
methods to turn in
completed homework
Taking Action
An on-line alternate will be
offered to allow students to
complete and submit
homework on-line
Taking Action
An on-line alternate will be
offered to allow students to
complete and submit
homework on-line
Evaluating
Did providing an option
to traditional pen- and
paper homework
improve homework turn
in rates?
Evaluating
Did providing an option
to traditional pen- and
paper homework
improve homework turn
in rates?
Specific Learning
Results?
Results show that
the method for
doing homework
had no impact on
student’s desire to
do the homework.
Specific Learning
Results?
Results show that
the method for
doing homework
had no impact on
student’s desire to
do the homework.
5 Phases
of
Research
Plan
5 Phases
of
Research
Plan
Results
Analysis of data shows that whole class homework
completion rates actually decreased over the period of
the study.