Evening Enrichment

Classroom teacher Polski3 gives some very good reasons why parents should ensure that their kids do a good job on their homework. Here is a small sample:

-Kids who simply have homework assigned to them tend to score better on standardized tests.

-When teachers assign AND collect homework, kids scores go even higher.

-When homework is assigned, collected AND corrected, kids scores are as much as three to four times higher.

-The more feedback a teacher gives on a corrected homework assignment, the better for the student. Teachers who show their work, demonstrating how the problem should have been done correctly rather than simply marking it wrong with a comment will raise the student's standardized tests scores.

However, reality rears its ugly head. I teach 172 Seventh graders. The vast majority of them are classified as being "basic" or below. I do not have time to grade and provide comments or corrections for each and every assignment I offer my students.

And unfortunately despite everything us teachers tell our students, once the students work is returned, that's it for THAT work. It disappears into the black hole of their backpack, gets shoved someplace into a three ring binder or lost or thrown away. Many of our students, unless they are forced to do so, will not pay attention to any comments. Yes, teachers can assign corrections homework to be done, but there are a myriad of problems with this also.

Have you taken a look at your kid's homework assignments lately? ----------------------------Visit the latest midway of The Carnival Of Education here, and our latest posts over there.