EDCT 5732 - Making Homework Work
Course Description
The news media, parents, teachers, and students often speculate if homework is meaningful and whether the pros outweigh the cons. In this class, you will learn about the history of homework and how the diverse make-up of families can impact a student’s ability to keep up. What is the solution? What type of homework and how much is actually beneficial? Read the Textbook, Rethinking Homework: Best Practices that Support Diverse Needs by Vatterott, complete meaningful and practical assignments at your own pace and you will ready to design a plan that works! Grades K-12.
Learner Outcomes
By the end of the course students will know:
- The history of homework in the US.
- Why many of the current homework practices are not working for teachers, students and families.
- What research tells us about the benefits and pitfalls of homework.
- Effective homework practices.
- How teachers and schools can help students succeed.
Testimonials
“I don’t think my ideas around homework have changed dramatically, but I think my practices will definitely shift after reading this book. My biggest takeaway from this course is realizing that, as with everything else, building relationships and knowing what’s going on with my students’ lives and needs are really crucial to understanding why they aren’t doing their homework. Outside of their academic needs, I think their personal needs have a huge influence. I think I’ve also realized what more meaningful homework could look like and how to make that happen in my class. Initially going into this class, I thought I would find a way to just not give any homework at all, but I found this not to be the case. Since practicing math is so crucial to learning new skills, I think it still has a place in my classroom. I think what I’m taking away from this course is how to do homework in a better and more meaningful way. I’m really excited to try a method similar to what I discovered on the blog post mentioned earlier, and I think it will allow me to help my students find more meaning in what “practicing” math looks like. I would say that my goals have been met and that I can refine my practice around giving and evaluating homework.”—TINT Student“I have enjoyed taking this course. I have been looking for more clarity on how to incorporate homework in a meaningful way, and this course has helped me with this. I really enjoyed learning about the history of homework and why it began, and following it all the way up to the present. I have seen many changes in our society as I have been teaching, and realize that as times change, so needs to change our teaching practices. Understanding today’s families and the students that we now serve is crucial in creating homework that is useful and possible to complete. This class was very helpful to me. It really made me think about what my current practices are, how effective these practices may be and what I could do to improve my homework practice. I felt like I was really dissecting my homework practices and analyzing what would really be meaningful to all of my students. While I know that I still have some work to do in creating more meaningful homework, I know that I am on my way to doing so.” —TINT Student
“This class was very helpful to me. It really made me think about what my current practices are, how effective these practices may be and what I could do to improve my homework practice. I felt like I was really dissecting my homework practices and analyzing what would really be meaningful to all of my students. While I know that I still have some work to do in creating more meaningful homework, I know that I am on my way to doing so.” —TINT Student