10 Reasons Homework Should Be Mandatory
It seems we’ve entered a period in which the homework debate is swinging to one side once again. Calls for homework to be banned far outweigh those extolling its merits, something undoubtedly shaped by the negative personal experiences that many writers and commentators had with it at school.
The well-rehearsed arguments these people use tend to focus on the same issues: homework carries no academic benefits, instills in kids an inherent dislike of education, takes time away from personal extracurricular development, and benefits the privileged few who can afford extra tuition. All
of these, however, are demonstrably untrue. Having to complete homework during your school years deepens your understanding of a subject. It places the responsibility for learning on you, as the individual. And it teaches fundamental organizational skills that can be refined and carried throughout life.
Perhaps the most helpful addition to the homework debate would be to suggest that it shouldn’t be black and white. Making homework mandatory would indeed be beneficial, but only if homework is reformed, targeted and modernized. Likewise, we should put effort towards identifying those who would benefit from having to do homework. Indeed, those who demand an outright ban often fail to differentiate between age groups. But while the benefits of assigning elementary school kids homework may be debatable, for high school students preparing for college, they are not.
Homework is an invaluable preparatory tool; one that teaches discipline, organization and, if assigned correctly, one that can make kids fall in love for a subject through increased and detailed exposure to it. Here are 10 of the most important reasons why its prescription in schools should be mandatory.
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