Question Of The Day: Is Homework Necessary?


This question has been going on for decades, but is it actually necessary to give students homework to work on? This debate really sparkles all types of different responses. To date, there is no general consensus. However, you must also realise that there could be serious consequences if students are not given homework to work on.

Here are a few arguments that are valid:

Keeps students engaged


It is important to ensure that students are occupied during school days. You don’t really want students to be wandering off and doing random things. Students should also be given homework so that they can learn more outside of school as well. It would also benefit them when they are working in the future, as this would give them a sense of responsibility for themselves.

It kills their social life


Well, to a certain extent, this point certainly stands. Giving a student too much work would lead to extreme stress and they won’t have a life! This means they won’t be able to spend time with their families, let alone socialise and go out with their friends. This is not ideal when you are trying to build a generation of smarter, sociable and hard working people. That is why it is important to achieve a balance between giving work to students and allowing them to have their own free time.

Students don’t learn from homework


This is a controversial point, but there are certain researches that actually suggest that the usefulness of doing homework is extremely limited. The benefits do not outweigh the costs, and therefore it should be avoided at all cost. Although this is a rather unique point of view, it does indeed prove a valid point. Most students just simply do their work for the sake of doing it. They are not necessarily trying to learn from it. If you force them to do it, it would just make it worse.

Self-learning and exploratory


When you get to a certain age, you wouldn’t like people telling you what to do. The same goes with students and homework. It is pointless if the student is not willing to work. Obviously, if they were curious of the subject, you wouldn’t be able to stop them from learning it! Therefore, it is important to really try and balance everything and ensure that students learn in a relaxed, but also competitive environment!