the teacher expected to do homework (he)

Professional development
Managing resources

The role of homework

Homework seems to be an accepted part of teachers’ and students’ routines, but there is little mention of it in ELT literature.

the teacher expected to do homework (he)

The role of homework is hardly mentioned in the majority of general ELT texts or training courses, suggesting that there is little question as to its value even if the resulting workload is time-consuming. However, there is clearly room for discussion of homework policies and practices particularly now that technology has made so many more resources available to learners outside the classroom.

Reasons for homework

Attitudes to homework
Effective homework
Types of homework
Homework is expected by students, teachers, parents and institutions.
Homework reinforces and helps learners to retain information taught in the classroom as well as increasing their general understanding of the language.
Homework develops study habits and independent learning. It also encourages learners to acquire resources such as dictionaries and grammar reference books. Research shows that homework also benefits factual knowledge, self-discipline, attitudes to learning and problem-solving skills.
Homework offers opportunities for extensive activities in the receptive skills which there may not be time for in the classroom. It may also be an integral part of ongoing learning such as project work and the use of a graded reader.
Homework provides continuity between lessons. It may be used to consolidate classwork, but also for preparation for the next lesson.
Homework may be used to shift repetitive, mechanical, time-consuming tasks out of the classroom.
Homework bridges the gap between school and home. Students, teachers and parents can monitor progress. The institution can involve parents in the learning process.
Homework can be a useful assessment tool, as part of continual or portfolio assessment.

Attitudes to homework Teachers tend to have mixed feelings about homework. While recognising the advantages, they observe negative attitudes and poor performance from students. Marking and giving useful feedback on homework can take up a large proportion of a teacher’s time, often after school hours.

Students themselves complain that the homework they are given is boring or pointless, referring to homework tasks that consist of studying for tests, doing workbook exercises, finishing incomplete classwork, memorising lists of vocabulary and writing compositions. Where this is actually the case, the negative effects of homework can be observed, typified by loss of interest and a view of homework as a form of punishment.
Other negative effects of poorly managed homework include lack of necessary leisure time and an increased differential between high and low achievers. These problems are often the cause of avoidance techniques such as completing homework tasks in class, collaborating and copying or simply not doing the required tasks. In turn, conflict may arise between learners, teachers, parents and the institution.

Effective homework In order for homework to be effective, certain principles should be observed.

Students should see the usefulness of homework. Teachers should explain the purpose both of homework in general and of individual tasks.
Tasks should be relevant, interesting and varied.
Good classroom practice also applies to homework. Tasks should be manageable but achievable.
Different tasks may be assigned to different ability groups. Individual learning styles should be taken into account.
Homework should be manageable in terms of time as well as level of difficulty. Teachers should remember that students are often given homework in other subjects and that there is a need for coordination to avoid overload. A homework diary, kept by the learner but checked by teachers and parents is a useful tool in this respect.
Homework is rarely co-ordinated within the curriculum as a whole, but should at least be incorporated into an overall scheme of work and be considered in lesson planning.
Homework tends to focus on a written product. There is no reason why this should be the case, other than that there is visible evidence that the task has been done.
Learner involvement and motivation may be increased by encouraging students to contribute ideas for homework and possibly design their own tasks. The teacher also needs to know how much time the students have, what facilities they have at home, and what their preferences are. A simple questionnaire will provide this data.
While homework should consolidate classwork, it should not replicate it. Home is the outside world and tasks which are nearer to real-life use of language are appropriate.
If homework is set, it must be assessed in some way, and feedback given. While marking by the teacher is sometimes necessary, peer and self-assessment can encourage learner independence as well as reducing the teacher’s workload. Motivating students to do homework is an ongoing process, and encouragement may be given by commenting and asking questions either verbally or in written form in order to demonstrate interest on the teacher’s part, particularly in the case of self-study and project work.

Types of homework There are a number of categories of useful and practicable homework tasks.

Workbook-based tasks Most published course materials include a workbook or practice book, mainly including consolidation exercises, short reading texts and an answer key. Most workbooks claim to be suitable for both class and self-study use, but are better used at home in order to achieve a separation of what is done in class and at home. Mechanical practice is thus shifted out of class hours, while this kind of exercise is particularly suited to peer- or self-checking and correction.
Preparation tasks Rarely do teachers ask learners to read through the next unit of a coursebook, though there are advantages in involving students in the lesson plan and having them know what is coming. More motivating, however, is asking students to find and bring materials such as photographs and pictures, magazine articles and realia which are relevant to the next topic, particularly where personalisation or relevance to the local context requires adaptation of course materials.
Extensive tasks Much can be gained from the use of graded readers, which now often have accompanying audio material, radio and TV broadcasts, podcasts and songs. Sometimes tasks need to be set as guidance, but learners also need to be encouraged to read, listen and watch for pleasure. What is important is that learners share their experiences in class. Extensive reading and listening may be accompanied by dictionary work and a thematic or personalised vocabulary notebook, whereby learners can collect language which they feel is useful.
Guided discovery tasks Whereas classroom teaching often involves eliciting language patterns and rules from learners, there is also the option of asking learners to notice language and make deductions for themselves at home. This leads to the sharing of knowledge and even peer teaching in the classroom.
Real-world tasks These involve seeing, hearing and putting language to use in realistic contexts. Reading magazines, watching TV, going to the cinema and listening to songs are obvious examples, offering the option of writing summaries and reviews as follow-up activities. Technology facilitates chat and friendship networks, while even in monolingual environments, walking down a shopping street noticing shop and brand names will reveal a lot of language. As with extensive tasks, it is important for learners to share their experiences, and perhaps to collect them in a formal or informal portfolio.
Project work It is a good idea to have a class or individual projects running over a period of time. Projects may be based on topics from a coursebook, the locality, interests and hobbies or selected individually. Project work needs to be guided in terms of where to find resources and monitored regularly, the outcome being a substantial piece of work at the end of a course or term of which the learner can claim ownership.

Conclusion Finally, a word about the Internet. The Web appears to offer a wealth of opportunity for self-study. Certainly reference resources make project work easier and more enjoyable, but cutting and pasting can also be seen as an easy option, requiring little originality or understanding. Conferring over homework tasks by email can be positive or negative, though chatting with an English-speaking friend is to be encouraged, as is searching for visual materials. Both teachers and learners are guilty of trawling the Net for practice exercises, some of which are untried, untested and dubious in terms of quality. Learners need guidance, and a starting point is to provide a short list of reliable sites such as the British Council's LearnEnglish and the BBC's Learning English which provide a huge variety of exercises and activities as well as links to other reliable sources. Further reading Cooper, H. Synthesis of Research on Homework . Educational Leadership 47/3, 1989 North, S. and Pillay, H. Homework: re-examining the routin e. ELT Journal 56/2, April 2002 Painter, L. Homework . English Teaching Professional, Issue 10, 1999 Painter, L. Homework . OUP Resource Books for Teachers, 2003

First published in October 2007

Mr. Steve Darn I liked your…

Mr. Steve Darn I liked your method of the role of the homework . Well, I am one of those laggard people. Unfortunately, when it comes to homework, I definitely do it. Because, a student or pupil who understands new topics, of course, does his homework to know how much he understands the new topic. I also completely agree with all of Steve Darn's points above. However, sometimes teachers give a lot of riff-raff homework, just like homework is a human obligation. This is a plus. But in my opinion, first of all, it is necessary to divide the time properly, and then to do many tasks at home. Only then will you become an "excellent student" in the eyes of the teacher. Although we live in the age of technology, there are still some people who do not know how to send homework via email. Some foreign teachers ask to send tasks by email. Constant email updates require time and, in rare cases, a fee. My above points have been the cause of constant discussions.

exam and certificate

Setting homework, setting homework.

Research and insight

Browse fascinating case studies, research papers, publications and books by researchers and ELT experts from around the world.

See our publications, research and insight

Tiếng Anh cho người bắt đầu

Luyện thi IELTS 5.5+

Combo Sách Bộ đề Khối C (Văn - Sử - Địa)

Combo Sách Bộ đề Khối A (Toán - Lý - Hóa)

Combo Câu hỏi lý thuyết trọng tâm Vật lý & Hoá học tặng sổ tay Toán

25 đề Đánh giá năng lực ĐHQG TP.HCM Tặng sách Tự học bất kì

Our Mission

What’s the Right Amount of Homework?

Decades of research show that homework has some benefits, especially for students in middle and high school—but there are risks to assigning too much.

Many teachers and parents believe that homework helps students build study skills and review concepts learned in class. Others see homework as disruptive and unnecessary, leading to burnout and turning kids off to school. Decades of research show that the issue is more nuanced and complex than most people think: Homework is beneficial, but only to a degree. Students in high school gain the most, while younger kids benefit much less.

The National PTA and the National Education Association support the “ 10-minute homework guideline ”—a nightly 10 minutes of homework per grade level. But many teachers and parents are quick to point out that what matters is the quality of the homework assigned and how well it meets students’ needs, not the amount of time spent on it.

The guideline doesn’t account for students who may need to spend more—or less—time on assignments. In class, teachers can make adjustments to support struggling students, but at home, an assignment that takes one student 30 minutes to complete may take another twice as much time—often for reasons beyond their control. And homework can widen the achievement gap, putting students from low-income households and students with learning disabilities at a disadvantage.

However, the 10-minute guideline is useful in setting a limit: When kids spend too much time on homework, there are real consequences to consider.

Small Benefits for Elementary Students

As young children begin school, the focus should be on cultivating a love of learning, and assigning too much homework can undermine that goal. And young students often don’t have the study skills to benefit fully from homework, so it may be a poor use of time (Cooper, 1989 ; Cooper et al., 2006 ; Marzano & Pickering, 2007 ). A more effective activity may be nightly reading, especially if parents are involved. The benefits of reading are clear: If students aren’t proficient readers by the end of third grade, they’re less likely to succeed academically and graduate from high school (Fiester, 2013 ).

For second-grade teacher Jacqueline Fiorentino, the minor benefits of homework did not outweigh the potential drawback of turning young children against school at an early age, so she experimented with dropping mandatory homework. “Something surprising happened: They started doing more work at home,” Fiorentino writes . “This inspiring group of 8-year-olds used their newfound free time to explore subjects and topics of interest to them.” She encouraged her students to read at home and offered optional homework to extend classroom lessons and help them review material.

Moderate Benefits for Middle School Students

As students mature and develop the study skills necessary to delve deeply into a topic—and to retain what they learn—they also benefit more from homework. Nightly assignments can help prepare them for scholarly work, and research shows that homework can have moderate benefits for middle school students (Cooper et al., 2006 ). Recent research also shows that online math homework, which can be designed to adapt to students’ levels of understanding, can significantly boost test scores (Roschelle et al., 2016 ).

There are risks to assigning too much, however: A 2015 study found that when middle school students were assigned more than 90 to 100 minutes of daily homework, their math and science test scores began to decline (Fernández-Alonso, Suárez-Álvarez, & Muñiz, 2015 ). Crossing that upper limit can drain student motivation and focus. The researchers recommend that “homework should present a certain level of challenge or difficulty, without being so challenging that it discourages effort.” Teachers should avoid low-effort, repetitive assignments, and assign homework “with the aim of instilling work habits and promoting autonomous, self-directed learning.”

In other words, it’s the quality of homework that matters, not the quantity. Brian Sztabnik, a veteran middle and high school English teacher, suggests that teachers take a step back and ask themselves these five questions :

How long will it take to complete?
Have all learners been considered?
Will an assignment encourage future success?
Will an assignment place material in a context the classroom cannot?
Does an assignment offer support when a teacher is not there?

More Benefits for High School Students, but Risks as Well

By the time they reach high school, students should be well on their way to becoming independent learners, so homework does provide a boost to learning at this age, as long as it isn’t overwhelming (Cooper et al., 2006 ; Marzano & Pickering, 2007 ). When students spend too much time on homework—more than two hours each night—it takes up valuable time to rest and spend time with family and friends. A 2013 study found that high school students can experience serious mental and physical health problems, from higher stress levels to sleep deprivation, when assigned too much homework (Galloway, Conner, & Pope, 2013 ).

Homework in high school should always relate to the lesson and be doable without any assistance, and feedback should be clear and explicit.

Teachers should also keep in mind that not all students have equal opportunities to finish their homework at home, so incomplete homework may not be a true reflection of their learning—it may be more a result of issues they face outside of school. They may be hindered by issues such as lack of a quiet space at home, resources such as a computer or broadband connectivity, or parental support (OECD, 2014 ). In such cases, giving low homework scores may be unfair.

Since the quantities of time discussed here are totals, teachers in middle and high school should be aware of how much homework other teachers are assigning. It may seem reasonable to assign 30 minutes of daily homework, but across six subjects, that’s three hours—far above a reasonable amount even for a high school senior. Psychologist Maurice Elias sees this as a common mistake: Individual teachers create homework policies that in aggregate can overwhelm students. He suggests that teachers work together to develop a school-wide homework policy and make it a key topic of back-to-school night and the first parent-teacher conferences of the school year.

Parents Play a Key Role

Homework can be a powerful tool to help parents become more involved in their child’s learning (Walker et al., 2004 ). It can provide insights into a child’s strengths and interests, and can also encourage conversations about a child’s life at school. If a parent has positive attitudes toward homework, their children are more likely to share those same values, promoting academic success.

But it’s also possible for parents to be overbearing, putting too much emphasis on test scores or grades, which can be disruptive for children (Madjar, Shklar, & Moshe, 2015 ). Parents should avoid being overly intrusive or controlling—students report feeling less motivated to learn when they don’t have enough space and autonomy to do their homework (Orkin, May, & Wolf, 2017 ; Patall, Cooper, & Robinson, 2008 ; Silinskas & Kikas, 2017 ). So while homework can encourage parents to be more involved with their kids, it’s important to not make it a source of conflict.

Is Homework a Waste of Time? Teachers Weigh In

The debate over homework rages on.

In response to an Opinion essay by a teacher titled “ What Do You Mean My Kid Doesn’t Have Homework? ”, many Facebook users took to the comments section to voice their perspectives on whether assigning homework is outdated and unnecessary—especially during a pandemic—or whether it’s a critical step to cultivating learning.

The benefits of homework have long been disputed, especially at the elementary school level. In 2018, Marva Hinton wrote about how homework was assigned at early grades and the potential effects on these young students. Some schools embraced homework, like Arlington Traditional School, a countywide elementary school in Arlington, Va., where kindergartners were expected to complete a minimum of 30 minutes of homework a night, Monday through Thursday. But some teachers such as Cathy Vatterott, a professor of education at the University of Missouri-St. Louis and the author of Rethinking Homework worried that adjusting to school routines combined with homework could sour young students on school.

But what about the benefits for older students? In a 2019 article , Education Week Assistant Editor Stephen Sawchuk unpacked the results of a Center for American Progress analysis, which found that while much of the homework assigned to the students in the study aligned with the Common Core State Standards, it did not contribute to building more difficult skills called for in the standards, like analyzing or extending their knowledge to new problems.

Beyond considering the efficacy of homework, the debate over how much time students should spend daily on take-home assignments dates back to the early 1900s. The public furor even led some state lawmakers to ban homework entirely at one point. Multiple studies over the years have examined different angles of the homework debate, including just how much homework students were assigned. In 2003, a pair of national studies found that most American students spent less than an hour daily on homework, and the workload was no bigger than it was 50 years prior.

“There is this view in the popular media that there has been this terrible burden of homework on children, and that the homework is increasing,” said Tom Loveless, the director of the Brown Center on Education Policy at the Brookings Institution to Education Week’s Debra Viadero in a 2003 article . “That is not the case.”

Fast-forward to the present, teachers and students alike might find themselves at another crossroads in the homework debate. The pandemic brought with it the advent of strategies like “flipped learning” , which relies heavily on homework as an integral component of the lesson. While this might work for some, many students grew weary of the reliance on homework during remote and hybrid learning. This is on top of the potential equity issues arising from lack of internet access affecting students’ ability to complete the steady stream of homework being assigned, and the uptick in mental health issues in students .

So what do teachers really think about homework? Here’s what they had to say in response to the recently resurfaced essay by Samantha Hulsman.

A Disconnect Between Parents and Educators

“i teach 1st grade. i had parents ask for homework. i explained that i don’t give homework. home time is family time. time to play, cook, explore and spend time together. i do send books home, but there is no requirement or checklist for reading them. read them, enjoy them, and return them when your child is ready for more. i explained that as a parent myself, i know they are busy—and what a waste of energy it is to sit and force their kids to do work at home—when they could use that time to form relationships and build a loving home. something kids need more than a few math problems a week.”.

- Colleen S.

“I tried the ‘no homework’ policy one year and received so much pushback from my parents that I began sending home a weekly packet. I pass it out on Monday and it is due on Friday. Parents [are] happy, I’m happy, and life goes on. I say pick your battles. Now, I refuse to give packets over school breaks (winter/spring). If a parent asks, I simply tell them to have them work on any app that we use in class.”

“i literally only assign homework because some parents always make a huge deal of it if i don’t.”, “parents are the driving force behind homework ... they demand it and will complain about not receiving it even after explaining your philosophy of education and providing them with pedagogy that refutes the ‘benefits’ of it.”, homework can be useful for certain subjects or grades, “as a teacher of nearly 40 years, i believe homework has its place. especially in math math needs to be practiced to learn it. i don’t believe in giving homework just because. i think it should be purposeful.”.

- Sandra S.

“For those leading the charge against homework, please think about the expectation for students beyond your classroom. If you teach elementary school, will they be asked to do homework in middle school, high school, and beyond? If so, organization, time management, and study skills are not so easily learned at a later age, when the expectation has never been present. I can’t imagine being a student, who enters college, having never had the expectation of nightly HW.”

- Bobbie M.

Is Homework Actually Helpful for Learning?

Some agree that at its core, homework is practice, which is a needed element to achieving learning.

“Homework is practice. Practice the skills we learned about in class so we can review and add to them. My instrumental students are required to practice every day. When they don’t it’s evident.”

Others aren’t as convinced it’s actually a good tool for assessing comprehension.

“As a teacher, if the kids were assigned homework, guess when the papers were graded ... After discovering a Mom had been doing the homework and was making failing grades ... I gave it up ... taught 25 years without it and my students did much better ...”

- Martha H.

Heightens Equity Issues

“no homework ever it is unnecessary it is so elitist and ableist and teaches kids that it is expected to take work home after hours of a job. nope never”, “homework just further separates the students. those who have parents home who understand the work, or can afford a tutor will do so. families already struggling financially tend not to have parents home to help and cannot afford tutors.”.

- Rebecca J.

Sign Up for EdWeek Update

Edweek top school jobs.

Sign Up & Sign In

Helping your child with learning difficulties deal with homework

by: The GreatSchools Editorial Team | Updated: September 20, 2023

Print article

How much help with homework should parents of kids with learning disabilities provide? Teachers generally encourage parents to adopt a “hands-off” policy, wanting students to complete schoolwork independently. On the other hand, when assignments are incomplete or missing, teachers often call parents, giving them the responsibility of overseeing their child’s work. In this article, Betty Osman, Ph.D., describes the extent to which parents should become involved with their children’s school assignments.

Homework has been part of U.S. education system since the beginning of this century, but in recent years the amount of homework expected of young people has increased exponentially. It is not unusual for today’s first graders to have homework that is both challenging and time-consuming. Although many young people need (or want) a parent’s help with homework from time to time, children with learning disabilities (LD), particularly those in “inclusive classrooms,” are likely to require extra time and more assistance to complete assignments. They tend to resist homework, procrastinate on starting assignments, and perceive themselves as less competent than their peers.

Parents frequently express their concern and confusion about how much homework-help they should provide for their children. I think the answer becomes clearer when we think about the purpose of homework.

According to an article in The American School Board Journal (October, 1996), there are three reasons for homework:

To provide practice and reinforce previous instruction.
To develop student responsibility.
To involve parents directly in supporting their children’s learning. (There is evidence that children are more successful in school when parents are involved in their education.)

With regard to the first purpose, that of reinforcing skills taught in school, a parent might ask, “Has my child learned the requisite skill and is he capable of completing the work independently?” (I have seen children with reading and writing disabilities who receive daily remediation in school and then are given lengthy book reports for homework.)

It may also be unrealistic to expect a child to do homework alone as the requirements of the classroom become more challenging. Like it or not, a parent (or surrogate) may have to share the burden of homework if the child is to succeed academically.

Most parents of children with learning disabilities would agree that, although the will to help is strong, the emotional involvement with one’s own child can make helping with homework difficult. As one parent said, “Homework is an activity that involves reading, math, and parent testing.”

If a child is a competent student, it is relatively easy for a parent to edit a composition or quiz her for a test. But when learning is a struggle and material learned one minute is forgotten the next, it is frustrating for the parent, as well as the child. This frustration is exacerbated when an exhausted parent is summoned at nine o’clock at night to help a child with homework he has forgotten or put off until the last minute. A parent’s natural instinct at that point may be a fight-or-flight response.

The most obvious indication of trouble with a subject is when the books don’t come home at all. “I don’t have any homework” or “I must have left it on the bus (or in school)” are two of the common ways children express their dislike of homework or their fear that they can’t do it. As a second grader said through his tears one day, “It’s just not fair! We work hard in school all day and then have homework, and my teacher isn’t even there!”

Then there are some children who actually do their homework but “forget” to hand it in. Translated, this usually means they feel inadequate relative to their classmates, are ashamed of their work, or want to punish themselves, their teachers, or their parents. That’s what psychologists call being “passive-aggressive.” It’s not what the children do that is troubling; it’s what they don’t do that makes us angry.

Here are strategies parents can use to effectively help with homework, with a minimum of frustration for both parent and child:

Make sure assignments come home. A daily planner or sheet signed by the teacher may remind a reluctant student of an assignment. As one child said, “It helps me remember when my mind wants to forget.”
Establish where homework should be done. This does not necessarily mean in a child’s room seated at his desk. Some children really dislike being alone in a quiet room, particularly when they have a task to perform that they don’t like — and homework usually fits that description. Help your child find a corner of his own, whether on the kitchen floor or on his bed with a lap desk to lean on.
Establish when homework should be done. Right after a long day at school may not be the best time. Most children need “a break,” in the form of a snack, a bicycle ride, or social time with friends. It is important to be clear, though, about the time to return home (an alarm watch or phone call might ensure compliance). For many children, the hours just before or after dinner are best for homework. That way, there are no midnight surprises. Some children can rise early in the morning to complete an unfinished assignment, while others work better with the privilege of staying up a little later at night.
Contrary to common belief, listening to music on the radio may actually help the young person focus on a task. As one woman said, “When I have to concentrate, I turn on the radio to screen out my internal noises.” (TV, however, is not included!) In some instances, merely having a parent present in the room may be sufficient, providing the comfort and company the child needs, even if dad is reading his newspaper.
Remember that every child eventually reaches his saturation point. There’s an old saying, “The brain can only absorb as much knowledge as the seat can endure.” Parents have to recognize when a child is tired and has reached the point of diminishing returns. That is the time to stop homework, and let the teacher know the child did as much as he could. It is also a good idea to ask your child’s teacher how much time he should be expected to spend on homework and be guided accordingly. For some children with learning disabilities, the challenge is the length of the homework rather than the difficulty of the assignment.
Rather than have children attempt an assignment and then ask parents for help when it is not understood or isn’t done, I recommend that a parent start a child on the homework, to ascertain that she understands it. One or two math problems solved together or a composition started is reassuring for a child and should preclude the need to relearn the material and redo the assignment. Once children feel secure, they usually can finish a task independently and gain confidence in the process.
Provide assistive tools when possible , such as a calculator or even a parent scribing for a young child for whom written work is challenging. With the teacher’s sanction, you can act as your child’s “secretary” until he becomes more facile with handwriting and/or the computer.
And finally, respect your own feelings and ability to work with your child . If working together is contraindicated, with either you or your child angry or in tears, it is better to be your child’s good and supportive parent than a frustrated, ineffective teacher.

In sum, parents can expect that children with learning disabilities will require more guidance, more assistance, and probably more support than their classmates for whom learning is easier. But we should try to keep homework from becoming the focus of family life and the most dreaded word of the day.

The Truth about Homework: What the Research Says Might Surprise You. By Susan Black The American School Board Journal v183, n10, p 48-51 (October, 1996)

Homes Nearby

Homes for rent and sale near schools

The best way to study for tests, according to science

4 things that make kids more likely to succeed

40 up-and-coming careers that don’t require a 4-year college degree (and 9 to avoid)

42 up-and-coming careers that don’t require a 4-year college degree (and 10 to avoid)

Yes! Sign me up for updates relevant to my child's grade.

Please enter a valid email address

Thank you for signing up!

Server Issue: Please try again later. Sorry for the inconvenience

Smart Classroom Management

A Simple, Effective Homework Plan For Teachers: Part 1

So for the next two weeks I’m going to outline a homework plan–four strategies this week, four the next–aimed at making homework a simple yet effective process.

Let’s get started.

Homework Strategies 1-4

The key to homework success is to eliminate all the obstacles—and excuses—that get in the way of students getting it done.

Add leverage and some delicately placed peer pressure to the mix, and not getting homework back from every student will be a rare occurrence.

Here is how to do it.

1. Assign what students already know.

Most teachers struggle with homework because they misunderstand the narrow purpose of homework, which is to practice what has already been learned. Meaning, you should only assign homework your students fully understand and are able to do by themselves.

Therefore, the skills needed to complete the evening’s homework must be thoroughly taught during the school day. If your students can’t prove to you that they’re able to do the work without assistance, then you shouldn’t assign it.

It isn’t fair to your students—or their parents—to have to sit at the dinner table trying to figure out what you should have taught them during the day.

2. Don’t involve parents.

Homework is an agreement between you and your students. Parents shouldn’t be involved. If parents want to sit with their child while he or she does the homework, great. But it shouldn’t be an expectation or a requirement of them. Otherwise, you hand students a ready-made excuse for not doing it.

You should tell parents at back-to-school night, “I got it covered. If ever your child doesn’t understand the homework, it’s on me. Just send me a note and I’ll take care of it.”

Holding yourself accountable is not only a reminder that your lessons need to be spot on, but parents will love you for it and be more likely to make sure homework gets done every night. And for negligent parents? It’s best for their children in particular to make homework a teacher/student-only agreement.

3. Review and then ask one important question.

Set aside a few minutes before the end of the school day to review the assigned homework. Have your students pull out the work, allow them to ask final clarifying questions, and have them check to make sure they have the materials they need.

And then ask one important question: “Is there anyone, for any reason, who will not be able to turn in their homework in the morning? I want to know now rather than find out about it in the morning.”

There are two reasons for this question.

First, the more leverage you have with students, and the more they admire and respect you , the more they’ll hate disappointing you. This alone can be a powerful incentive for students to complete homework.

Second, it’s important to eliminate every excuse so that the only answer students can give for not doing it is that they just didn’t care. This sets up the confrontation strategy you’ll be using the next morning.

4. Confront students on the spot.

One of your key routines should be entering the classroom in the morning.

As part of this routine, ask your students to place their homework in the top left-hand (or right-hand) corner of their desk before beginning a daily independent assignment—reading, bellwork , whatever it may be.

During the next five to ten minutes, walk around the room and check homework–don’t collect it. Have a copy of the answers (if applicable) with you and glance at every assignment.

You don’t have to check every answer or read every portion of the assignment. Just enough to know that it was completed as expected. If it’s math, I like to pick out three or four problems that represent the main thrust of the lesson from the day before.

It should take just seconds to check most students.

Remember, homework is the practice of something they already know how to do. Therefore, you shouldn’t find more than a small percentage of wrong answers–if any. If you see more than this, then you know your lesson was less than effective, and you’ll have to reteach

If you find an assignment that is incomplete or not completed at all, confront that student on the spot .

Call them on it.

The day before, you presented a first-class lesson and gave your students every opportunity to buzz through their homework confidently that evening. You did your part, but they didn’t do theirs. It’s an affront to the excellence you strive for as a class, and you deserve an explanation.

It doesn’t matter what he or she says in response to your pointed questions, and there is no reason to humiliate or give the student the third degree. What is important is that you make your students accountable to you, to themselves, and to their classmates.

A gentle explanation of why they don’t have their homework is a strong motivator for even the most jaded students to get their homework completed.

The personal leverage you carry–that critical trusting rapport you have with your students–combined with the always lurking peer pressure is a powerful force. Not using it is like teaching with your hands tied behind your back.

Homework Strategies 5-8

Next week we’ll cover the final four homework strategies . They’re critical to getting homework back every day in a way that is painless for you and meaningful for your students.

I hope you’ll tune in.

If you haven’t done so already, please join us. It’s free! Click here and begin receiving classroom management articles like this one in your email box every week.

21 thoughts on “A Simple, Effective Homework Plan For Teachers: Part 1”

Good stuff, Michael. A lot of teachers I train and coach are surprised (and skeptical) at first when I make the same point you make about NOT involving parents. But it’s right on based on my experience as a teacher, instructional coach, and administrator the past 17 years. More important, it’s validated by Martin Haberman’s 40 years of research on what separates “star” teachers from “quitter/failure” teachers ( http://www.habermanfoundation.org/Book.aspx?sm=c1 )

I love the articles about “homework”. in the past I feel that it is difficuty for collecting homework. I will try your plan next year.

I think you’ll be happy with it, Sendy!

How do you confront students who do not have their homework completed?

You state in your book to let consequences do their job and to never confront students, only tell them the rule broken and consequence.

I want to make sure I do not go against that rule, but also hold students accountable for not completing their work. What should I say to them?

They are two different things. Homework is not part of your classroom management plan.

Hi Michael,

I’m a first-year middle school teacher at a private school with very small class sizes (eight to fourteen students per class). While I love this homework policy, I feel discouraged about confronting middle schoolers publicly regarding incomplete homework. My motive would never be to humiliate my students, yet I can name a few who would go home thinking their lives were over if I did confront them in front of their peers. Do you have any ideas of how to best go about incomplete homework confrontation with middle school students?

The idea isn’t in any way to humiliate students, but to hold them accountable for doing their homework. Parts one and two represent my best recommendation.:)

I believe that Homework is a vital part of students learning.

I’m still a student–in a classroom management class. So I have no experience with this, but I’m having to plan a procedure for my class. What about teacher sitting at desk and calling student one at a time to bring folder while everyone is doing bellwork or whatever their procedure is? That way 1) it would be a long walk for the ones who didn’t do the work :), and 2) it would be more private. What are your thoughts on that? Thanks. 🙂

I’m not sure I understand your question. Would you mind emailing me with more detail? I’m happy to help.

I think what you talked about is great. How do you feel about flipping a lesson? My school is pretty big on it, though I haven’t done it yet. Basically, for homework, the teacher assigns a video or some other kind of media of brand new instruction. Students teach themselves and take a mini quiz at the end to show they understand the new topic. Then the next day in the classroom, the teacher reinforces the lesson and the class period is spent practicing with the teacher present for clarification. I haven’t tried it yet because as a first year teacher I haven’t had enough time to make or find instructional videos and quizzes, and because I’m afraid half of my students will not do their homework and the next day in class I will have to waste the time of the students who did their homework and just reteach what the video taught.

Anyway, this year, I’m trying the “Oops, I forgot my homework” form for students to fill out every time they forget their homework. It keeps them accountable and helps me keep better track of who is missing what. Once they complete it, I cut off the bottom portion of the form and staple it to their assignment. I keep the top copy for my records and for parent/teacher conferences.

Here is an instant digital download of the form. It’s editable in case you need different fields.

Thanks again for your blog. I love the balance you strike between rapport and respect.

Your site is a godsend for a newbie teacher! Thank you for your clear, step-by-step, approach!

I G+ your articles to my PLN all the time.

You’re welcome, TeachNich! And thank you for sharing the articles.

Hi Michael, I’m going into my first year and some people have told me to try and get parents involved as much as I can – even home visits and things like that. But my gut says that negligent parents cannot be influenced by me. Still, do you see any value in having parents initial their student’s planner every night so they stay up to date on homework assignments? I could also write them notes.

Personally, no. I’ll write about this in the future, but when you hold parents accountable for what are student responsibilities, you lighten their load and miss an opportunity to improve independence.

I am teaching at a school where students constantly don’t take work home. I rarely give homework in math but when I do it is usually something small and I still have to chase at least 7 kids down to get their homework. My way of holding them accountable is to record a homework completion grade as part of their overall grade. Is this wrong to do? Do you believe homework should never be graded for a grade and just be for practice?

No, I think marking a completion grade is a good idea.

I’ve been teaching since 2014 and we need to take special care when assigning homework. If the homework assignment is too hard, is perceived as busy work, or takes too long to complete, students might tune out and resist doing it. Never send home any assignment that students cannot do. Homework should be an extension of what students have learned in class. To ensure that homework is clear and appropriate, consider the following tips for assigning homework:

Assign homework in small units. Explain the assignment clearly. Establish a routine at the beginning of the year for how homework will be assigned. Remind students of due dates periodically. And Make sure students and parents have information regarding the policy on missed and late assignments, extra credit, and available adaptations. Establish a set routine at the beginning of the year.

Thanks Nancie L Beckett

Dear Michael,

I love your approach! Do you have any ideas for homework collection for lower grades? K-3 are not so ready for independent work first thing in the morning, so I do not necessarily have time to check then; but it is vitally important to me to teach the integrity of completing work on time.

Also, I used to want parents involved in homework but my thinking has really changed, and your comments confirm it!

Hi Meredith,

I’ll be sure and write about this topic in an upcoming article (or work it into an article). 🙂

Overall, this article provides valuable insights and strategies for teachers to implement in their classrooms. I look forward to reading Part 2 and learning more about how to make homework a simple and effective process. Thanks

Here’s what you need to know about homework and how to help your child

Professor of Education, University of Florida

Disclosure statement

Ellen Amatea has received funding in the past from the Florida Department of Education.

University of Florida provides funding as a founding partner of The Conversation US.

View all partners

Many parents and educators view homework as an important indicator of classroom rigor. The Back-to-Basic movement , which emphasizes the need for schools to teach basic academic skills in particular, has increased the emphasis on homework as a measure of a school’s success.

In fact, many parents and students judge the difficulty of a course or teacher by the amount of homework assigned. Furthermore, many educators believe that asking parents to help their children with homework is a particularly effective strategy for enhancing children’s achievement.

Many parents, too, agree that their involvement will make a positive difference. In a 2014 study conducted by the US Department of Education, 90% of parents reported that they set aside a place at home for their child to do homework, and 85% reported that they checked to see that homework had been completed.

But does helping with homework really improve student achievement? As a high school and college teacher who has assigned homework, and a mother of two sons who were not always too enthusiastic about completing homework, I have studied the many ways that families from different income levels support their children’s academic success.

I have come to believe that homework can not only enhance children’s achievement but can be a powerful opportunity for parent-child nurturing. But research also tells us that it is not just any homework assignment that will have that kind of impact.

Here is what we are learning about homework.

When parent involvement helps

Despite a widespread belief that parent involvement in homework is good for kids, researchers are discovering that it can have both positive and negative effects.

In 2008, three researchers – Erika A Patall , Harris Cooper and Jorgianne Civey Robinson – conducted an extensive review of research on the effects on students of parent involvement in homework. They found that the effects of parent involvement appear to be strongly influenced by four factors:

the nature of the homework assignment
the particular involvement strategy used by the parent
the child’s age and ability level
the time and skill resources in the home.

The researchers found that homework assignments in which students are expected to memorize facts, and the parent is expected to teach school skills, provide less meaningful opportunities for parent and student interaction in the learning process.

In contrast, homework assignments in which students choose a project that requires in-depth investigation, thought and some creative license enable meaningful parent participation. Parents can play supportive roles in discussing the project with their child, which is more enjoyable both for the child and parent.

For example, students may demonstrate math skills; share ideas and obtain reactions to written work; conduct surveys or interviews; gather parents’ memories and experiences; apply school skills to real life; or work with parents or other family partners in new ways.

Strategies for parents

In addition, how parents help their child with homework appears to have distinct effects on student achievement.

Most parents engage in a wide variety of involvement strategies, such as creating “school-like routines” in which they make rules about when, where or how homework is done. They also interact with the teacher about homework and provide general oversight or monitoring of homework completion.

In some instances, parents control these structures; in others, parents follow the student’s lead.

For instance, parents may engage in the learning processes with the child (eg, engage in homework tasks with the child or in processes that support the child’s understanding of homework). Parents may also help their child learn self-management skills (eg, coping with distractions).

The strategies that parents use may vary depending on their beliefs about child-rearing and broader cultural values. Yet these different parent involvement strategies appear to have distinct effects on student achievement.

Strategies that support a child’s autonomy and also provide structure in the form of clear and consistent guidelines appear to be the most beneficial.

For example, in a 2001 study , researchers reported that parent homework involvement that supported autonomy was associated with higher standardized test scores, class grades and homework completion.

In contrast, direct aid (doing the homework for the student) was associated with lower test scores and class grades.

In another study , parent involvement in homework was reported by students to have a detrimental effect if the parent tried to help without a request from the child or was perceived as intrusive or controlling by the child.

Age matters

Researchers have also noted that the age and ability level of a child strongly influenced the amount of help with homework that parents provided and its subsequent benefits to the child.

Parents reported spending more time helping their elementary-age children with homework than their secondary school-age children. Parents of low-ability students reported spending more time helping with homework than did parents of high-ability students.

While teachers and parents of elementary-aged children were more likely to work together to help students complete their assignments, parents of secondary school students often did not monitor their adolescents’ homework as faithfully as when their children were younger. This, in part, is because they were not expected or asked to do so by secondary teachers.

As a result, low-ability students in middle and high school were less likely to complete homework or to achieve academically.

Another factor was that parents of older students often reported feeling increasingly less able to help with homework.

What can educators do?

These research findings have important implications for how teachers design homework assignments and how parents and teachers might participate in the homework process.

First, students (and parents) need to know why they should be doing a particular homework assignment. What skill is to be practiced/reinforced? Why does this skill matter?

Teachers need to explicitly communicate the purpose of a particular homework assignment and emphasize how the skills they are learning in a homework assignment can be applied in the real world.

Second, educators should design homework assignments that are more meaningful and allow for creativity. Students should be able to have a choice in how they carry out an assignment.

Third, students have different learning styles, and educators need to consider how they might need to express their learning differently (via audiotapes, videotapes, posters and oral presentations rather than the standard written report).

Fourth, teachers should design interactive homework assignments that involve students in interactions with peers and with family and community members. For example, authors Alma Flor Ada and F Isabel Campoy have developed an approach of creating family storybooks that are used as reading and writing texts in the classroom.

Another group of researchers designed “interactive” homework assignments that guided students on how to conduct conversations with family members in math, science and language arts.

Another team of educators worked with teachers and parents to develop curricular approaches that brought students’ cultural backgrounds and families’ “funds of knowledge” into the classroom. For example, class lessons and homework were based on how parents use math in cooking or sewing or how workers use reading and math to build a house.

Homework is a daily activity for most students that takes time, energy and emotion, not only for students but for their families as well. Given these investments, it is important that homework be a more beneficial learning experience, in which parents too can bring their interesting and enriching skills.

Back to school
Elementary school
Middle school
Academic success

School of Social Sciences – Public Policy and International Relations opportunities

Deputy Editor - Technology

Sydney Horizon Educators (Identified)

Project Officer, Fellowship Experience

Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic and Student Life)

Articles / Homework

Smart Homework: 13 Ways to Make It Meaningful

by MiddleWeb · Published 08/04/2014 · Updated 11/17/2019

In the first installment of Rick Wormeli’s homework advice, he made the case for take-home assignments that matter for learning and engage student interest . In Part 2, Rick offers some guiding principles that can help teachers create homework challenges that motivate kids and spark deeper learning in and out of school.

These articles are adapted and updated from Rick’s seminal book about teaching in the middle grades, Day One & Beyond: Practical Matters for New Middle Level Teachers . Rick continues to offer great advice about homework, differentiation, assessment and many other topics in workshops and presentations across North America. Check back in Part 1 for some additional homework resources.

I’ve been accumulating guiding principles for creating highly motivating homework assignments for many years — from my own teaching and from the distilled wisdom of others. Here are a baker’s dozen. Choose the ones most appropriate for students’ learning goals and your curriculum.

1. Give students a clear picture of the final product. This doesn’t mean everything is structured for them, or that there aren’t multiple pathways to the same high quality result. There’s room for student personalities to be expressed. Students clearly know what is expected, however. A clear picture sets purpose for doing the assignment. Priming the brain to focus on particular aspects of the learning experience helps the brain process the information for long-term retention. Setting purpose for homework assignments has an impact on learning and the assignment’s completion rate, as research by Marzano and others confirms.

2. Incorporate a cause into the assignment. Middle level students are motivated when they feel they are righting a wrong. They are very sensitive to justice and injustice. As a group, they are also very nurturing of those less fortunate than them. Find a community or personal cause for which students can fight fairly and incorporate your content and skills in that good fight— students will be all over the assignment.

4. Incorporate people whom students admire in their assignments. Students are motivated when asked to share what they know and feel about these folks. We are a society of heroes, and young adolescents are interested in talking about and becoming heroic figures.

5. Allow choices, as appropriate. Allow students to do the even-numbered or odd-numbered problems, or allow them to choose from three prompts, not just one. Let them choose the word that best describes the political or scientific process. Let them identify their own diet and its effects on young adolescent bodies. Let them choose to work with partners or individually. How about allowing them to choose from several multiple-intelligence based tasks? If they are working in ways that are comfortable, they are more likely to do the work. By making the choice, they have upped their ownership of the task.

6. Incorporate cultural products into the assignment. If students have to use magazines, television shows, foods, sports equipment, and other products they already use, they are likely to do the work. The brain loves to do tasks in contexts with which it is familiar.

7. Allow students to collaborate in determining how homework will be assessed. If they help design the criteria for success, such as when they create the rubric for an assignment, they “own” the assignment. It comes off as something done by them, not to them. They also internalize the expectations—another way for them to have clear targets.

With some assignments we can post well-done versions from previous years (or ones we’ve created for this purpose) and ask students to analyze the essential characteristics that make these assignments exemplary. Students who analyze such assignments will compare those works with their own and internalize the criteria for success, referencing the criteria while doing the assignment, not just when it’s finished.

9. Spruce up your prompts. Don’t ask students to repeatedly answer questions or summarize. Try some of these openers instead: Decide between, argue against, Why did ______ argue for, compare, contrast, plan, classify, retell ______ from the point of view of ______, Organize, build, interview, predict, categorize, simplify, deduce, formulate, blend, suppose, invent, imagine, devise, compose, combine, rank, recommend, defend, choose.

10. Have everyone turn in a paper. In her classic, Homework: A New Direction (1992), Neila Connors reminded teachers to have all students turn in a paper, regardless of whether they did the assignment. If a student doesn’t have his homework, he writes on the paper the name of the assignment and why he didn’t do it.

11. Do not give homework passes. I used to do this; then I realized how much it minimized the importance of homework. It’s like saying, “Oh, well, the homework really wasn’t that important to your learning. You’ll learn just as well without it.” Homework should be so productive for students that missing it is like missing the lesson itself.

12. Integrate homework with other subjects. One assignment can count in two classes. Such assignments are usually complex enough to warrant the dual grade and it’s a way to work smarter, not harder, for both students and teachers. Teachers can split the pile of papers to grade, then share the grades with each other, and students don’t have homework piling up in multiple classes.

There are times when every teacher on the team assigns a half-hour assignment, and so do the elective or encore class teachers. This could mean three to four hours of homework for the student, which is inappropriate for young adolescents.

13. Occasionally, let students identify what homework would be most effective. Sometimes the really creative assignments are the ones that students design themselves. After teaching a lesson, ask your students what it would take to practice the material so well it became clearly understood. Many of the choices will be rigorous and very appropriate.

This is one reason I always recommend that, as a basic premise, we avoid Monday morning quizzes and weekend or holiday homework assignments. Sure, there will be exceptions when long-term projects come due. But if we are really about teaching so that students learn and not about appearing rigorous and assigning tasks to show that we have taught, then we’ll carefully consider all the effects of our homework expectations. Our students will be more productive at school for having healthier lives at home.

▶ More resources from Rick Wormeli:

Although Rick never mentions the word homework in this article about helping adolescent students improve their “executive function,” you will immediately see the connections! At the AMLE website .

NEXT: In our final excerpt from Day One & Beyond, Rick Wormeli shares his approach to homework assessment – with an clear emphasis on maintaining teacher sanity.

His books include Meet Me in the Middle ; Day One and Beyond ; Fair Isn’t Always Equal: Assessment and Grading in the Differentiated Classroom ; Differentiation: From Planning to Practice; Metaphors & Analogies: Power Tools for Teaching Any Subject, and Summarization in Any Subject , plus The Collected Writings (So Far) of Rick Wormeli: Crazy Good Stuff I Learned about Teaching Along the Way .

He is currently working on his first young adult fiction novel and a new book on homework practices in the 21 st century.

4 Responses

Pingbacks 0

This is a really great article. It has helped me tremendously in making new and better decisions about homework.

Fabulous sage advice! Although I love every single suggestion you’ve included, I am particularly fond of the elimination of the “homework pass”. As a former middle-level teacher and administrator, I too found the homework pass diminished the importance of follow-up work – a necessary component in determining the level of student understanding.

I do give 2 passes, but they just extend due date by a day. And if not used, they may be returned at the end of the 9 weeks for extra credit.

Rick Wormeli’s ideas and tips in this article continue to be stimulating and useful. That said, it’s been more than a decade since the first edition of his book on grading, homework and assessment, Fair Isn’t Always Equal appeared.

In the intervening years, Rick’s thinking about homework has benefited from his work with teachers and in schools and plenty of debate. In April 2018, he published a new 2nd edition of Fair Isn’t Always Equal that includes an even deeper discussion of homework and its relationship to best practice, differentiation, and the moral obligation of educators to insist on effective homework policies.

Visitors to the Stenhouse page for the new book can preview the *entire* text for free, so be sure to check that out.

Here’s a brief excerpt from the new book:

Tenet: Homework should enable students to practice what they have already learned in class and should not present new content for the first time. Principled Responses:

• I will not assign homework to students who do not understand the content. • I will give homework to some students and no homework or different assignments to others, depending on their proficiency. • I will use exit slips and formative assessment during class so I can determine proper after-school practice for each student. • I will not give homework because parents and administrators expect me to do so, or assign homework because it’s a particular day of the week. • I will assign homework only if it furthers students’ proficiency in the field we’re studying.

Thanks to Rick for giving us permission to share this!

Sign Up & Receive the Latest News about Our Content…

Email address:

First Name:

Read our Privacy Policy

BOOK REVIEWS

10 Tools to Help Kids Develop Their Talents

Opportunities for Swift Achievement Gains

Teaching for Retention, Application and Transfer

Strategies to Adjust ‘Up’ What Students Know

Assuring Just, Inclusive Learning for Newcomers

Building Bridges That Cultivate Teacher Growth

SEL, Civic Engagement, & a Healthy Democracy

An Enhanced Edition of ‘When Kids Can’t Read’

Shifting to Asset-Based Literacy Assessments

Bringing the Science of Reading into Grades 3-5

Class Libraries to Inspire and Challenge Readers

Strategies to Integrate AI into Every Classroom

Preparing Our Students to Engage the World

A Playbook for Student and Teacher Well-Being

Culturally & Historically Responsive Classrooms

Filling Your Classroom with Deliberate Optimism

Add the Power of Poetry to All Your ELA Lessons

The New York Times

The learning network | do teachers assign too much homework.

Do Teachers Assign Too Much Homework?

<a href="//www.nytimes.com/2014/09/14/fashion/the-homework-squabbles.html">Related Article</a>

Questions about issues in the news for students 13 and older.

See All Student Opinion »

When you get home after school, how much homework will you do? Will it keep you up late at night? Will it cause stress in your family? Or do you have homework under control?

Do teachers assign too much homework?

In the article “The Homework Squabbles,” Bruce Feiler writes:

Homework has a branding problem. Or, to be a little less pointy-headed about it, everybody hates homework. Scan through the parenting shelves, and the frustration is palpable: “The Case Against Homework,” “The Homework Trap,” “The End of Homework.” Glance through glossy magazines, and the enmity is ubiquitous: “The Homework Wars” (The Atlantic), “The Myth About Homework” (Time), “Do Kids Have Too Much Homework?” (Smithsonian). Heck, just drop the word into any conversation with families and watch the temperature rise. Some of this is cyclical, of course. Homework goes back to the onset of formal schooling in America and was popular in an era when the brain was viewed as a muscle to be strengthened. The first backlash began in the early 20th century as repetitive drilling came under attack, and by the ’40s, homework had lost favor. The launch of Sputnik in 1957 generated hysteria that we were losing ground to the Soviet Union, and more homework was one response, but the practice again waned in the 1960s. Homework came roaring back after “A Nation at Risk” in the 1980s as Americans again feared their children were falling behind. Today’s tension echoes this back and forth. “The Chinese do six hours of homework before breakfast — we have to keep up” versus “Play is more important than make-work. Google wants people who are ‘creative’.”

Students: Read the entire article, then tell us …

— Do your teachers assign too much homework? Or do you have just the right amount?

— Does homework cause stress and tension in your family ? Or does it create opportunities to work together with your parents or siblings?

— Does it get in the way of sleep or extracurricular activities? Or are you able to manage the right balance?

— How do you usually get your homework done? At home or at school? In a quiet room, or with family or friends around? Do you tend to work alone, or do your parents or friends help?

— Is homework, including projects and writing assignments you do at home, an important part of your learning experience? Or is it not a good use of time, in your opinion? Explain.

Students 13 and older are invited to comment below. Please use only your first name . For privacy policy reasons, we will not publish student comments that include a last name.

Comments are no longer being accepted.

when i get home i do AT LEAST 2 hours of homework and since i got into 7th grade i have no time for hobbies or fun. in a word, it just stinks.

I personally believe that teachers do give a fair amount of homework. Yes some days we do have more homework than others, also some teachers give more homework than others. A page or two of homework for each class is not a big deal but when each teacher assigns two pages of homework a night that’s about ten pages to do when you get home. Children also have after school activity’s, with some children not getting out until late. When you have hours of homework that can be stressful and hard as well. Taking the child out of the after school activity you say could be beneficial to the students education, on the other hand what could is do for them physically. Once they get done with homework would they spend their time on social media and technology? Everything you can do about homework is going to have something you will have to lose. Not saying homework does not help the student but also takes a way sleep and rest for the student as well. Making a child go to school non well rested could damage there learning. Falling asleep in class, not paying attention, and focusing on something else, perhaps unfinished homework for another class. Homework is a good thing and in some ways not so much, just depending on how much is assigned and how much time you have to do it.

I think there are teachers who give just the right amount but i also think there are teachers that dont relise we have homework from other teachers to and theres no way we could finish that all in one night. I think it gets in the way of my sleep all the time and i never have time for extracurriculars any more. I usually do my homework in my room with no one else arond because they get me destracted and i never get finished.

When I have homework, I normally do it wherever I am and I have time to do it. But, it is more difficult for me to do my homework when it’s loud, so I usually prefer to be somewhere quiet. I also prefer working alone because then I stay focused and can do my work without any disruption. On the topic of homework, I also do think that my teachers are assigning too much homework every night. I don’t think some teachers keep the students that do extracurricular activities, like myself, in mind when they are giving homework. They need to consider the student’s life because we wake up very early to go to school for 7 hours, and then after school some students go to a sport practice or a meeting for the club they are in, and then being expected to do at least 3 or more hours of homework is ridiculous. Students are loosing sleep more and more every day, making it harder for students to listen and focus in class. Too much homework is like a domino effect for many students.

I believe teachers do assign too much homework for students. It causes us to become stressed when we have a lot of homework to do. I have stayed up really late just to finish my homework and the lack of sleep effects me a lot the next day. I have a hard time staying awake and the lack of sleep just keeps building. Students have other things to do after school besides homework, like sports practices or games. They get home later then usual and they are expected to do their homework and be ready to go the next day. I believe the amount of homework given to students is too much with all of the other stuff going on in their lives.

In my opinion, I think it’s not entirely the teacher’s fault for giving us much homework because sometimes kids just fall behind in class work and that makes homework for them. One issue though is when each class has homework for you. For me it’s difficult to do all 5 classes homework because most of the time, one assignment is more important than another and sometime they contradict each other. Homework can be quite stressful when it’s mainly sitting down for hours at a time thinking, writing, and clarifying. Most parents look at homework and think, “I don’t know anything about this”. Honestly, the curriculum has changed that much that not even our parents understand it. Mainly math and science, and even physics. It can be quite annoying when you need help and get distressed over homework. I was up until 1am doing homework and I had to stop because my back hurt, I was tired, and I didn’t even get the chance to study for a test because I was just exhausted. I didn’t even get to sleep until near 2 in the morning. Talk about sleep deprivation.

Homework is a very controversial topic. Some kids say it helps with learning on there own. Others believe that its a waste of time. To me, it depends on what class the homework is for and how much homework it is. I’m okay with fifteen to thirty minutes of homework, but that about it. Being a high schooler, you are expected to do lots of homework. But I don’t believe that. We spend 7 hours of our day already in classes and I don’t think doing another hour of homework is helpful. It adds more stress onto an already stressful lifestyle. If you get home at 6 from sports, and start your homework at 7, and you are up until 12, I don’t think that is fair to students. Everyone has there opinion on homework. Some love it, some hate it. Some think its quicker to finish while laying in bed, and some think its better to do at the kitchen table. It all depends on your lifestyle and how you see fit.

I think that each teacher gives out the right amount of homework, but the reason it seems like a lot is because each teacher gives out homework. Say if you only get your average amount math homework, but no other classes, that’s fine, right? but adding in the average amount for every class, and it’s a lot. Homework does get in the way of my sleep because I usually go to sleep at 10 but if I get 3 different homework assignments, which is what I tend to get now, I have to stay up until 11:30. I also do track as an extracurricular acivity, track meets usually go from 3:00 pm and end at around 9:30 pm. on normal days I start my homework at 6:00 and end at 10:30 but if I got home at 9:30 and couldn’t do my homework at the meet then I will end up having to get it done at 1:30 but of course I’ll stop at 11:00 and do the rest in the morning and during lunch break. I think the teachers are giving the right amount eahc, but not all together.

Does it get in the way of sleep or extracurricular activities? Or are you able to manage the right balance?

Coming from a very small school, I see that almost every student is involved in some type of extracurricular activity which take places outside of school hours. Personally when I get back later in the day from practice or a game, the last thing I want to do is spend hours on homework. I think teachers should give students homework if they feel it is important to practice what they are being taught; however, I think some teachers give an excessive amount and it is unnecessary. I think it would be best if each teacher only gave an assignment that at tops would take 15-20 to complete. This way it would be enough to get some practice in without taking a long time and not focusing the whole time.

Teachers do assign to much homework and i think that they shouldn’t assign any, we go to school to learn not to just bring the learning and work home. Homework does get in the way of sleep and extracurricular activities, i just don’t have the time to finish or even start my homework, i could stay up and do my homework but then i would be tired for the next day. I feel that by doing projects and writing assignments at home is not a productive way of learning because why would i want to do something at home where i can’t ask a teacher any questions.

In my thoughts, I believe homework does help the criteria of learning, but too much of it doesn’t. When I have to stay up all night just trying to finish my homework is ridiculous. If I’m not getting enough sleep, then I’m going to be dreading on the next day of school and I’m not going to be focused. Plus, I play year round sports and I have practice every day after school, and games at least twice a week. I do my homework alone in my room, because I tend to work better where it’s quiet and where I’m working alone. Teacher’s and coaches say to do your homework on a bus, but that’s nearly impossible when it’s dark and loud and the bus is not nearly stable. In my opinion, it doesn’t help me when they give a boat load of homework every single night, to where you’re not getting any sleep, or to where you can barely function the next day.

Homework has always been a burden for me and now that I am a 10th grader it has been even more of a hassle getting in the way with my sport(running) and friends. I have a Spanish teacher who gives homework daily that usually is easy as long as I keep up with class and I know what I am doing. The homework that I get from other teachers can vary and comes mostly in chunks. I will have no homework one day and then 3 days worth the next. After coming home from practice that can end as late as 7 pm to 5 pm (the earliest) it is hard and stressful to keep up. I am fine about having homework but it cant be enough to not let me sleep or have some free time.

I think, for the most part, teachers give too much homework. Homework causes a lot of stress and tension in my family. It’s a pain having to listen to my parents and siblings argue with each other about doing homework every single night. Some nights when I have a lot of stuff going on that’s not school related, I have to miss out on sleep to get my homework done, or I’ll blow off my homework and my grade will lower, all because I was tired and wanted to sleep. I do understand that if you want to learn, you need to study and practice, but teachers should give students more time in school to do work so they have time outside of school to do activities that they really enjoy and make them happy. Homework causes so much unnecessary stress that students shouldn’t have to go through.

Over the four years that I have been in high school, I’ve had my fair share of homework. Of course there have been days where I have very little, but then there are other days where each teachers continuously add to my work load. If teachers found a good way to balance out the work with each class, homework and the stress it carries with it would not be as bad. But that often doesn’t happen. For me, the reason it becomes so stressful is simply because of how busy I am. It’s not because I don’t care about my grades, or I see homework as totally pointless, but being involved in sports takes up a lot of my time, and I often have to hurry through homework, not really retaining the true purpose of it. However, when I do have enough time, I find that homework can help me understand new concepts better, because the more repetition I have with something, the better I get at it. Overall, I have mixed feelings about the idea of homework. It’s really only beneficial if there is not a surplus of it, and kids take the time to really focus. I also feel like homework should not be such a pressured thing, and it’s a better practice for teachers not to grade it, but simply go over it in class to reward the kids who did their work, but not punish them if they didn’t understand the concept and got problems wrong.

I’m conflicted about the homework subject, and I have become more conflicted as I have seen my own fourth-grade son struggle to keep up with his assignments this year. I think homework is important to build effective work habits and discipline. However, I don’t think all homework is created equal. I currently think that my fourth grader is being given too much homework. I particularly don’t like the assignment of writing 20 spelling words five times each. I still encourage him to do it, because I want him to have good habits.

I believe that teachers do assign too much homework and it can be hard for some students to keep up. Some students participate in after school activities such as sports, clubs, and music lessons, may have problems keeping up because of the amount of homework they are given. I believe that my teachers do assign too much homework and it is hard for me to get it all done and still be able to participate in the activities I love. For students in advanced classes a large amount of homework is okay and should be expected but having too much homework in their other classes can make it hard to stay caught up. Last year I had the opportunity of taking an advanced class and it was causing stress within my family. I get off the bus later than most students and then I have to watch my brother after school so it can be hard for me to get homework done when he is being loud. It can also be hard to get help from my parents when I don’t understand something because they don’t get home from work until late and homework can get in the way of family time.

i think homework is a good way to keep your mind in “school mode” but too much causes stress. I think schools should give less homework, but only an hour’s worth max.

Wake up at 6, come home at 4. Then after-school activities, then homework for 2 hours, then sleep for 8 hours. Then if you have chores, or jobs to do, then you have no time left at all to do anything else. Of course this causes stress.

For my school i do my H.W. until almost 12:00 at night and i get home around 2:30

My school rarely give us homework that make us stay up too late. But my little brother has tons of homework and hes only in 2nd grade. Some teachers are giving way too muchh homework to kids. they should give them less.

i think that kids do get too much homework. Its not fair to the students.

I think homework is good because it grows your brain even though we all hate it we need it but I think that we get too much. As a 8th grade student it causes a lot of stress and barely gives you time to talk,play.or sometimes even sleep. When I reach home I eat a snack then start my homework. Sometimes I don’t even finish until 8 and later. Our homework tasks are to finish essays do projects worksheets etc I do my homework on my own honestly I think they should keep homework but just not give out too much r at least make us do it in class

i think that when teachers give alot of homework it gives us students no time to have fun . When a teachers give us alot of homewok , we cant get to other activity’s like studying or exerciseing or hanging out with our friends .

I believe that some teachers assign a lot of homework but also some don’t. It just depends on what class the student is in. Homework doesn’t cause stress in my family because I do my homework alone in my room or else in the library during school. Sometimes when I have a lot of textbook homework I find myself with less time in the afternoon. I usually get my homework done at home in my room but I also like working in the library. I think students should do projects at school instead of home because we also have so much other homework to do.

Doing homework with your kids is less helpful than you think. You don’t actually, often, remember the material!! Encourage your kids to work with their friends, they will bounce ideas off each other, correct each others work, and learn better overall.

Does your kid have an iPhone? Try HuddleUp, a free homework collaboration app. It allows kids to work together remotely. They will feel like they are getting one over on you, yet instead they are learning and educating themselves.

What's Next

Open supplemental data
Reference Manager
Simple TEXT file

People also looked at

Original research article, “i feel enthusiastic, when the homework is done well”: teachers’ emotions related to homework and their antecedents.

1 Institute of School and Profession, University of Teacher Education St. Gallen, St. Gallen, Switzerland
2 Department of Educational Science and School of Education, University of Salzburg, Salzburg, Austria
3 Institute of Educational Science, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland

Emotions are an important factor influencing teaching behavior and teaching quality. Previous studies have primarily focused on teachers’ emotions in the classroom in general, rather than focusing on a specific aspect of teaching such as homework practice. Since emotions vary between situations, it can be assumed that teachers’ emotions also vary between the activities that teachers perform. In this study, we therefore focus on one specific teacher activity in our study, namely homework practice. We explore teachers’ emotions in homework practice and their antecedents. Methodologically, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 23 Swiss secondary school teachers teaching German and analysed using structuring qualitative content analysis. The results show that teachers experience a variety of positive and negative emotions related to homework practice, with positive emotions predominating. According to the teachers’ reflections, the antecedents of their emotions could be attributed to the context (e.g., conditions at home), teacher behavior and (inner) demands (e.g., perceived workload) and student behavior (e.g., learning progress). Implications for teacher education and training are discussed.

1. Introduction

Schutz and Lanehart (2002) emphasized that “emotions are intimately involved in virtually every aspect of the teaching and learning process and, therefore, an understanding of the nature of emotions within the school context is essential” (p. 67). Since then, research on emotions in education has steadily increased and includes empirical studies on the emotions of students, teachers, as well as parents (e.g., Dettmers et al., 2011 ; DiStefano et al., 2020 ; Burić and Frenzel, 2021 ). The results regarding the teacher uniformly show that they experience a variety of emotions while teaching ( Hargreaves, 1998 ; Sutton and Wheatley, 2003 ; Mevarech and Maskit, 2015 ), which have been identified as significant factors that influence teaching behavior, and consequently, teaching quality and student outcomes ( Frenzel et al., 2009b ; Hagenauer and Hascher, 2018 ; Frenzel et al., 2021 ). Moreover, recognizing, understanding, and expressing these emotions are crucial for teachers’ well-being ( Hagenauer and Hascher, 2018 ; Dreer, 2021 ; Hascher and Waber, 2021 ).

Previous studies have focused predominantly on teachers’ emotions during teaching as broadly defined (e.g., Chen, 2019 ), rather than on a specific facet of teaching practice. Such an approach is valuable because it generates insights into how teaching in general is experienced emotionally by teachers and how these emotions in turn affect students ( Frenzel et al., 2021 ). However, research has shown that students’ emotions vary depending on the subject ( Goetz et al., 2006 , 2010 ) or activity they are engaged in (e.g., emotions in learning, emotions during exams, emotions during homework etc.; Pekrun et al., 2002 ; Goetz et al., 2012 ). The same can be assumed for teachers. The effect of context and situation on emotions is increasingly coming to the fore of academic research (for example, Pekrun and Marsh, 2022 ). In our study, we therefore zoom even more precisely into the different activities or tasks a teacher is required to perform to examine their emotional experience more closely in connection with a very specific activity: namely, homework practice. In this study, homework practice means teachers’ various actions related to homework. It includes planning, assigning, but also checking, giving feedback or integrating homework into the lesson.

We have chosen to focus on the activity of homework practice as homework in schools has been a topic of controversial discussion for decades, especially with regard to its effectiveness and quality ( Baş et al., 2017 ; Fan et al., 2017 ). Homework practice has now been brought even more into focus by the COVID-19 pandemic, as homework also promotes core student skills, such as self-regulated learning ( Pelikan et al., 2021 ). It can be assumed that teachers who experience homework practice positively and implement it with motivation also achieve a higher quality of the homework. Previous research clearly points to the association between teachers’ emotions and teaching quality (e.g., Becker et al., 2015 ). Even though emotions are considered relevant as part of teachers’ professional competence ( Frenzel et al., 2021 ), there is currently a lack of empirical evidence on which emotions teachers experience in homework practice and what triggers them. This is the focus of the present study. Based on an exploratory approach, arising from the limited empirical findings on this topic to date, we examine which emotions teachers experience in relation to homework practice and their antecedents. We adopt Cooper’s (1989) definition of homework as a task that a teacher gives to students to complete out of school. However, the homework process we are interested in as an emotion-triggering source of teachers’ emotions should be thought of more broadly and ranges from planning homework to assigning and correcting it and giving feedback. Therefore, it is not only about activities that the teacher does for themselves (e.g., planning homework), but also about the teacher–student interactions that occur in the course of the homework process, for example, when teachers give feedback to students or discuss homework together in class.

2. Teachers’ emotions

2.1. definition of emotions and teachers’ emotions.

Emotions are multidimensional constructs that consist of (1) affective, (2) physiological, (3) cognitive, (4) expressive, and (5) motivational components ( Kleinginna and Kleinginna, 1981 ; Scherer, 2005 ; Shuman and Scherer, 2014 ). Emotions have what Frenzel et al. (2015) call a “felt core”— the tangible experience of feeling (p. 202). When people experience emotions, the body often reacts as well. For example, the experience of fear can result in an increased heart rate or a change in breathing rate or pattern ( Frenzel et al., 2015 , p. 202). Emotional experiences also impact thoughts, such as when fear leads to thoughts about consequences. Emotions can be perceived by the outside world through the expressive component. For example, fear can be expressed verbally or non-verbally, such as through a worried face. Finally, the motivational component ensures that appropriate action is taken. Fear often leads to avoidance behavior.

According to Pekrun and Linnenbrink-Garcia (2012 , p. 261; see also Pekrun et al., 2023) , emotions can be described and differentiated according to their valence and activation. In terms of valence, a distinction can be made between positive (e.g., joy) and negative (e.g., anger). Valence in this context is related to the subjective experience of the teacher. Positive emotions are classified as those that are experienced as pleasant by the teacher, whereas negative emotions are defined as those experienced as unpleasant. Both negative and positive emotions can be functional or dysfunctional (for a critical discussion see An et al., 2017 ). In addition, there are physiologically activating or deactivating states. Excitement is activating, whereas relaxation is usually deactivating. These two aspects are crucial for understanding the actions that arise from emotions, as in the case of teachers who experience emotions in the classroom and act accordingly.

Teachers’ emotions have increasingly become objects of study in recent years. Frenzel (2014) proposed a reciprocal model of the causes and effects of teachers’ emotions when teaching in class. It illustrates how teachers’ emotions are triggered and influenced by and affect the teaching process. The basic assumptions of the model are based on an appraisal-theoretical understanding of emotions ( Ellsworth and Scherer, 2003 ). Appraisal theory explains why the same external experience may not lead to the same emotional responses in all individuals; it is not the experience itself that evokes the emotion, but the subjective appraisal made by the individual ( Sutton and Wheatley, 2003 ). For teachers, this appraisal is based on four aspects of teacher goals: (1) cognitive, (2) motivational, (3) social, and (4) relational ( Frenzel et al., 2009b ; Frenzel, 2014 ). Based on their perceptions of learners’ behavior on these four dimensions, teachers assess whether they have achieved or will achieve these goals. The outcome of this assessment process determines the teachers’ emotional response. For example, if a teacher perceives students’ engagement as high, it is likely that the teacher will experience positive emotions (e.g., enjoyment) as the students’ behavior is interpreted as goal conducive. These emotions then influence the teacher’s classroom behavior (i.e., cognitive activation, classroom management, social support). For example, teachers who experience positive emotions can build trusting relationships with their students. These instructional behavior factors affect students’ achievement, motivation, behavior in class, and relationship with the teacher. Thus, student and teacher behavior in the classroom is both the cause and effect of the teacher’s emotional experiences. This reciprocal relationship between teacher and student emotions has been empirically confirmed in a variety of studies ( Frenzel et al., 2009a , b ; Becker et al., 2014 ; Keller and Lazarides, 2021 ). It is expected that students’ homework behavior on the different dimensions is related to teachers’ homework-related emotions as well. It seems plausible, for example, that students who are committed to doing their homework trigger positive emotions in teachers because teachers then feel confirmed in their effectiveness and consider their goals to have been achieved. However, there are no specific empirical findings for homework practice so far.

2.2. Antecedents of teachers’ emotions—empirical findings

Teachers experience emotions for a variety of reasons related to achieving or not achieving their goals ( Sutton and Wheatley, 2003 ; Sutton, 2007 ; Frenzel, 2014 ). They experience joy in the classroom when students are motivated ( Becker et al., 2015 ; Burić and Frenzel, 2021 ), engaged ( Prawatt et al., 1983 ; Epstein and van Voorhis, 2012 ; Hagenauer et al., 2015 ; Chang, 2020 ), interested ( Frenzel et al., 2008 ), disciplined ( Hagenauer et al., 2015 ; Frenzel et al., 2020 ) or simply happy ( Chang, 2020 ; Keller and Lazarides, 2021 ). According to Frenzel et al. (2008) and Keller and Lazarides (2021) , joy is the emotion most commonly reported by teachers. When students are successful or interactive, teachers experience positive emotions ( Sutton, 2005 ; Wu and Chen, 2018 ; Chang, 2020 ) regardless of the students’ abilities ( Prawatt et al., 1983 ). In addition, they feel pride when a student with low abilities suddenly begins to try very hard ( Prawatt et al., 1983 ).

However, student engagement and discipline are also significant predictors of negative emotions such as anxiety, anger, and frustration ( Prawatt et al., 1983 ; Georgiou et al., 2002 ; Sutton and Wheatley, 2003 ; Sutton, 2005 ; Becker et al., 2014 ; Hagenauer et al., 2015 ; Frenzel et al., 2020 ). Anger is mainly evoked when students misbehave, do not participate, or are inattentive or unmotivated ( Sutton, 2007 ; Hagenauer et al., 2015 ). It also arises when teachers attribute students’ academic failures to inadequate effort ( Reyna and Weiner, 2001 ). The level of discipline has a significantly negative correlation with fear ( Frenzel et al., 2008 ). Surprise occurs when low-ability students who make little effort nevertheless succeed or high-ability students who exert a lot of effort fail ( Prawatt et al., 1983 ).

The relationships between students and teachers are also associated with emotions. When teachers feel connected to their students, they experience joy. If these relationships cannot be established, anger and anxiety are more likely to arise ( Hagenauer et al., 2015 ). In addition, social relations outside the classroom—such as those with colleagues or parents—can also lead to emotional responses ( Sutton and Wheatley, 2003 ; Sutton, 2005 ; Wu and Chen, 2018 ). Teachers feel pleasant emotions when they succeed in working with their colleagues, receive support from school leaders, or experience recognition from parents ( Chen, 2019 ). In contrast, unpleasant emotions can result if they experience competition with their colleagues, receive little support from the administration, or interact with uncooperative parents ( Sutton, 2005 ; Chen, 2019 ).

In conclusion, the main sources which trigger teachers’ emotions proposed in the model on teachers’ emotions ( Frenzel, 2014 ) have been confirmed empirically by various studies in different countries. However, it remains an open question whether these particular sources are also at the core of teachers’ emotions related to homework.

3. Homework

Homework has a long tradition worldwide and is a relevant practice in many schools. As already outlined in the introduction, it is defined as assignments given by a teacher for students to complete outside of school ( Cooper, 1989 ).

To date, much of the research on homework has focused on its didactic–methodological function (e.g., Fernández-Alonso et al., 2019 ). For example, researchers have investigated whether the additional learning time gained through homework impacts student performance (e.g., Rosário et al., 2018 ). In addition, research has analysed whether homework supports self-regulated learning by helping students acquire learning strategies ( Trautwein and Lüdtke, 2008 ). Another aspect that has been considered is whether homework functions as an equalizer or reinforces inequality because students have different degrees of support at home ( Dettmers et al., 2019 ). Additionally, researchers have investigated the influence of homework on the development of students’ interest ( Trautwein et al., 2001 ).

Although the aforementioned research has produced different findings, it is the consensus that doing homework alone does not necessarily provide benefits, but that the quality of homework is decisive in determining whether students benefit from it ( Trautwein et al., 2001 , 2002 ; Flunger et al., 2015 ; Rodríguez et al., 2019 ). Previous studies have shown that quality homework can positively influence the learner’s behavior and achievement ( Trautwein et al., 2002 , 2006 ; Trautwein and Lüdtke, 2007 , 2009 ; Dettmers et al., 2010 ; Rosário et al., 2018 ). Moreover, a student’s motivation to complete homework is positively related to its perceived quality ( Trautwein et al., 2006 ; Trautwein and Lüdtke, 2007 ; Rosário et al., 2018 ; Xu et al., 2021 ; Xu, 2022 ). For example, Rosário et al. (2018) found that when students perceive their homework to be high quality, they try harder, complete homework more often, perform better on assignments, and get higher grades in mathematics. However, the topic of homework is still controversial and opinions about the sense or even meaninglessness of homework are diverse ( Cooper et al., 2006 ; Fan et al., 2017 ). Due to these controversies, the topic can also be considered “emotional,” be it that homework often leads to conflicts between students and their parents ( Forsberg, 2007 ; Dumont et al., 2012 ) or that homework can also trigger emotions in the teacher–student interaction, for example, when students do not complete their homework (see Hagenauer et al., 2015 for teacher-student interaction).

Studies on students’ emotions during homework show that they are influenced by perceived homework quality and by parental homework support ( Trautwein et al., 2009a , b ; Dettmers et al., 2011 ). For example, negative emotions arise when perceived homework quality is low or parental homework help is perceived as controlling and can have a negative impact on homework effort and performance ( Else-Quest et al., 2008 ; Trautwein et al., 2009a , b ; Dettmers et al., 2011 ). Trautwein et al. (2009b) also found that negative emotions are negatively related to homework effort and French performance. However, they were also able to show that performance can predict subsequent negative emotions in homework. Regarding the parents, it was found that the emotions of the parents (e.g., about a subject) influence their homework support, but also have an influence on the emotions of the students ( Moè and Katz, 2018 ; DiStefano et al., 2020 ). Hence, while there are some studies on students’ emotions ( Knollmann and Wild, 2007 ; Trautwein et al., 2009a ; Dettmers et al., 2011 ) and parents’ emotions ( Moè and Katz, 2018 ; DiStefano et al., 2020 ), research on teachers’ emotions pertaining to homework practice is lacking.

4. The present study

Many studies have investigated the emotions teachers experience while teaching ( Sutton and Wheatley, 2003 ; Frenzel, 2014 ; Fried et al., 2015 ; Frenzel et al., 2021 ). However, there has been little research to date that focuses on specific activities of teaching. The present study focuses on the homework process. Based on Frenzel’s (2014) model, it can be assumed that the quality of homework is influenced by the teachers’ emotions. For example, positive emotions, such as joy triggered by students who are highly engaged in homework, may cause teachers to put in the effort to assign differentiated homework. This is likely to further enhance the students’ motivation and engagement. Thus, perceived student engagement and motivation may function as a significant cause of a teacher’s emotions related to homework. So far, however, there is no empirical evidence on the antecedents of teachers’ emotions and experienced teachers’ emotions themselves in the homework process.

To this end, in the present study we explored the following main research questions:

1. Which emotions do teachers experience related to German language homework (the language of instruction and the students’ native language), and (2) what are their antecedents?

This zooming in on a specific activity of teachers is timely, as the high context specificity of emotions and consequently the variations of emotions between contexts and situations are increasingly seen as being relevant for empirical research in the field. While there is already a great deal of empirical evidence on teachers’ emotions while teaching in general and their relations to students (e.g., Frenzel et al., 2021 ), our study extends previous research efforts by taking a closer look at a specific activity of teachers – homework practice and its emotional potential for teachers—and thereby also taking the context specificity of teachers’ emotions into account.

5.1. Participants

A total of 23 secondary school teachers from the canton of Bern in Switzerland participated in this study. The conditions for participation were that they had been in the teaching profession for at least 3 years and taught German (which is the language of instruction and a primary subject in the area). The subject German was chosen as it is one of the main subjects in Swiss secondary schools. Homework and its control can be very time-consuming for teachers, as essays have to be corrected in addition to other forms of assignments. In addition, it was important for us that the teachers already had sufficient professional experience so that they could report from their broad experience.

We first contacted all secondary schools in the canton of Bern to recruit teachers who were willing to participate in interviews. There are five different school models in Bern, which differ in terms of permeability (see Figure 1 ). In Model 1 , the students of the high-track secondary level (Sekundarschule) and the low-track secondary level (Realschule) are taught separately in different school buildings. In Model 2 , the two tracks are taught separately but in the same school building (i.e., there are separate high-track and low-track classes in the same building). In Model 3a , students in the low- and high-track levels are taught separately in most subjects; however, in the main subjects (mathematics, German, French), they are grouped according to their ability levels. In Model 3b, core classes are mixed, while the three main subjects are taught in ability-level groups. In Model 4 , all subjects are taught in mixed levels and classes are only differentiated internally.

Figure 1 . School models in the canton of Bern.

Of the teachers interviewed, two teachers were from Model 1, three teachers were from Model 2, 12 teachers were from Model 3a, four teachers were from Model 3b, and two teachers were from Model 4. This distribution accurately reflects the distribution of teachers among the different models in the canton of Bern. Model 3a is the most frequently implemented (see Table 1 ).

Table 1 . Demographics of the participants.

Of the 23 teachers interviewed, 12 were female (52.2%) and 11 were male (47.8%). One teacher was under 30 years old, 11 were between 30 and 40 years old, eight were between 41 and 50 years old and three were over 50 years old. The teachers also differed in terms of professional experience. Two had been in the teaching profession for less than 5 years, five for 5–10 years, seven for 11–15 years, six for 16–20 years and three for over 20 years (see Table 1 ).

5.2. Interviews and procedure

As teachers’ emotions related to homework practices are relatively unexplored, a qualitative–explorative approach was chosen to answer the proposed research questions. In addition, a short questionnaire was used to collect demographic information and the teachers’ positive and negative affect related to homework practice.

5.2.1. Interviews

We conducted semi-structured interviews based on an interview guide that lasted between 28 and 69 min. The interview guide had been previously piloted with two teachers. These interviews showed that the questions were easy to understand but that the interviewees found it difficult to identify emotions on their own.

Consent to use the data was obtained from the participants. In addition, they were informed of their right to withdraw from the study at any time and were assured that their personal information and data would be kept confidential. Interviews were conducted by the principal investigator in person or via Zoom (because of the COVID-19 pandemic). An informal conversational style was used to encourage respondents to speak openly about their experiences. They were also told that their experiences were important and that, therefore, there were no right or wrong answers; this was intended to ensure that they would proffer information as freely and openly as possible.

During the interviews, the teachers were asked to report on situations related to the homework process that had evoked emotions in them. They were asked to name the emotion and describe the situation that caused it (Main interview question: In which situations related to homework do you experience positive feelings? What kind of feeling? Can you tell me more about it? In which situations do you experience negative feelings? What kind of feeling? Can you tell me more about it? ). Based on the test interviews, during a second step, the teachers were presented with a list of specific emotions (which were also later addressed in the short questionnaire) and asked to read them. If they had experienced the emotion and had not yet mentioned it, they were asked to explain a situation that had triggered this emotion (Main interview question: You have now already reported on various emotions in the homework process. I will show you a selection of emotions now. Read through the emotions briefly. Perhaps you will notice that you have experienced one or two of them in connection with your homework practice. I would ask you to tell me a bit more about it ).

5.2.2. Teachers’ positive and negative affect

After the interviews, the teachers filled out a short questionnaire which consisted of demographic information and the positive and negative affect schedule (PANAS, Breyer and Bluemke, 2016 ; German version). The PANAS scales were applied to provide a preliminary quantifying description of the teachers’ emotions related to their homework practice in addition to the thick and contextualized descriptions resulting from the interviews. The teachers had to answer the following question in terms of different emotions (e.g., active): “ When you think about your previous homework practice, how do you feel about it in general? ” The PANAS consists of ten positive and ten negative emotional states. Additional emotions that were considered relevant to homework were added: satisfied, disappointed, relaxed, frustrated, relieved, confident, hopeless, stressed, empathic, grateful, hopeful, bored, sad, pity, embarrassed, guilty conscience, disgusted, admiring, and envious (see Supplementary Table S1 ). The teachers assessed the intensity with which they felt each emotion using a 5-point Likert scale, ranging from 1 (not at all) to 5 (extremely).

5.3. Data analysis

The interviews were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim. Fuss and Karbach (2019) and Kuckartz (2010) identified obligatory and pre-defined transcription rules. All transcripts conformed to these rules. Personal information provided by the participants was anonymised in the transcripts. The interviews were analysed utilizing the software MAXQDA based on the qualitative content analysis structure defined by Mayring (2017) . A coding frame was developed consisting of several main categories and subcategories that structured the material. First, the interview material was coded based on Frenzel’s (2014) teachers’ emotions model. They classified the students’ behavior on cognitive, motivational, and social levels as relevant antecedents of the teachers’ emotions. All other key categories and sub-categories pertaining to the triggers of the teachers’ emotions that were part of the coding frame emerged inductively from the material. In terms of specific emotions, the emotional states from the PANAS scales were used as deductive categories. Other emotions, such as feeling insecure, emerged from the interviews, so further inductive categories were formed during the coding process. These categories and the overall coding frame were discussed several times with a second researcher. The full coding frame is available from the researchers on request. Extensive extracts from the coding frame are depicted in the results section in Tables 2 – 4 .

Table 2 . Antecedents of teachers’ emotions related to context.

Table 3 . Antecedents of teachers’ emotions related to teachers’ behavior and (inner) demands.

Table 4 . Antecedents of teachers’ emotions related to student behavior.

For the final coding frame, each category was described and assigned a representative anchor example. In relation to the research questions, the coding scheme included 21 categories of positive emotions and 27 categories of negative emotions. A total of 116 codes in the positive emotion categories and 133 codes in the negative emotion categories were developed. The coding scheme also included 25 antecedents, 20 of which were divided into positive and negative. The exceptions were categories that were considered to be positive or negative per se (e.g., lies/excuses). There were 373 codes in the antecedent categories.

To ensure intercoder reliability, a second independent researcher who was not involved in the research project but who has expertise in the field coded a randomly selected interview using the final coding scheme. The codes were discussed with the second researcher. After a consensus was reached, the independent researcher coded four more randomly selected interviews. These were used to calculate intercoder reliability via the corrected Cohen’s Kappa coefficient, as suggested by Brennan and Prediger (1981) . The intercoder reliability as a measure of the coding consistency was good, suggesting consistency in the coding process (κ = 0.78; Landis and Koch, 1977 ).

In the following sections, the results of the study are reported. First, the emotions reported in the short questionnaire are presented, which is followed by the antecedents and associated emotions reported in the interviews. We will describe the dimensions/categories in detail and complement this description with frequencies (i.e., How many teachers mentioned each category). This procedure—the combination of detailed description and the indication of frequencies—is a common strategy for presenting results when using qualitative content analysis ( Schreier, 2012 ).

6.1. Which emotions do teachers experience in relation to their homework practice?

Findings from the PANAS scales revealed that the teachers experienced a variety of positive and negative emotions related to homework. Positive emotions dominated over negative emotions ( M positive emotions = 2.69; M negative emotions = 1.40) (see Figure 2 and Supplementary Table S1 ).

Figure 2 . Mean values of positive and negative teacher emotions in relation to the homework practice (1 = low occurrence; 5 = high occurrence).

To cross-validate these findings, the teachers were also asked in the interviews whether positive or negative emotions dominate from their perspective. In line with the quantitative findings, most of the teachers interviewed ( n = 15) claimed that positive emotions were dominant. When prompted to elaborate, they clarified that they have a positive attitude toward homework and strive to implement high-quality homework practices. In addition, they reported that they do not receive negative feedback from students or parents on their homework practices, suggesting that they are satisfied. In contrast, negative emotions dominated among some teachers ( n = 6). They argued that homework has the potential to cause negative outcomes such as conflicts with parents, stress, or students feeling overloaded. Finally, two teachers were unsure whether positive or negative emotions dominate, reflecting an ambivalent attitude toward homework.

Looking at the distinct emotions in detail, the teachers mentioned a high variation of positive and negative emotions that are triggered by their homework practice. Specifically, for the positive emotions, they reported feeling hopeful, excited, relieved, empathic, admiration, confident, determined, interested, enthusiastic, inspired, satisfied, proud, fulfilling, and relaxed. In terms of negative emotions, they reported feeling stressed, pity, sad, ineffective, overwhelmed, frustrated, guilty, including having a guilty conscience, ashamed, upset, insecure, disappointed, annoyed, scared, irritable, helpless, perplexed, hopeless, inadequate, and bored. In the following section, these distinct emotions are related to their antecedents.

6.2. What are the antecedents of teachers’ emotions related to their homework practice?

Based on the interview findings, triggers of teachers’ emotions were identified and grouped into three categories: context (Section 6.2.1), teacher behavior and (inner) demands (Section 6.2.2), and student behavior (Section 6.2.3).

6.2.1. Context

Various contextual factors that trigger emotional responses were mentioned (see Table 2 ). They related to the school environment, the students’ home environments, or the teacher’s own socialization experiences (i.e., their prior experiences with homework).

With regard to the school environment, the teachers reported that they feel relieved that they have access to digital tools . Emotions were also evoked in teachers because they have an/no obligation or the/no possibility of assigning homework . One teacher stated that she is relieved to have the opportunity to assign homework occasionally as this allows her to cover content for which there is too little time in class. Another teacher reported stress because he would like to assign more homework but does not have the opportunity because the students would be overwhelmed.

The teachers seldom mentioned factors related to the students’ home environments in the interviews. However, on some occasions, these conditions did evoke emotions. More concretely, some teachers reported that they feel empathy or pity when students do not have a suitable place at home to work and concentrate . In addition, conflicts between parents and students caused by homework evoked negative emotions in teachers. Regarding positive emotions, the teachers claimed to feel admiration when underachieving students or those who receive little support at home nevertheless work hard to complete their homework.

Finally, the teachers’ own socialization evoked emotions in them. One teacher said he felt sorry for the students because he did not like doing homework himself. In contrast, two teachers reported that they had enjoyed doing homework in their own school years , one particularly emphasizing the subject German because he was especially good at it.

6.2.2. Teacher behavior and (inner) demands

Different aspects of the teacher’s own behavior and (inner) demands triggered emotional responses (see Table 3 ). For one teacher, her demands and idealism led to a guilty conscience and a feeling of being ineffective and powerless. Several teachers reported feeling frustrated or stressed when the workload (e.g., correcting or preparation) is too high. Only one teacher experienced positive emotions, as she avoided giving homework to keep her workload low:

“I am really a bit wary of giving homework that gives me personally a lot of work.” (11, pos. 50)

The amount of homework assigned by the teachers evoked various emotions. First, the teachers reported feeling relieved when they do not have to assign a lot of homework to students—for example, when the students work productively in class, or when additional homework is unnecessary as the learning objectives have already been reached. Second, some of the teachers reported feeling guilty, ashamed, or pity when they assign homework to students who already have assignments from other teachers or have to study for tests.

The teachers reported experiencing positive emotions when the assigned work is completed well and thus, they can give positive feedback . However, negative emotions such as a guilty conscience can arise if they have to give negative feedback.

The teachers further reported that they are hopeful, excited, and enthusiastic when they assign homework that is perceived as high quality and which they have planned thoroughly. On the contrary, they mentioned experiencing a guilty conscience when they realize that they have put in little effort and/or time to prepare the homework. One teacher reported that she is often inspired by students to create new assignments .

Insecurities can arise during planning if the meaningfulness of homework is questioned. Teachers who doubt this frequently reported feelings of guilt. However, when they give homework that they believe is meaningful, they feel determined and interested. When teachers succeed in integrating homework into the lesson and it leads to discussions, they experience positive emotions such as interest, joy, enthusiasm, or inspiration. In contrast, they reported feeling guilty when they do not integrate homework into the lesson.

“It has also happened that you have done something […] and then you have not reacted at all, so that was – that was not sensible. Then you are really (.) guilty.” (06, pos. 75)

6.2.3. Student behavior

The students’ homework-related behavior triggered the broadest range of emotions in the teachers, defined in terms of the cognitive, motivational, and socio-emotional goals described in the Frenzel (2014) model (see Table 4 ). The teachers did not describe student behavior related to relational goals.

Cognitive goals were closely linked to learning progress and perceived success. Homework that does not lead to improved learning performance is likely to cause frustration, disappointment, and anger. One teacher reported experiencing a guilty conscience when particularly diligent students who complete their homework are still not successful. However, when learning goals are achieved, the teachers frequently reported feeling excited, enthusiastic, and satisfied. When students who have difficulties with the content succeed, teachers have indicated that they are enthusiastic, proud, and relieved.

In addition to the learning process and progress, the students’ learning outcomes (results/products) caused an array of emotions in the teachers. If the students do not meet the teachers’ expectations, disappointment or anger is likely to arise. The teachers reported being annoyed, frustrated, or upset when the students’ mistakes are repeated , or they have to repeat their instructions several times. However, more teachers reported positive emotions related to student outcomes, including joy, enthusiasm, admiration, pride, satisfaction, and interest.

As described in the model on teachers’ emotions ( Frenzel, 2014 ), teachers also pursue motivational goals during instruction, which becomes salient in relation to homework practice. The teachers frequently mentioned that the students’ initiative, interest, and ambition trigger positive emotions in them. For example, the teachers reported that they feel satisfaction, fulfillment, or joy when students voluntarily engage in school-related tasks at home or show interest in the content that has been discussed at school. However, if the students lack motivation, frustration can occur.

The teachers also reported feeling disappointed and upset as a result of a lack of student engagement . Conversely, high student engagement goes hand in hand with joy, enthusiasm, satisfaction, fulfillment, admiration, and pride. One teacher reported that he feels hopeful and confident when he notices that a formerly disinterested student suddenly develops motivation and engagement.

In addition, the teachers revealed that their emotions are strongly related to those of their students , suggesting emotion transmission effects. Teachers indicated they feel guilty when students’ emotions about homework are negative. One teacher reported that he sometimes gets upset with himself when he overloads his students with homework. Positive emotions among students corresponded with emotions such as joy or enthusiasm in teachers.

Finally, teachers reported that they experience emotions related to the students’ achievement of social goals. Students are responsible for fulfilling their role as learners by behaving in a socially appropriate manner and in accordance with the norms and standards of their respective learning environment.

Most of the teachers’ negative emotions were triggered by homework that is not handed in by students. Teachers reported feeling anger and stress because they cannot progress in class. They feel frustrated, disappointed, upset, irritable, perplexed, helpless, and even hopeless when the same students repeatedly fail to complete homework. In addition, some teachers confessed to feeling insecure and incompetent because, from their perspective, they have failed to establish a positive homework culture.

“Yes, being hopeless is sometimes a bit difficult, but when there are really students who don't succeed in this subject or in that subject and maybe not even in German, then maybe sometimes the question is: How could we tackle this now?” (03, pos. 58)

One teacher reported that he feels empathic when a student does not do homework due to a difficult situation at home; he then works with the pupil to seek a solution. Another teacher reported that she feels bored when the same situation occurs repeatedly. Unfinished homework can lead to conflicts at school between teachers and students, which cause negative feelings.

Two closely related phenomena are cheating on or copying homework , which is interpreted as a failure to meet social goals. The same is true of students who lie or make excuses , which also evoke negative emotions among teachers. The particular emotion that is triggered depends on who is considered responsible for the behavior. When teachers are blamed, they are likely to feel insecure; however, when teachers do not attribute the behavior to themselves but regard the students as responsible, they experience anger (directed toward the students).

Homework completion evokes positive emotions in teachers because it demonstrates that students are meeting social goals. Teachers reported being happy when homework is done, although experiences differed. One teacher reported that she feels confident that when students do not do their homework, it is usually for a good reason and not due to a general rejection of homework.

Similarly, when students take responsibility and succeed in organizing themselves, teachers mentioned feeling relaxed, satisfied, and excited. In contrast, the teachers reported that they feel pity and frustration when the students do not take responsibility and organize themselves to complete their homework.

Finally, feedback from students triggered emotions in teachers, with positive feedback leading to positive emotions and negative feedback leading to negative emotions, such as frustration in one teacher. One teacher reported that she can also be irritable when she receives negative feedback that is not justified.

To conclude and summarize the results related to our main research question, the teachers reported various positive and negative emotions and the factors that trigger them. These features are illustrated in a conceptual model of teachers’ emotions related to homework practices (see Figure 3 ).

Figure 3 . Model of the antecedents of teachers’ emotions related to homework.

7. Discussion

The overall aim of this study was to investigate the emotions triggered in teachers by homework-related issues. It was found that for the majority of teachers, positive emotions dominated negative emotions. A positive emotional pattern in teachers when teaching was also found in the majority of previous studies ( Keller et al., 2014 ; Anttila et al., 2016 ). Nevertheless, when prompted to identify specific situations which triggered an emotional response, the teachers mentioned just as many negative situations as positive ones. Many different triggers of teachers’ emotions were mentioned and described, which were categorized according to contextual conditions, teachers’ behavior and (inner) demands, and students’ behavior.

In line with previous research and the theoretical model of teachers’ emotions ( Frenzel, 2014 ), the present study underlines the importance of the students’ cognitive, motivational, and socio-emotional behavior. More concretely, teachers reported that they experience joy when they perceive or experience students as motivated, engaged, interested, and disciplined e.g., (see also Chang, 2020 ). In contrast, they explained that they feel frustration or anger when students are not engaged or disciplined e.g., (see also Becker et al., 2015 ). It was also confirmed that teachers experience positive emotions when they observe students making progress e.g., (see also Wu and Chen, 2018 ). In line with Prawatt et al. (1983) , this study found that teachers experience joy as a result of their students’ achievements and outcomes. Additionally, previous studies ( Becker et al., 2014 ; Frenzel et al., 2021 ; Keller and Lazarides, 2021 ) have shown that the teachers’ emotions are related to those of the students—identified as the emotion transfer effect, which was also reflected in the present study. Consistent with Chen (2019 , 2020) , this study further showed that negative emotions arise in teachers when students do not take responsibility for their learning; a central goal of self-regulated learning environments, which gained additional attention during the COVID-19 pandemic when students had to cope with distance learning ( Berger et al., 2021 ).

In addition to the many findings that align with prior research on teachers’ emotions and the factors that trigger them, the study also produced some unexpected results. First, the teachers did not report the emotions of anxiety. This may be due to the fact that inexperienced teachers were excluded from the study; previous studies have found that inexperienced teachers and student teachers experience more anxiety than experienced teachers ( Sutton and Wheatley, 2003 ; Chang, 2009 ). The results so far also indicate that anxiety is mainly experienced with regard to classroom management (for example, Oral, 2012 for student teachers). This is less relevant in the context of homework practice. However, it could have been assumed that teachers may be anxious about correcting homework and giving feedback to students, because, for example, correcting essays is a rather complex task. However, this assumption was not confirmed in the present data. In this case, teaching experience could have played a moderating role.

Second, the students’ relational behavior was not stressed as an important factor influencing the teachers’ emotions. In this regard, the data collection method may have played a role. Previous studies have revealed that relational behavior is an important antecedent of teachers’ emotions when measured by a questionnaire, but it is stressed less often when teachers are asked directly about concrete, emotion-laden situations (e.g., Hagenauer and Hascher, 2018 ). Therefore, relational aspects may be less explicit than, for example, socio-emotional behaviors and thus, harder to explicitly describe and reflect on. However, recent research has shown the importance of teacher–student relationships in behavior and well-being ( Roorda et al., 2011 ; Spilt et al., 2011 ). Consequently, the perception that high-quality, goal-oriented homework is likely to affect the quality of teacher–student relationships ( Wentzel, 2012 ; Wettstein and Raufelder, 2021 ) should not be ignored. Future research may use additional methods (e.g., intensive longitudinal methods such as diaries or experience sampling) to explore this link in depth ( Goetz et al., 2016 ).

Third, concerning the factors that trigger emotions, the results show, in accordance with Frenzel’s model on teachers’ emotions ( Frenzel, 2014 ) that the emotions related to homework practice are also triggered primarily by the behavior of the students. This implies that the model can also be applied well to the specific area of a teachers’ responsibility, namely homework practice. Yet, the results also show that teacher-determined and contextual factors are responsible for teachers’ emotions as well. These findings underscore that teachers set high standards for their professional practices. Depending on their evaluation of whether they meet the standards (e.g., by assigning differentiated homework) or not (e.g., by assigning too much homework), they experience either positive or negative emotions. Thus, teachers evaluate their students’ behavior and critically evaluate their own professional behavior simultaneously. This finding supports the idea that the teaching profession demands high moral standards—both in general ( De Ruyter and Kole, 2010 ) and in terms of homework practices—which leads to guilt among teachers who feel they do not meet them.

Furthermore, the findings also show that the wider context needs to be considered when discussing the emotional value of homework practices. This is reasonable, as contextual factors (e.g., the [lack of] support at home) influence whether teachers can achieve their goals. Previous research has repeatedly shown that how parents support their children is significantly related to homework behavior and student achievement ( Pomerantz and Eaton, 2001 ; Moroni et al., 2015 ). However, school-level (e.g., a place to do homework at school) and system-level contextual factors (e.g., the number of lessons per week) also influence homework practices and ultimately affect teachers’ emotions.

7.1. Strengths, limitations, and future research

Based on an explorative approach, the present study has shown that teachers’ emotions can also be examined context-specifically for the teacher’s area of responsibility “homework practice.” Following the results, the model of teachers’ emotions ( Frenzel, 2014 ), which specifies the antecedents of teachers’ emotions, can be transferred to teachers’ emotions related to homework practice, but additionally, it should be extended to include further antecedents at the teachers’ level and at the context level. Through the exploratory approach the diversity of teachers’ emotions in the homework process could be illustrated and the diverse antecedents of these emotions could be identified in depth.

Still, from an exploratory perspective, the study has some limitations as well. First, the findings represent the experiences of secondary teachers from the canton of Bern. By purposively selecting these cases, we have tried to obtain a selection that is as comprehensive as possible in terms of the school models existing in the canton of Bern. Nevertheless, further quantitative studies need to follow. These studies could test possible differences in the emotional experiences of teachers working in different school models. In our small-scale study, these group differences could not be reliably explored. In addition, further studies based on different samples in different contexts are needed, which would allow a generalization of the results beyond the Swiss (Bernese) context. If such quantitative studies are conducted, when developing measurement instruments, consideration should be given to mapping the diversity of the emotional experiences of teachers. Classical instruments, such as the Teacher Emotions Scales (TES; Frenzel et al., 2016 ) which were developed for teaching in general, may fall short when it comes to the specific context of homework practice. Even if anxiety, anger, and enjoyment (i.e., the core emotions of the TES) are relevant teachers’ emotions related to homework practice, other emotions, such as satisfaction, disappointment, stress, or guilt (including having a guilty conscience) should also be considered in such measurement instruments. Furthermore, the link between teachers’ emotions and homework quality needs further exploration. As a reciprocal relationship can be assumed, a complex longitudinal design needs to be applied. Second, the teachers’ emotions were measured retrospectively. It can be assumed that the teachers mainly described situations that were either very close in time or in which the emotions were experienced intensely ( Heuer and Reisberg, 1992 ). Future studies should therefore also use situational measurements (e.g., experience sampling methods). Another limitation is that the results were based on self-reporting. This can lead to bias; for example, the teachers may have answered in a socially desirable way. We countered this effect by ensuring full anonymity and by creating a trusting environment during the interviews. It must also be mentioned that the subjective assessment of emotions is still a valid way to capture the affective core of emotions, i.e., the subjective feeling that cannot be observed. Nevertheless, if a multicomponent approach to emotions is pursued, future studies can, for example, use further data collection methods, such as physiological measures accounting for the physical arousal of emotions. Finally, it should be noted that the teachers were explicitly asked about their emotions in connection with homework. This has the advantage that teachers have purposefully reflected on their emotions and their antecedents. However, such an approach presupposes a conscious reflection on emotions by the teachers. Another pre-assumption of this study was that emotions occur in the homework process, which is why we opted for the explicit approach to explore teachers’ emotions. For future research, it would be interesting to complement these explicit approaches to capturing emotions with implicit approaches by attempting to reconstruct teachers’ emotional experiences through, for example, narrative interviews.

7.2. Conclusion and practical implications

This study has provided a first insight into the emotional experiences of Swiss secondary teachers teaching German during the homework process and has also identified the multiple influencing conditions of these emotions. On a theoretical level, the results of this study extend the research findings on teachers’ emotions by focusing on homework practices as a specific area of action in the classroom. They enable Frenzel’s (2014) model of teachers’ emotions in the classroom to be differentiated by focusing on this specific aspect of teaching. Overall, the results clearly showed that the homework process is definitely experienced emotionally by teachers. Even though homework is done by students at home, it is still the students and their behavior that are the most emotionally relevant source for teachers’ emotions. This result is due to the fact that the homework process also includes significant teacher–student interactions in class (e.g., homework return and discussion), as well as the fact that student behavior is also visible in the quality of homework completion. Teachers, for example, are happy about the students’ learning progress that they diagnose from the homework, or they are annoyed when the students do not put in enough effort or cheat on homework. However, the demands that teachers place on themselves are also often sources of their emotions (e.g., “inner demands”), and contextual factors also influence their emotional experience (e.g., experiencing pity due to unfavorable conditions at home).

From a practical point of view, the results provide some implications for teacher education and training in Switzerland. First and foremost, pre-service teachers should acquire basic knowledge about the development of emotions and their influence on teaching and learning. In-service teachers should also be sensitized to this through professional development programs. For example, a training program developed by Carstensen et al. (2019) focusses specifically on fostering teachers’ socio-emotional competencies. If teachers develop socio-emotional competencies, they are more likely to recognize automatic patterns of action that occur due to their own emotions and thus will be better able to interrupt negative spirals that can arise from them. This could have a positive impact on the quality of the homework they assign and subsequently the behavior of the students. Teachers who can regulate their emotions appropriately (e.g., by applying cognitive reappraisal when students do not hand in their homework) are less likely to let their emotional reactions interfere with their professional teaching behavior.

These skills also have an impact on building and maintaining meaningful teacher–student relationships ( Carstensen et al., 2019 ), which positively influence the students’ engagement and achievement ( Roorda et al., 2011 ). Previous research has shown that cheating amongst university students is lower when the instructor is evaluated positively ( Stearns, 2001 ) in terms of teacher–student relationships and enthusiasm ( Orosz et al., 2015 ). Building on these findings, meaningful teacher–student relationships might decrease the triggers of negative teachers’ emotions, as students who are satisfied with their teachers are less likely to cheat on, copy, or lie about their homework and complete it more reliably.

Finally, pre-service and in-service teachers should be specifically trained in assigning high-quality homework. The results of this study demonstrate that positive emotions in teachers can be evoked by their students’ learning progress, learning outcomes, and engagement. Previous studies have shown that homework quality can promote student achievement ( Rosário et al., 2018 ) and engagement ( Trautwein et al., 2006 ). Assigning high-quality homework can have positive effects on both the students’ learning and the teacher’s own emotional experiences. During the training, teachers could also learn how to follow up on completed homework during class, as it was found that being unable to use homework in class leads to negative emotions.

Data availability statement

The dataset presented in this article is not readily availabel because it currently forms an essential part of the first author’s qualification phase. Requests to access the dataset should be directed to CF, [email protected] .

Ethics statement

Ethical review and approval was not required for the study on human participants in accordance with the local legislation and institutional requirements. The patients/participants provided their written informed consent to participate in this study.

Author contributions

CF conceived, planned, and conducted the study. In addition, CF wrote the first draft of the manuscript. GH and SM were closely involved in the process and contributed to the revision of the manuscript. All authors contributed to the article and approved the submitted version.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Publisher’s note

All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article, or claim that may be made by its manufacturer, is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

Supplementary material

The Supplementary material for this article can be found online at: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2023.1239443/full#supplementary-material

An, S., Ji, L.-J., Marks, M., and Zhang, Z. (2017). Two sides of emotion: exploring positivity and negativity in six basic emotions across cultures. Front. Psychol. 8, 1–14. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00610

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

Anttila, H., Pyhältö, K., Soini, T., and Pietarinen, J. (2016). How does it feel to become a teacher? Emotions in teacher education. Soc. Psychol. Educ. 19, 451–473. doi: 10.1007/s11218-016-9335-0

Baş, G., Şentürk, C., and Ciğerci, F. M. (2017). Homework and academic achievement: a meta-analytic review of research. Issues Educ. Res. 27, 31–50.

Google Scholar

Becker, E. S., Goetz, T., Morger, V., and Ranellucci, J. (2014). The importance of teachers' emotions and instructional behavior for their students' emotions – An experience sampling analysis. Teach. Teach. Educ. 43, 15–26. doi: 10.1016/j.tate.2014.05.002

Becker, E. S., Keller, M. M., Goetz, T., Frenzel, A. C., and Taxer, J. L. (2015). Antecedents of teachers' emotions in the classroom: An intraindividual approach. Front. Psychol. 6:635. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00635

PubMed Abstract | CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

Berger, F., Schreiner, C., Hagleitner, W., Jesacher-Rößler, L., Roßnagl, S., and Kraler, C. (2021). Predicting coping with self-regulated distance learning in times of COVID-19: evidence from a longitudinal study. Front. Psychol. 12:701255. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.701255

Brennan, R. L., and Prediger, D. J. (1981). Coefficient kappa: some uses, misuses, and alternatives. Educ. Psychol. Meas. 41, 687–699. doi: 10.1177/001316448104100307

Breyer, B., and Bluemke, M. (2016). Deutsche version der positive and negative affect schedule PANAS (GESIS panel). Zusammenstellung Sozialwissenschaftlicher Items Skalen . doi: 10.6102/zis242

Burić, I., and Frenzel, A. C. (2021). Teacher emotional labour, instructional strategies, and students' academic engagement: a multilevel analysis. Teach. Teach. 27, 335–352. doi: 10.1080/13540602.2020.1740194

Carstensen, B., Köller, M., and Klusmann, U. (2019). Förderung sozial-emotionaler Kompetenz von angehenden Lehrkräften. Zeitschrift Für Entwicklungspsychologie Pädagogische Psychologie 51, 1–15. doi: 10.1026/0049-8637/a000205

Chang, M.-L. (2009). An appraisal perspective of teacher burnout: examining the emotional work of teachers. Educ. Psychol. Rev. 21, 193–218. doi: 10.1007/s10648-009-9106-y

Chang, M.-L. (2020). Emotion display rules, emotion regulation, and teacher burnout. Front. Educ. 5:90. doi: 10.3389/feduc.2020.00090

Chen, J. (2019). Exploring the impact of teacher emotions on their approaches to teaching: a structural equation modelling approach. Br. J. Educ. Psychol. 89, 57–74. doi: 10.1111/bjep.12220

Chen, J. (2020). Teacher emotions in their professional lives: implications for teacher development. Asia Pac. J. Teach. Educ. 48, 491–507. doi: 10.1080/1359866X.2019.1669139

Cooper, H. (1989). Homework . New York: Longman.

Cooper, H., Robinson, J. C., and Patall, E. A. (2006). Does homework improve academic achievement? A synthesis of research, 1987–2003. Rev. Educ. Res. 76, 1–62. doi: 10.3102/00346543076001001

De Ruyter, D. J., and Kole, J. J. (2010). Our teachers want to be the best: on the necessity of intra-professional reflection about moral ideals of teaching. Teach. Teach. , 16, 207–218. doi: 10.1080/13540600903478474

Dettmers, S., Trautwein, U., Lüdtke, O., Goetz, T., Frenzel, A. C., and Pekrun, R. (2011). Students’ emotions during homework in mathematics: testing a theoretical model of antecedents and achievement outcomes. Contemp. Educ. Psychol. 36, 25–35. doi: 10.1016/j.cedpsych.2010.10.001

Dettmers, S., Trautwein, U., Lüdtke, O., Kunter, M., and Baumert, J. (2010). Homework works if homework quality is high: using multilevel modeling to predict the development of achievement in mathematics. J. Educ. Psychol. 102, 467–482. doi: 10.1037/a0018453

Dettmers, S., Yotyodying, S., and Jonkmann, K. (2019). Antecedents and outcomes of parental homework involvement: how do family-school partnerships affect parental homework involvement and student outcomes? Front. Psychol. 10:1048. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01048

DiStefano, M., O’Brien, B., Storozuk, A., Ramirez, G., and Maloney, E. A. (2020). Exploring math anxious parents’ emotional experience surrounding math homework-help. Int. J. Educ. Res. 99:101526. doi: 10.1016/j.ijer.2019.101526

Dreer, B. (2021). Teachers’ well-being and job satisfaction: the important role of positive emotions in the workplace. Educ. Stud. 1–17, 1–17. doi: 10.1080/03055698.2021.1940872

Dumont, H., Trautwein, U., Lüdtke, O., Neumann, M., Niggli, A., and Schnyder, I. (2012). Does parental homework involvement mediate the relationship between family background and educational outcomes? Contemp. Educ. Psychol. 37, 55–69. doi: 10.1016/j.cedpsych.2011.09.004

Ellsworth, P. C., and Scherer, K. R. (2003). “Appraisal processes in emotion” in Series in affective science. Handbook of affective sciences . eds. R. J. Davidson, H. H. Goldsmith, and K. R. Scherer (Oxford: Oxford University Press), 572–595.

Else-Quest, N. M., Hyde, J. S., and Hejmadi, A. (2008). Mother and child emotions during mathematics homework. Math. Think. Learn. 10, 5–35. doi: 10.1080/10986060701818644

Epstein, J. L., and van Voorhis, F. L. (2012). “The changing debate: from assigning homework to designing homework” in Contemporary debates in childhood education and development . ed. S. Suggate (London: Routledge), 263–273.

Fan, H., Xu, J., Cai, Z., He, J., and Fan, X. (2017). Homework and students' achievement in math and science: a 30-year meta-analysis, 1986–2015. Educ. Res. Rev. 20, 35–54. doi: 10.1016/j.edurev.2016.11.003

Fernández-Alonso, R., Woitschach, P., Álvarez-Díaz, M., González-López, A. M., Cuesta, M., and Muñiz, J. (2019). Homework and academic achievement in Latin America: a multilevel approach. Front. Psychol. 10:95. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00095

Flunger, B., Trautwein, U., Nagengast, B., Lüdtke, O., Niggli, A., and Schnyder, I. (2015). The Janus-faced nature of time spent on homework: using latent profile analyses to predict academic achievement over a school year. Learn. Instr. 39, 97–106. doi: 10.1016/j.learninstruc.2015.05.008

Forsberg, L. (2007). Homework as serious family business: power and subjectivity in negotiations about school assignments in Swedish families. Br. J. Sociol. Educ. 28, 209–222. doi: 10.1080/01425690701192695

Frenzel, A. C. (2014). “Teacher emotions” in Educational psychology handbook series. International handbook of emotions in education . eds. R. Pekrun and L. Linnenbrink-Garcia (New York: Routledge), 494–519.

Frenzel, A. C., Daniels, L., and Burić, I. (2021). Teacher emotions in the classroom and their implications for students. Educ. Psychol. 56, 250–264. doi: 10.1080/00461520.2021.1985501

Frenzel, A. C., Fiedler, D., Marx, A. K. G., Reck, C., and Pekrun, R. (2020). Who enjoys teaching, and when? Between- and within-person evidence on teachers' appraisal-emotion links. Front. Psychol. 11:1092. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01092

Frenzel, A. C., Goetz, T., Lüdtke, O., Pekrun, R., and Sutton, R. E. (2009a). Emotional transmission in the classroom: exploring the relationship between teacher and student enjoyment. J. Educ. Psychol. 101, 705–716. doi: 10.1037/a0014695

Frenzel, A. C., Goetz, T., Stephens, E. J., and Jacob, B. (2009b). “Antecedents and effects of teachers' emotional experiences: An integrated perspective and empirical test” in Advances in teacher emotion research: The impact on teachers' lives . eds. P. A. Schutz and M. Zembylas (New York: Springer), 129–151.

Frenzel, A. C., Götz, T., and Pekrun, R. (2008). “Ursachen und Wirkungen von Lehreremotionen: Ein Modell zur reziproken Beeinflussung von Lehrkräften und Klassenmerkmalen” in Lehrerexpertise: Analyse und Bedeutung unterrichtlichen Handelns . ed. M. Gläser-Zikuda (Münster: Waxmann), 187–209.

Frenzel, A. C., Götz, T., and Pekrun, R. (2015). “Emotionen” in Pädagogische Psychologie . eds. E. Wild and J. Möller. 2. Auflage ed (Berlin Heidelberg: Springer), 201–224.

Frenzel, A. C., Pekrun, R., Goetz, T., Daniels, L. M., Durksen, T. L., Becker-Kurz, B., et al. (2016). Measuring teachers' enjoyment, anger, and anxiety: the teacher emotions scales (TES). Contemp. Educ. Psychol. 46, 148–163. doi: 10.1016/j.cedpsych.2016.05.003

Fried, L., Mansfield, C., and Dobozy, E. (2015). Teacher emotion research: introducing a conceptual model to guide future research. Issues Educ. Res. 25, 415–441.

Fuss, S., and Karbach, U. (2019). Grundlagen der Transkription: Eine praktische Einführung . 2nd Edn. Opladen Toronto: Barbara Budrich.

Georgiou, S. N., Christou, C., Stavrinides, P., and Panaoura, G. (2002). Teacher attributions of student failure and teacher behavior toward the failing student. Psychol. Sch. 39, 583–595. doi: 10.1002/pits.10049

Goetz, T., Bieg, M., and Hall, N. C. (2016). “Assessing academic emotions via the experience sampling method” in Methodological advances in research on emotion and education . eds. M. Zembylas and P. A. Schutz (Stuttgart: Springer), 245–258.

Goetz, T., Cronjaeger, H., Frenzel, A. C., Lüdtke, O., and Hall, N. C. (2010). Academic self-concept and emotion relations: domain specificity and age effects. Contemp. Educ. Psychol. 35, 44–58. doi: 10.1016/j.cedpsych.2009.10.001

Goetz, T., Frenzel, A. C., Pekrun, R., and Hall, N. C. (2006). The domain specificity of academic emotional experiences. J. Exp. Educ. 75, 5–29. doi: 10.3200/JEXE.75.1.5-29

Goetz, T., Nett, U. E., Martiny, S. E., Hall, N. C., Pekrun, R., Dettmers, S., et al. (2012). Students' emotions during homework: structures, self-concept antecedents, and achievement outcomes. Learn. Individ. Differ. 22, 225–234. doi: 10.1016/j.lindif.2011.04.006

Hagenauer, G., and Hascher, T. (2018). Bedingungsfaktoren und Funktionen von Emotionen von Lehrpersonen im Unterricht. Unterrichtswissenschaft 46, 141–164. doi: 10.1007/s42010-017-0010-8

Hagenauer, G., Hascher, T., and Volet, S. E. (2015). Teacher emotions in the classroom: associations with students' engagement, classroom discipline and the interpersonal teacher-student relationship. Eur. J. Psychol. Educ. 30, 385–403. doi: 10.1007/s10212-015-0250-0

Hargreaves, A. (1998). The emotional practice of teaching. Teach. Teach. Educ. 14, 835–854. doi: 10.1016/S0742-051X(98)00025-0

Hascher, T., and Waber, J. (2021). Teacher well-being: a systematic review of the research literature from the year 2000–2019. Educ. Res. Rev. 34:100411. doi: 10.1016/j.edurev.2021.100411

Heuer, F., and Reisberg, D. (1992). “Emotion, arousal, and memory for detail” in The handbook of emotion and memory: Research and theory . ed. S.-Å. Christianson (Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum), 151–180.

Keller, M. M., Frenzel, A. C., Goetz, T., Pekrun, R., and Hensley, L. (2014). “Exploring teacher emotions: a literature review and an experience sampling study” in Teacher motivation: Theory and practice . eds. P. W. Richardson, H. M. G. Watt, and S. A. Karabenick (New York: Routledge), 69–82.

Keller, M. M., and Lazarides, R. (2021). “Effekte von Lehreremotionen auf Unterrichtsgestaltung und Schüleremotionen: Eine Tagebuchstudie im Fach Mathematik” in Emotionen in Schule und Unterricht: Bedingungen und Auswirkungen von Emotionen bei Lehrkräften und Lernenden . eds. C. Rubach and R. Lazarides (Opladen Berlin Toronto: Barbara Budrich), 108–127.

Kleinginna, P. R., and Kleinginna, A. M. (1981). A categorized list of emotion definitions, with suggestions for a consensual definition. Motiv. Emot. 5, 345–379. doi: 10.1007/BF00992553

Knollmann, M., and Wild, E. (2007). Quality of parental support and students' emotions during homework: moderating effects of students' motivational orientations. Eur. J. Psychol. Educ. 22, 63–76. doi: 10.1007/BF03173689

Kuckartz, U. (2010). Einführung in die computergestützte Analyse qualitativer Daten . 3rd Edn. Wiesbaden: VS.

Landis, J. R., and Koch, G. G. (1977). The measurement of observer agreement for categorical data. Biometrics 33, 159–174. doi: 10.2307/2529310

Mayring, P. (2017). Qualitative content analysis: Theoretical foundation, basic procedures and software solution . Klagenfurt: Beltz.

Mevarech, Z. R., and Maskit, D. (2015). The teaching experience and the emotions it evokes. Soc. Psychol. Educ. 18, 241–253. doi: 10.1007/s11218-014-9286-2

Moè, A., and Katz, I. (2018). Brief research report: parents’ homework emotions favor students’ homework emotions through self-efficacy. J. Exp. Educ. 86, 597–609. doi: 10.1080/00220973.2017.1409180

Moroni, S., Dumont, H., Trautwein, U., Niggli, A., and Baeriswyl, F. (2015). The need to distinguish between quantity and quality in research on parental involvement: the example of parental help with homework. J. Educ. Res. 108, 417–431. doi: 10.1080/00220671.2014.901283

Oral, B. (2012). Student Teachers' classroom management anxiety: a study on behavior management and teaching management. J. Appl. Soc. Psychol. 42, 2901–2916. doi: 10.1111/j.1559-1816.2012.00966.x

Orosz, G., Tóth-Király, I., Bőthe, B., Kusztor, A., Kovács, Z. Ü., and Jánvári, M. (2015). Teacher enthusiasm: a potential cure of academic cheating. Front. Psychol. 6:318. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00318

Pekrun, R., Goetz, T., Titz, W., and Perry, R. P. (2002). Academic emotions in Students' self-regulated learning and achievement: a program of qualitative and quantitative research. Educ. Psychol. 37, 91–105. doi: 10.1207/S15326985EP3702_4

Pekrun, R., and Linnenbrink-Garcia, L. (2012). “Academic emotions and student engagement” in Handbook of research on student engagement . eds. S. L. Christenson, A. L. Reschly, and C. Wylie (New York: Springer), 259–282.

Pekrun, R., and Marsh, H. W. (2022). Research on situated motivation and emotion: Progress and open problems. Learn. Instr. 81:101664. doi: 10.1016/j.learninstruc.2022.101664

Pekrun, R., Marsh, H. W., Elliot, A. J., Stockinger, K., Perry, R. P., Vogl, E., et al. (2023). A three-dimensional taxonomy of achievement emotions. J. Pers. Soc. Psychol. 124, 145–178. doi: 10.1037/pspp0000448

Pelikan, E. R., Lüftenegger, M., Holzer, J., Korlat, S., Spiel, C., and Schober, B. (2021). Learning during COVID-19: the role of self-regulated learning, motivation, and procrastination for perceived competence. Z. Erzieh. 24, 393–418. doi: 10.1007/s11618-021-01002-x

Pomerantz, E. M., and Eaton, M. M. (2001). Maternal intrusive support in the academic context: transactional socialization processes. Dev. Psychol. 37, 174–186. doi: 10.1037/0012-1649.37.2.174

Prawatt, R. S., Byers, J. L., and Anderson, A. H. (1983). An attributional analysis of teachers' affective reactions to student success and failure. Am. Educ. Res. J. 20, 137–152. doi: 10.3102/00028312020001137

Reyna, C., and Weiner, B. (2001). Justice and utility in the classroom: An attributional analysis of the goals of teachers' punishment and intervention strategies. J. Educ. Psychol. 93, 309–319. doi: 10.1037//0022-0663.93.2.309

Rodríguez, S., Núñez, J. C., Valle, A., Freire, C., Ferradás, M. D. M., and Rodríguez-Llorente, C. (2019). Relationship between students' prior academic achievement and homework behavioral engagement: the mediating/moderating role of learning motivation. Front. Psychol. 10:1047. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01047

Roorda, D. L., Koomen, H. M. Y., Spilt, J. L., and Oort, F. J. (2011). The influence of affective teacher–student relationships on students' school engagement and achievement. Rev. Educ. Res. 81, 493–529. doi: 10.3102/0034654311421793

Rosário, P., Carlos Núñez, J., Vallejo, G., Nunes, T., Cunha, J., Fuentes, S., et al. (2018). Homework purposes, homework behaviors, and academic achievement. Examining the mediating role of students' perceived homework quality. Contemp. Educ. Psychol. 53, 168–180. doi: 10.1016/j.cedpsych.2018.04.001

Scherer, K. R. (2005). What are emotions? And how can they be measured? Soc. Sci. Inf. 44, 695–729. doi: 10.1177/0539018405058216

Schreier, M. (2012). Qualitative content analysis . London: SAGE.

Schutz, P. A., and Lanehart, S. L. (2002). Introduction: emotions in education. Educ. Psychol. 37, 67–68. doi: 10.1207/S15326985EP3702_1

Shuman, V., and Scherer, K. R. (2014). “Concepts and structures of emotions” in Educational psychology handbook series. International handbook of emotions in education . eds. R. Pekrun and L. Linnenbrink-Garcia (New York: Routledge), 13–35.

Spilt, J. L., Koomen, H. M. Y., and Thijs, J. T. (2011). Teacher wellbeing: the importance of teacher–student relationships. Educ. Psychol. Rev. 23, 457–477. doi: 10.1007/s10648-011-9170-y

Stearns, S. A. (2001). The student-instructor relationship's effect on academic integrity. Ethics Behav. 11, 275–285. doi: 10.1207/S15327019EB1103_6

Sutton, R. E. (2005). Teachers' emotions and classroom effectiveness: implications from recent research. Clear. House 78, 229–234. doi: 10.2307/30189914

Sutton, R. E. (2007). “Teachers' anger, frustration, and self-regulation” in Emotion in education . eds. P. A. Schutz and R. Pekrun (Amsterdam: Academic Press), 259–274.

Sutton, R. E., and Wheatley, K. F. (2003). Teachers' emotions and teaching: a review of the literature and directions for future research. Educ. Psychol. Rev. 4, 327–358. doi: 10.1023/A:1026131715856

Trautwein, U., Köller, O., and Baumert, J. (2001). Lieber oft als viel: Hausaufgaben und die Entwicklung von Leistung und Interesse im Mathematik-Unterricht der 7. Jahrgangsstufe. Zeitschrift Pädagogik 47, 703–724. doi: 10.25656/01:4310

Trautwein, U., Köller, O., Schmitz, B., and Baumert, J. (2002). Do homework assignments enhance achievement? A multilevel analysis in 7th-grade mathematics. Contemp. Educ. Psychol. 27, 26–50. doi: 10.1006/ceps.2001.1084

Trautwein, U., and Lüdtke, O. (2007). Students' self-reported effort and time on homework in six school subjects: between-students differences and within-student variation. J. Educ. Psychol. 99, 432–444. doi: 10.1037/0022-0663.99.2.432

Trautwein, U., and Lüdtke, O. (2008). “Die Förderung der Selbstregulation durch Hausaufgaben: Herausforderungen und Chancen” in Kompetenz-Bildung: Soziale, emotionale und kommunikative Kompetenzen von Kindern und Jugendlichen . eds. C. Rohlfs, M. Harring, and C. Palentien (Wiesbaden: VS), 239–251.

Trautwein, U., and Lüdtke, O. (2009). Predicting homework motivation and homework effort in six school subjects: the role of person and family characteristics, classroom factors, and school track. Learn. Instr. 19, 243–258. doi: 10.1016/j.learninstruc.2008.05.001

Trautwein, U., Lüdtke, O., Schnyder, I., and Niggli, A. (2006). Predicting homework effort: support for a domain-specific, multilevel homework model. J. Educ. Psychol. 98, 438–456. doi: 10.1037/0022-0663.98.2.438

Trautwein, U., Niggli, A., Schnyder, I., and Lüdtke, O. (2009a). Between-teacher differences in homework assignments and the development of students’ homework effort, homework emotions, and achievement. J. Educ. Psychol. 101, 176–189. doi: 10.1037/0022-0663.101.1.176

Trautwein, U., Schnyder, I., Niggli, A., Neumann, M., and Lüdtke, O. (2009b). Chameleon effects in homework research: the homework–achievement association depends on the measures used and the level of analysis chosen. Contemp. Educ. Psychol. 34, 77–88. doi: 10.1016/j.cedpsych.2008.09.001

Wentzel, K. R. (2012). Teacher-student relationships and adolescent competence at school. In T. Wubbels, P. Brokden, J. Tartwijkvan, and J. Levy (Eds.), Advances in learning environments research: Vol. 3. Interpersonal relationships in education: An overview of contemporary research . Rotterdam: Sense Publishers. (pp. 19–35).

Wettstein, A., and Raufelder, D. (2021). “Beziehungs- und Interaktionsqualität im Unterricht” in Soziale Eingebundenheit. Sozialbeziehungen im Fokus von Schule und Lehrer*innenbildung . eds. G. Hagenauer and D. Raufelder (Münster: Waxmann), 17–31.

Wu, Z., and Chen, J. (2018). Teachers' emotional experience: insights from Hong Kong primary schools. Asia Pac. Educ. Rev. 19, 531–541. doi: 10.1007/s12564-018-9553-6

Xu, J. (2022). Individual and class-level factors for students' management of homework environment: the self-regulation perspective. Curr. Psychol. 1–15, 1–15. doi: 10.1007/s12144-021-02596-5

Xu, J., Du, J., Cunha, J., and Rosário, P. (2021). Student perceptions of homework quality, autonomy support, effort, and math achievement: testing models of reciprocal effects. Teach. Teach. Educ. 108:103508. doi: 10.1016/j.tate.2021.103508

Keywords: teachers’ emotions, homework, secondary school, qualitative content analysis, interviews, emotional antecedents

Citation: Feiss C, Hagenauer G and Moroni S (2023) “I feel enthusiastic, when the homework is done well”: teachers’ emotions related to homework and their antecedents. Front. Educ . 8:1239443. doi: 10.3389/feduc.2023.1239443

Received: 13 June 2023; Accepted: 18 July 2023; Published: 03 August 2023.

Reviewed by:

Copyright © 2023 Feiss, Hagenauer and Moroni. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) . The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

*Correspondence: Christine Feiss, [email protected]

Too Much Homework from a Student/Teacher Perspective

Teens express concerns over too much homework and a veteran teacher responds..

Posted September 26, 2015

With the school in full swing for so many youth, I wanted to share some comments that students across the nation have shared in response to my blogs on homework. In a given school year, many students spend hours upon hours each night working on assignments. Add to that work, sports, and extracurricular activities and it’s no wonder we have a lot of stressed out teens. Please take time to read the voices of young people across the nation who responded to homework blogs. Following the students’ comments is a response from a veteran teacher.

Dear Teacher,

I'm 17 and I'm in my last year of high school. I can honestly tell you that from 7 p.m. to 12 a.m. (sometimes 1 or 2 a.m.) I am doing homework. I've been trying to balance my homework with my work schedule, work around my house, and my social life with no success. So if someone were to ask me if I think kids have too much homework, I would say yes they do. My comment is based solely on my personal experience in high school. ~Morgan

I know that homework can be extremely stressful and time-consuming… especially if you are taking AP, IB, or other rigorous courses of study. The key to balance and sanity in your life is going to be organization – make a calendar with due dates and priorities. Try not to procrastinate – that will REALLY make you feel overwhelmed. I wish you the best this year. ~LMM

Many people say that our generation spends more time on the computer and watching television than reading books and doing homework, but in reality we do not have time for that anymore. Yes, there are still those stragglers that make you think otherwise, but please do not think that is the majority. Reading books is a treat for us if we get our homework, studying, group projects, etc., finished. Teens mostly receive about 4, or 5 hours of sleep a night. If we're lucky we get 6 or 7. Most of us get up at 5:00 in the morning. Each one of my teachers says that the homework for my class should take 45 minutes to an hour to complete.

I go to six hours of school, sports after school, youth group once a week, tutoring if they have it that day, community service on the weekends, chores at home, and after all this we have 6 more hours of homework to do. The reason why we do all this is to get into college. One of my teachers said to us the other day, "none of you are ready for college and I think we need to push you a little harder." That made me sad to realize that people still do not understand the struggle we go through. In fact, I never have time to chat with my friends in the morning, before school, at lunch, after school, and rarely on the weekends, the reason why is because I do my homework in all that time. High School used to be fun and people were not worried about college as much because they knew that they would make it, plus tuition was lower. Now the bar is too high and soon it will be literally impossible. ~Anonymous

Dear Anonymous,

While high school should be fun, it is a lot of work. On the other hand, a teenager should not be running on five hours of sleep and feeling completely overwhelmed with school work. Here are some suggestions:

1. Talk to your school counselor – perhaps he or she can help you organize your homework schedule to be more effective.

2. Talk to your teachers about your situation and see what specific advice they can offer you to be successful in their class.

3. Talk to your parents about your workload at home – perhaps they can compromise on a few things or give you a weekend without chores. ~LMM

I am 15 years old and currently taking two college courses. On top of that I am in Advanced Placement Biology, Advanced Algebra 2, and Advanced Language Arts. I have a butt ton of homework every night. I have to stay up way late at night to finish it. I am in other activities too! I play volleyball, run cross country, and play basketball. I'm also in youth group, Trio(ets), blue crew, speech, and student council. I have a lot on my plate. I happily say I do have and maintain over a 4.0 GPA, but I am always tired and have headaches that won't go away. I always want to pull my hair out when I think of the amount of homework I have to do! Teachers expect too much of us on one subject. ~Anonymous

You seem to be a very ambitious young person – I’m impressed with your drive! I know that this is going to seem quite obvious, but when you take college level courses, you are given the work load of a college student. It seems to me that if you want to keep the higher level courses, something has to give – you have so much on your plate! You don’t want to sacrifice your health (or the rest of your childhood ) so you can have the schedule of a college student when you are fifteen. Take a close look at your schedule and try to keep the things for which you are the most passionate and eliminate a few that are burdensome. As for the headaches – you may need to go to a doctor, but I’ve found that many students experience them when they do not drink enough water, eat a poor diet , and/or do not get enough sleep. Take care of yourself and try to have a great year! ~LMM

I live in a high performing, upper middle class community like the one you described, and watching people you've grown up with deteriorate at the hands of stress before your very eyes is awful. It's easy to watch from the land of collegiate academia and conduct studies on high schoolers, but sometimes the best proof of a problem is an entire generation silently screaming under the oppression of pressure and ultra high standards of achievement, THERE'S A PROBLEM. No matter what classes you are enrolled in, whether you have 2-3 hours of homework a night or upwards of 5-6, you find yourself inundated with societal, peer, and parental pressure to strive for excellence. You have no idea how many times I've heard someone say homework or studying for a looming test made them cry. How much dread I feel waking up and realizing it's the day in my schedule rotation that doesn't have a study hall. I definitely think that homework has value...only in moderation. I could rattle off for days about how I feel like my generation is being crushed under the weight of our own education , but I think I've made my point. Sigh, time to go back to "studying" for my psychology midterm by writing an essay about a topic we never learned in class (literally that is the prompt) wish me luck. ~Anonymous

I hate to hear about the tremendous amounts of stress students undergo in response to the pressure to perform. Unfortunately, much of the pressure that you are feeling comes from teachers who are receiving just as much pressure to perform… It is a vicious cycle that needs to be broken and it starts with politicians and policymakers. Make your voice be heard – go to the movers and shakers and present your case. I wish you the best. ~ LMM

I am a 16 year old high school student I have one AP class and the rest regular classes. I think that there should be more separation between the more advanced students and the students that don't even try. I have had many classes were the majority of the students don't pay attention and are always messing around and don't do anything. These students make it difficult for the teacher to finish the lesson. As a result what we don’t cover becomes homework. I spend almost the whole weekend doing homework and 2-3 hours every day. When I do have the chance to go out I can't help but have the fact in the back of my head that I still have homework that has to be done. Or I am thinking, “Did I finish all of my homework?” I also participate in extracurricular activities for my school, like sports. Sometimes I don't get home until 8 and then I have homework. The next day I will wake up at 5:30 and repeat the same thing. Even during the breaks I am assigned homework. Which leaves me to say some of the homework I get assigned is too much for me and some of it is caused by my classmates acting up in class. ~Juan

You have a great opportunity to make a positive influence on the students who are being disruptive and disrespectful. As a teacher, I know that peer pressure can also work for the good – try to encourage your peers to take their learning seriously. Also – express your frustration to your teachers in a respectful manner… let them know that you have a difficult time learning in an environment that is disruptive. Perhaps your homework situation will be resolved when the disruptions are addressed. Try to have a great year. ~LMM

The most powerful voices are those who are directly impacted by the educational system. If you are an educator, hopefully you'll spend time communicating with your students about what is on their plates. Not assigning homework isn't the answer, but there is something to say about finding the right balance and allowing homework to be a supplement to what is being taught in the classroom. To the teens, communicate openly with your teachers. They want you to succeed. There may be periods of time you feel overwhelmed by all of the assignments and other times your work load may feel doable. Oftentimes teachers can help make the stressful times more manageable. You just have to talk to them...

Wishing both educators and students a successful school year!

Raychelle Cassada Lohman n , M.S., LPC, is the author of The Anger Workbook for Teens .

Find a Therapist
Find a Treatment Center
Find a Psychiatrist
Find a Support Group
Find Teletherapy
United States
Brooklyn, NY
Chicago, IL
Houston, TX
Los Angeles, CA
New York, NY
Portland, OR
San Diego, CA
San Francisco, CA
Seattle, WA
Washington, DC
Asperger's
Bipolar Disorder
Chronic Pain
Eating Disorders
Passive Aggression
Personality
Goal Setting
Positive Psychology
Stopping Smoking
Low Sexual Desire
Relationships
Child Development
Therapy Center NEW
Diagnosis Dictionary
Types of Therapy

Understanding what emotional intelligence looks like and the steps needed to improve it could light a path to a more emotionally adept world.

Coronavirus Disease 2019
Affective Forecasting
Neuroscience

An illustration shows an open math workbook and a pencil writing numbers in it, while the previous page disintegrates and floats away.

Filed under:

The Highlight

Nobody knows what the point of homework is

The homework wars are back.

Share this story

Share this on Facebook
Share this on Twitter
Share this on Reddit
Share All sharing options

Share All sharing options for: Nobody knows what the point of homework is

As the Covid-19 pandemic began and students logged into their remote classrooms, all work, in effect, became homework. But whether or not students could complete it at home varied. For some, schoolwork became public-library work or McDonald’s-parking-lot work.

Luis Torres, the principal of PS 55, a predominantly low-income community elementary school in the south Bronx, told me that his school secured Chromebooks for students early in the pandemic only to learn that some lived in shelters that blocked wifi for security reasons. Others, who lived in housing projects with poor internet reception, did their schoolwork in laundromats.

According to a 2021 Pew survey , 25 percent of lower-income parents said their children, at some point, were unable to complete their schoolwork because they couldn’t access a computer at home; that number for upper-income parents was 2 percent.

The issues with remote learning in March 2020 were new. But they highlighted a divide that had been there all along in another form: homework. And even long after schools have resumed in-person classes, the pandemic’s effects on homework have lingered.

Over the past three years, in response to concerns about equity, schools across the country, including in Sacramento, Los Angeles , San Diego , and Clark County, Nevada , made permanent changes to their homework policies that restricted how much homework could be given and how it could be graded after in-person learning resumed.

Three years into the pandemic, as districts and teachers reckon with Covid-era overhauls of teaching and learning, schools are still reconsidering the purpose and place of homework. Whether relaxing homework expectations helps level the playing field between students or harms them by decreasing rigor is a divisive issue without conclusive evidence on either side, echoing other debates in education like the elimination of standardized test scores from some colleges’ admissions processes.

I first began to wonder if the homework abolition movement made sense after speaking with teachers in some Massachusetts public schools, who argued that rather than help disadvantaged kids, stringent homework restrictions communicated an attitude of low expectations. One, an English teacher, said she felt the school had “just given up” on trying to get the students to do work; another argued that restrictions that prohibit teachers from assigning take-home work that doesn’t begin in class made it difficult to get through the foreign-language curriculum. Teachers in other districts have raised formal concerns about homework abolition’s ability to close gaps among students rather than widening them.

Many education experts share this view. Harris Cooper, a professor emeritus of psychology at Duke who has studied homework efficacy, likened homework abolition to “playing to the lowest common denominator.”

But as I learned after talking to a variety of stakeholders — from homework researchers to policymakers to parents of schoolchildren — whether to abolish homework probably isn’t the right question. More important is what kind of work students are sent home with and where they can complete it. Chances are, if schools think more deeply about giving constructive work, time spent on homework will come down regardless.

There’s no consensus on whether homework works

The rise of the no-homework movement during the Covid-19 pandemic tapped into long-running disagreements over homework’s impact on students. The purpose and effectiveness of homework have been disputed for well over a century. In 1901, for instance, California banned homework for students up to age 15, and limited it for older students, over concerns that it endangered children’s mental and physical health. The newest iteration of the anti-homework argument contends that the current practice punishes students who lack support and rewards those with more resources, reinforcing the “myth of meritocracy.”

But there is still no research consensus on homework’s effectiveness; no one can seem to agree on what the right metrics are. Much of the debate relies on anecdotes, intuition, or speculation.

Researchers disagree even on how much research exists on the value of homework. Kathleen Budge, the co-author of Turning High-Poverty Schools Into High-Performing Schools and a professor at Boise State, told me that homework “has been greatly researched.” Denise Pope, a Stanford lecturer and leader of the education nonprofit Challenge Success, said, “It’s not a highly researched area because of some of the methodological problems.”

Experts who are more sympathetic to take-home assignments generally support the “10-minute rule,” a framework that estimates the ideal amount of homework on any given night by multiplying the student’s grade by 10 minutes. (A ninth grader, for example, would have about 90 minutes of work a night.) Homework proponents argue that while it is difficult to design randomized control studies to test homework’s effectiveness, the vast majority of existing studies show a strong positive correlation between homework and high academic achievement for middle and high school students. Prominent critics of homework argue that these correlational studies are unreliable and point to studies that suggest a neutral or negative effect on student performance. Both agree there is little to no evidence for homework’s effectiveness at an elementary school level, though proponents often argue that it builds constructive habits for the future.

For anyone who remembers homework assignments from both good and bad teachers, this fundamental disagreement might not be surprising. Some homework is pointless and frustrating to complete. Every week during my senior year of high school, I had to analyze a poem for English and decorate it with images found on Google; my most distinct memory from that class is receiving a demoralizing 25-point deduction because I failed to present my analysis on a poster board. Other assignments really do help students learn: After making an adapted version of Chairman Mao’s Little Red Book for a ninth grade history project, I was inspired to check out from the library and read a biography of the Chinese ruler.

For homework opponents, the first example is more likely to resonate. “We’re all familiar with the negative effects of homework: stress, exhaustion, family conflict, less time for other activities, diminished interest in learning,” Alfie Kohn, author of The Homework Myth, which challenges common justifications for homework, told me in an email. “And these effects may be most pronounced among low-income students.” Kohn believes that schools should make permanent any moratoria implemented during the pandemic, arguing that there are no positives at all to outweigh homework’s downsides. Recent studies , he argues , show the benefits may not even materialize during high school.

In the Marlborough Public Schools, a suburban district 45 minutes west of Boston, school policy committee chair Katherine Hennessy described getting kids to complete their homework during remote education as “a challenge, to say the least.” Teachers found that students who spent all day on their computers didn’t want to spend more time online when the day was over. So, for a few months, the school relaxed the usual practice and teachers slashed the quantity of nightly homework.

Online learning made the preexisting divides between students more apparent, she said. Many students, even during normal circumstances, lacked resources to keep them on track and focused on completing take-home assignments. Though Marlborough Schools is more affluent than PS 55, Hennessy said many students had parents whose work schedules left them unable to provide homework help in the evenings. The experience tracked with a common divide in the country between children of different socioeconomic backgrounds.

So in October 2021, months after the homework reduction began, the Marlborough committee made a change to the district’s policy. While teachers could still give homework, the assignments had to begin as classwork. And though teachers could acknowledge homework completion in a student’s participation grade, they couldn’t count homework as its own grading category. “Rigorous learning in the classroom does not mean that that classwork must be assigned every night,” the policy stated . “Extensions of class work is not to be used to teach new content or as a form of punishment.”

Canceling homework might not do anything for the achievement gap

The critiques of homework are valid as far as they go, but at a certain point, arguments against homework can defy the commonsense idea that to retain what they’re learning, students need to practice it.

“Doesn’t a kid become a better reader if he reads more? Doesn’t a kid learn his math facts better if he practices them?” said Cathy Vatterott, an education researcher and professor emeritus at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. After decades of research, she said it’s still hard to isolate the value of homework, but that doesn’t mean it should be abandoned.

Blanket vilification of homework can also conflate the unique challenges facing disadvantaged students as compared to affluent ones, which could have different solutions. “The kids in the low-income schools are being hurt because they’re being graded, unfairly, on time they just don’t have to do this stuff,” Pope told me. “And they’re still being held accountable for turning in assignments, whether they’re meaningful or not.” On the other side, “Palo Alto kids” — students in Silicon Valley’s stereotypically pressure-cooker public schools — “are just bombarded and overloaded and trying to stay above water.”

Merely getting rid of homework doesn’t solve either problem. The United States already has the second-highest disparity among OECD (the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) nations between time spent on homework by students of high and low socioeconomic status — a difference of more than three hours, said Janine Bempechat, clinical professor at Boston University and author of No More Mindless Homework .

When she interviewed teachers in Boston-area schools that had cut homework before the pandemic, Bempechat told me, “What they saw immediately was parents who could afford it immediately enrolled their children in the Russian School of Mathematics,” a math-enrichment program whose tuition ranges from $140 to about $400 a month. Getting rid of homework “does nothing for equity; it increases the opportunity gap between wealthier and less wealthy families,” she said. “That solution troubles me because it’s no solution at all.”

A group of teachers at Wakefield High School in Arlington, Virginia, made the same point after the school district proposed an overhaul of its homework policies, including removing penalties for missing homework deadlines, allowing unlimited retakes, and prohibiting grading of homework.

“Given the emphasis on equity in today’s education systems,” they wrote in a letter to the school board, “we believe that some of the proposed changes will actually have a detrimental impact towards achieving this goal. Families that have means could still provide challenging and engaging academic experiences for their children and will continue to do so, especially if their children are not experiencing expected rigor in the classroom.” At a school where more than a third of students are low-income, the teachers argued, the policies would prompt students “to expect the least of themselves in terms of effort, results, and responsibility.”

Not all homework is created equal

Despite their opposing sides in the homework wars, most of the researchers I spoke to made a lot of the same points. Both Bempechat and Pope were quick to bring up how parents and schools confuse rigor with workload, treating the volume of assignments as a proxy for quality of learning. Bempechat, who is known for defending homework, has written extensively about how plenty of it lacks clear purpose, requires the purchasing of unnecessary supplies, and takes longer than it needs to. Likewise, when Pope instructs graduate-level classes on curriculum, she asks her students to think about the larger purpose they’re trying to achieve with homework: If they can get the job done in the classroom, there’s no point in sending home more work.

At its best, pandemic-era teaching facilitated that last approach. Honolulu-based teacher Christina Torres Cawdery told me that, early in the pandemic, she often had a cohort of kids in her classroom for four hours straight, as her school tried to avoid too much commingling. She couldn’t lecture for four hours, so she gave the students plenty of time to complete independent and project-based work. At the end of most school days, she didn’t feel the need to send them home with more to do.

A similar limited-homework philosophy worked at a public middle school in Chelsea, Massachusetts. A couple of teachers there turned as much class as possible into an opportunity for small-group practice, allowing kids to work on problems that traditionally would be assigned for homework, Jessica Flick, a math coach who leads department meetings at the school, told me. It was inspired by a philosophy pioneered by Simon Fraser University professor Peter Liljedahl, whose influential book Building Thinking Classrooms in Mathematics reframes homework as “check-your-understanding questions” rather than as compulsory work. Last year, Flick found that the two eighth grade classes whose teachers adopted this strategy performed the best on state tests, and this year, she has encouraged other teachers to implement it.

Teachers know that plenty of homework is tedious and unproductive. Jeannemarie Dawson De Quiroz, who has taught for more than 20 years in low-income Boston and Los Angeles pilot and charter schools, says that in her first years on the job she frequently assigned “drill and kill” tasks and questions that she now feels unfairly stumped students. She said designing good homework wasn’t part of her teaching programs, nor was it meaningfully discussed in professional development. With more experience, she turned as much class time as she could into practice time and limited what she sent home.

“The thing about homework that’s sticky is that not all homework is created equal,” says Jill Harrison Berg, a former teacher and the author of Uprooting Instructional Inequity . “Some homework is a genuine waste of time and requires lots of resources for no good reason. And other homework is really useful.”

Cutting homework has to be part of a larger strategy

The takeaways are clear: Schools can make cuts to homework, but those cuts should be part of a strategy to improve the quality of education for all students. If the point of homework was to provide more practice, districts should think about how students can make it up during class — or offer time during or after school for students to seek help from teachers. If it was to move the curriculum along, it’s worth considering whether strategies like Liljedahl’s can get more done in less time.

Some of the best thinking around effective assignments comes from those most critical of the current practice. Denise Pope proposes that, before assigning homework, teachers should consider whether students understand the purpose of the work and whether they can do it without help. If teachers think it’s something that can’t be done in class, they should be mindful of how much time it should take and the feedback they should provide. It’s questions like these that De Quiroz considered before reducing the volume of work she sent home.

More than a year after the new homework policy began in Marlborough, Hennessy still hears from parents who incorrectly “think homework isn’t happening” despite repeated assurances that kids still can receive work. She thinks part of the reason is that education has changed over the years. “I think what we’re trying to do is establish that homework may be an element of educating students,” she told me. “But it may not be what parents think of as what they grew up with. ... It’s going to need to adapt, per the teaching and the curriculum, and how it’s being delivered in each classroom.”

For the policy to work, faculty, parents, and students will all have to buy into a shared vision of what school ought to look like. The district is working on it — in November, it hosted and uploaded to YouTube a round-table discussion on homework between district administrators — but considering the sustained confusion, the path ahead seems difficult.

When I asked Luis Torres about whether he thought homework serves a useful part in PS 55’s curriculum, he said yes, of course it was — despite the effort and money it takes to keep the school open after hours to help them do it. “The children need the opportunity to practice,” he said. “If you don’t give them opportunities to practice what they learn, they’re going to forget.” But Torres doesn’t care if the work is done at home. The school stays open until around 6 pm on weekdays, even during breaks. Tutors through New York City’s Department of Youth and Community Development programs help kids with work after school so they don’t need to take it with them.

As schools weigh the purpose of homework in an unequal world, it’s tempting to dispose of a practice that presents real, practical problems to students across the country. But getting rid of homework is unlikely to do much good on its own. Before cutting it, it’s worth thinking about what good assignments are meant to do in the first place. It’s crucial that students from all socioeconomic backgrounds tackle complex quantitative problems and hone their reading and writing skills. It’s less important that the work comes home with them.

Jacob Sweet is a freelance writer in Somerville, Massachusetts. He is a frequent contributor to the New Yorker, among other publications.

Will you help keep Vox free for all?

Millions rely on Vox’s journalism to understand the coronavirus crisis. We believe it pays off for all of us, as a society and a democracy, when our neighbors and fellow citizens can access clear, concise information on the pandemic. But our distinctive explanatory journalism is expensive. Support from our readers helps us keep it free for everyone. If you have already made a financial contribution to Vox, thank you. If not, please consider making a contribution today from as little as $3.

We accept credit card, Apple Pay, and Google Pay. You can also contribute via

Can we protect and profit from the oceans?

Sometimes kids need a push. here’s how to do it kindly., who gets to flourish, sign up for the newsletter today, explained, thanks for signing up.

Check your inbox for a welcome email.

Oops. Something went wrong. Please enter a valid email and try again.

Fact-based journalism that sparks the Canadian conversation

A parent and child angrily looking at a large stack of paper.

Is Homework Good for Kids?

Children and parents are often frustrated. Some education experts are calling for a rethink

W hen my son started school in the fall of 2015, I knew there would be a few challenges to overcome. Because he was attending a francophone program, the catchment zone was quite large, and he would have to start each day with a forty-five-minute bus ride across downtown Toronto. My husband and I both worked full time, so my son would have to be in after-school care until one of us could get him, which would usually be around 6 p.m. Taking transit home took around forty-five minutes, which meant that we didn’t arrive at our apartment until close to 7 p.m. Add dinner and a bath into the mix, and that made for a long day. Still, I wasn’t too worried. I thought it would all be fine—and, honestly, it was fine right up until the homework started.

The worksheets began trickling home during grade one, and by the next year, my son was getting thick weekly packets of them. The board policy was that children in his grade were supposed to receive around twenty minutes’ worth of work per night, but in our house, the agony was never that brief. One week in grade two, my son came home with seventeen pages of homework, printed front and back—thirty-four worksheets filled with math problems and language exercises. He worked on them every night, but by Sunday, he was only about three quarters of the way through. He cried as he struggled to finish the homework. I cried as I emailed his teacher to tell her he hadn’t been able to finish it. We both felt like we’d failed.

Why We Need Car-Free School Streets
Screaming and Watercolours: I Turned My Toddler’s Tantrums into Art
Instagram’s Parent Trap

We were told that the work wasn’t mandatory, but that put me in a difficult position. I felt like, as a parent, I should be supporting what his teachers wanted from him, not acting against it. Besides, I believed that homework was necessary to set my son up for success. But it turns out that homework might not be as useful as we think.

“Homework is seen to benefit time management, self-discipline, [and] organizational skills, but there have been no studies that really have shown that homework actually either develops those skills or reinforces them,” says Etta Kralovec, professor emerita at the University of Arizona and author of The End of Homework and Schools That Do Too Much . She’s not the only homework researcher who is questioning how and why homework is done. Linda Cameron and Lee Bartel from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education have critiqued homework practices in Canada, noting, in 2010, that homework “may well be the ‘tipping point’ for the next educational reform movement” because the issue is “now uppermost in many parents’ and teachers’ minds.” Denise Pope, a senior lecturer at the Stanford Graduate School of Education, has found that, for many students, homework is the greatest source of stress in their lives. Homework stress can lead to burnout and negative impacts on academic achievement.

Kralovec tells me that there is no benefit to homework for elementary school students at all. A meta-analysis published in 2006 by Harris M. Cooper, distinguished professor emeritus at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, looked at all of the homework research that had been done in the United States between 1987 and 2003 and found that homework had “no association with achievement gain” in students from kindergarten through grade five. And while there is a link between homework and academic success in middle and high school students, Kralovec says that might be more correlation than causation. One example she gives is that students taking advanced placement classes in high school typically do more homework than their peers in other classes: Are they having more academic success because they do more homework, or are they doing more homework because those advanced classes tend to assign more of it?

Kralovec says that not only are the benefits of homework questionable but the practice also has clear detriments. It takes time away from more meaningful things that families can do together, like reading or playing. It can create tension between parent and child by placing them in the role of teacher and student—especially if the child already finds that a nerve-wracking role to play at school. It might also limit the extracurricular activities the child can participate in, especially if they’re expected to do homework every night.

Part of the issue is that children, like adults, perform better when they have adequate outlets for stress—like exercise or leisure. In a groundbreaking educational program in Vanves, France, that started in 1950, students showed improved academic achievement when classroom time was shortened and physical education was extended. Follow-up studies, including some done in Canadian cities like Victoria, BC, and Trois-Rivières, Quebec, have produced similar results. Another facet to consider is that academic competency is not the only capability children need to develop: a study by Mollie Galloway, Jerusha Conner, and Denise Pope found that students overloaded with homework were “not meeting their developmental needs or cultivating other critical life skills.”

And not all students have a quiet, well-lit space in their homes where they can work. Many parents aren’t home in the afternoons and evenings—due to shift work or because they attend evening classes—and students in those households are often expected to care for younger siblings and cook dinner after school. Students may not have access to computers at home, meaning that they can’t complete work assigned online. Since work assigned to be done at home may make up a portion of a student’s overall grade, those whose home lives aren’t conducive to homework may struggle to maintain a high grade point average. Kralovec says this creates “a system of homework which further advances kids who are privileged.”

But Kralovec thinks change is on the horizon. COVID-19 disrupted how school work was done, an experience that caused many of us to re-evaluate our attitudes toward education. In 2021, the National Education Association published an article, “ Will the Pandemic Change Homework Forever? ,” that explored how COVID-19 lockdowns, which collapsed the boundaries between school and home, caused educators to re-examine what works and what doesn’t. Last year, Jessica McCrory Calarco, Ilana S. Horn, and Grace A. Chen published a paper, “‘ You Need to Be More Responsible’: The Myth of Meritocracy and Teachers’ Accounts of Homework Inequalities ,” that showed that teachers often interpret struggles with homework as lack of responsibility or motivation on students’ part and then react punitively instead of supporting students’ needs—which only serves to exacerbate social inequalities in the classroom. More recently, the president of Ireland, Michael D. Higgins, suggested that homework should be banned, saying that schoolwork should stay at school and students “should be able to use their time for other creative things” (though the president’s role is largely ceremonial and does not involve making policy).

Homework used to send my son into a nightly spiral. To him, the work seemed endless, and he felt like he was constantly coming up short—something that made him dread going to school. But when we relocated to Kingston, Ontario, he was delighted to learn that the teachers at his new school prefer not to assign homework. He’s expected to finish any incomplete classwork at home and sometimes has projects he has to do outside of school, but most of his nights are free. We’ve been enjoying the time together: reading, watching TV, and, in his words, “just vibing.”

I used to think that he couldn’t succeed without filling out some set amount of worksheets. Now I feel like I’ve completely changed my opinion on homework. Without the extra work, I’ve been able to see how much more enthusiastic my son actually is when it comes to learning.

A photo illustration of a 3D-modelled hand arranging a grid of miniature 3D-modelled diplomas.

Can Microcredentials Get You a Better Job?

June 14, 2023 June 13, 2023

A photo illustration of multiple duplicates of The Thinker statue.

Why You Need to Think for Yourself

April 17, 2023 April 17, 2023

A green backdrop with books, an apple, ruler, and alarm clock

Seven Must-Read Stories about the Education Challenges of Our Times

September 2, 2022 September 2, 2022

The Walrus uses cookies for personalization, to customize its online advertisements, and for other purposes. Learn more or change your cookie preferences.

Before you go, did you know that The Walrus is a registered charity? We rely on donations and support from readers like you to keep our journalism independent and freely available online.

I'm a teacher and a parent. My advice to other parents is not to make kids do homework straight after school.

Laura Linn Knight taught in elementary schools for five years and has two children of her own.
Here she shares tips for parents when it comes to homework and when to have kids do theirs.
This is Knight's story, as told to Lauren Crosby Medlicott.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Laura Linn Knight . It has been edited for length and clarity.

After teaching in elementary schools for five years, I thought I would easily be able to manage my own children, but after having two, I quickly found out parenting was a very different skill from teaching. I found myself getting caught in power struggles with toddlers and couldn't understand why they wouldn't listen to me. I remember reacting often with yelling, and after some time, I thought there had to be another way.

I started immersing myself in parenting books, trying to find theoretical and practical ways I could create a calm home , which led me to train to become a certified positive-discipline educator . I felt like our home had become a place of peace again as I used the tools I had learned, but then my kids started coming home from school with homework.

I found they didn't have the stamina to sit with me and learn. They were exhausted from a day of education. They would both get really frustrated with me.

"I already know how to do this," they would say. "I don't want you to tell me how to do this. Can I get some water? I just need to sharpen my pencil."

I was a trained teacher who should've been able to get her kids to do their homework without a battle, but it wasn't working. There were tantrums, resistance, and tears.

We worked as a family to find a solution

I called a family meeting around the kitchen table and told the kids I noticed homework had been really tough for everyone.

"I want to come up with a plan together so we can get homework done and make sure you feel supported to get it done," I told them.

We came up with a plan that we tried for a few weeks. It didn't work. We went back to the family table and decided on another.

Each day, the kids would come home from school, have a quick snack, play with each other or friends, do their homework, and then have dinner. This plan worked — they decompressed and refueled before starting on their homework.

Here's what I recommend

There's no one recipe for every family, but here are some tips for figuring out your after-school routine.

Have a family meeting. Parents often think that by collaborating with their kids, they are releasing control and authority, but collaboration is known to make those included feel heard and valued. When children feel they aren't just being told what to do, they are more likely to want to participate.

Ask them what they think would help them get their homework done. Obviously, you'll need to set up some boundaries for this. For example, your kids may want to do homework in front of the TV. That is something that you can almost guarantee isn't going to work. Make a plan together, try out that plan, and reassess it after a set amount of time.

Always make sure they have had a snack. You want to make sure kids have fuel to do the work they are being asked to do.

As the parent, ensure you are going into homework time in a relaxed state. Parents set the tone, and when they are regulated and calm, it is more likely the children will be, too. Take time to take a few deep breaths alone to decompress before helping your child complete their homework.

Give your child time to decompress after school. That may look like playing soccer, building a Lego set, or doing imaginative play. Their brains and bodies need that time to settle before being expected to work.

Try to make it fun. I find this really difficult, but my husband is really good at it. Homework is meant to be a review of things already taught and learned, so bring a bit of silliness to it. Get creative with ways you can complete the homework.

Homework gives parents another chance to spend time with their children. Life gets busy, but homework has to get done. As hard as it sometimes is, try to remember that homework isn't just a chore but also dedicated time to spend time with your child.

Main content

IMAGES

Homework Help: Tips From Teachers
Teacher Teaching Boy To Do Homework Stock Image
Homework strategies from teachers
KS2 homework strategies
The Importance Of Homework In The Educational Process
How To Make Your Child Do Homework

VIDEO

This teacher thought he was breaking up a classroom brawl until…

COMMENTS

Infinitive Gerund Reported Speech
The teacher expected Sarah _____ harder. He gave her a lot of homework _____. A. studied/do B. study/to do C. study/doing D. to study/to do 18. The robbers forced the bank manager _____ the safe. A. to open B. open C. to have opened D. to be opening 19. You'd better _____ your father's advice. A. take B. to take C. to have taking D. be ...
The role of homework
Homework is expected by students, teachers, parents and institutions. Homework reinforces and helps learners to retain information taught in the classroom as well as increasing their general understanding of the language. Homework develops study habits and independent learning. It also encourages learners to acquire resources such as ...
The teacher expected Sarah harder/ he gave her a lot of homework.
250.000đ 189.000đ. XEM THÊM SÁCH ID. ID 297586. The teacher expected Sarah harder/ he gave her a lot of homework. A. studied/ do B. study/ to do C. study/ doing D. to study/ to do.
Kindergarten Homework: Too Much Too Early?
Kindergartners there are expected to do 30 minutes of homework a night, Monday through Thursday. ... Michael Sheppard talked to his son's teacher in Pulaski about the homework she assigns. He ...
How to Help Students Develop the Skills They Need to Complete Homework
The teacher should be able to realistically gauge how much and what students might achieve at home. A suggestion to build independence is to use task analysis. Here is a model. For students who struggle with getting homework done, at first they may not actually do homework; rather, they practice the routines of setting up and getting started.
What's the Right Amount of Homework?
The National PTA and the National Education Association support the " 10-minute homework guideline "—a nightly 10 minutes of homework per grade level. But many teachers and parents are quick to point out that what matters is the quality of the homework assigned and how well it meets students' needs, not the amount of time spent on it.
Is Homework a Waste of Time? Teachers Weigh In
In 2003, a pair of national studies found that most American students spent less than an hour daily on homework, and the workload was no bigger than it was 50 years prior. "There is this view in ...
Helping your child with homework
That is the time to stop homework, and let the teacher know the child did as much as he could. It is also a good idea to ask your child's teacher how much time he should be expected to spend on homework and be guided accordingly. For some children with learning disabilities, the challenge is the length of the homework rather than the ...
Teachers' expectations help students to work harder, but can also
Teachers can also look to provide supportive reassurance in everyday interactions with students, using praise and encouragement to help students reach their full potential. All of which hopefully ...
A Simple, Effective Homework Plan For Teachers: Part 1
Homework Strategies 1-4. The key to homework success is to eliminate all the obstacles—and excuses—that get in the way of students getting it done. Add leverage and some delicately placed peer pressure to the mix, and not getting homework back from every student will be a rare occurrence. Here is how to do it. 1. Assign what students ...
Here's what you need to know about homework and how to help your child
Homework is a daily activity for most students that takes time, energy and emotion, not only for students but for their families as well. Given these investments, it is important that homework be ...
Key Lessons: What Research Says About the Value of Homework
Too much homework may diminish its effectiveness. While research on the optimum amount of time students should spend on homework is limited, there are indications that for high school students, 1½ to 2½ hours per night is optimum. Middle school students appear to benefit from smaller amounts (less than 1 hour per night).
13 Ways to Make Homework More Meaningful and Engaging
The brain loves to do tasks in contexts with which it is familiar. 7. Allow students to collaborate in determining how homework will be assessed. If they help design the criteria for success, such as when they create the rubric for an assignment, they "own" the assignment.
Do Teachers Assign Too Much Homework?
McKenzi September 16, 2014 · 8:40 am. I believe that teachers do assign too much homework and it can be hard for some students to keep up. Some students participate in after school activities such as sports, clubs, and music lessons, may have problems keeping up because of the amount of homework they are given.
"I feel enthusiastic, when the homework is done well": teachers
We explore teachers' emotions in homework practice and their antecedents. Methodologically, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 23 Swiss secondary school teachers teaching German and analysed using structuring qualitative content analysis. ... It is expected that students' homework behavior on the different dimensions is related to ...
Too Much Homework from a Student/Teacher Perspective
On the other hand, a teenager should not be running on five hours of sleep and feeling completely overwhelmed with school work. Here are some suggestions: 1. Talk to your school counselor ...
PDF Helping Your Child with Homework
To order copies of this publication in English or Spanish write to: ED Pubs Education Publications Center. U.S. Department of Education. P.O. Box 1398 Jessup, MD 20794-1398. or fax your request to: 301-470-1244.
Do teachers ever feel like they're over working their students?
However some teachers fail to check how long their assignments actually take. Furthermore, students overestimate the time it takes to do the assignments because they spend time on their cells during assignments. I think in regular level classes an hour of homework is more than sufficient. In honors classes that could be expanded to 1 1/2 hours.
Why does homework exist?
There's no consensus on whether homework works. The rise of the no-homework movement during the Covid-19 pandemic tapped into long-running disagreements over homework's impact on students. The ...
Is Homework Good for Kids?
Homework stress can lead to burnout and negative impacts on academic achievement. Kralovec tells me that there is no benefit to homework for elementary school students at all. A meta-analysis published in 2006 by Harris M. Cooper, distinguished professor emeritus at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, looked at all of the homework ...
Homework in the 21st Century Teaching and Learning
Homework, according to Dr. Linda Milbourne, is intended to be a positive experience that encourages children to learn. Teachers assign homework to help students review, apply and integrate what has been learned in class; to extend student exploration of topics more fully than class time permits, and to help students prepare for the next class ...
Teacher Recommends Kids Not Do Homework Straight After School
Take time to take a few deep breaths alone to decompress before helping your child complete their homework. Give your child time to decompress after school. That may look like playing soccer ...
Classroom Management for Middle and High School Teachers
True. A teacher should avoid teaching content lessons on the first day of school because the students will probably be too nervous and excited to concentrate. False. Telling students your expectations for their behavior on the first day of class is important, but does not guarantee that they will follow them. True. It is the first week of school.