Journal 6: "Ten Reasons to Get Rid of Homework (and Five Alternatives)"

Spencer, J. (2011, September 19). Retrieved from ten-reasons-to-get-rid-of-homework-and

Summary: In his article, “Ten Reasons to Get Rid of Homework (and Five Alternatives) Spencer proposes the idea that homework is not all that it’s cracked up to be. He suggests that children need time to play and explore, and that when schoolwork is mandatory the joy of learning is lost. The article also brings attention to the reality that many children do not have sufficient support at home to get the homework done, which then makes assigning homework conflict with fairness. This list of faults within the traditional homework system provides an interesting perspective to the topic teachers and students are so familiar with, and it urges educators to rethink the way they encourage children to learn.

My Five Alternatives to Homework:
1. Teach someone else what you learned in school- I think the best way to truly learn material is to teach it to another person. When you try to explain something to someone else, it will show you how much you really do or do not know the topic yourself. Having students teach their parents or siblings something they learned at school will enable them to showcase their knowledge and take pride in it. Also, if there are areas the student is having trouble understanding, the parent will become aware them as their child teaches the lesson.

2. Do something active- Children have bodies and minds that are rapidly growing, and they need proper nutrition and exercise to stay healthy. As a teacher, encouraging students to play outside and move each day will give them some of the exercise they need. This will benefit the child’s overall health as well as help them stay more focused in class, making school work done at school more significant.

3. Make a creation- Encourage students to be creative at home and draw, color, paint, sculpt,take pictures, etc. Creativity and imagination should be valued at every age, and by suggesting art instead of homework, children could really foster these unique talents. It would be neat to encourage students to create masterpieces related to something they learned at school and display the artwork in the classroom.

4. Write in a journal- Instead of assigning specific homework problems, teachers could encourage students to write in a journal each day. If journal articles revolved around what the child learned in school that day, by the end of the year an entire book full of meaningful information would be created. More importantly, this would all be information that stood out to the student and was significant to them.

5. Read for fun- Encourage students to read as much as they can/ want to. By exposing children to literature, a world of opportunities opens. Children should learn to read to quench their curiosity and find enjoyment. Also encouraging students to read to others is a great way to practice reading skills.