Homework is an important tool in making sure that students keep up with readings and topics of learning. However, too much homework can be disastrous to the learning process. Student lives do not entirely revolve around homework. Student should have ample of time to focus on other areas of interest such as co-curricular activities. One thing that is worth understanding is that students do not have control over the quantity of homework that they are assigned. The responsibility of allocating the proper amounts of homework lies on the instructor. However, there is a need for teachers to involve students in the process of making sure that students do not have too much homework.
One of the ways that teachers can do to prevent students from having too much homework is by introducing students the opportunities to assess the course. Through continuous assessment of the course by student, teachers can be able to know what the expectations of students are regarding a certain course (Buell, 2004, p.41). Student can explain through the assessment forms the amount of time that they spend doing home works from a given course. The teacher can use the feedback that is generated by students through assessment forms to formulate the course syllabus in a way that students are assigned the right amount of homework.
Adequate planning before teaching a given course is also an important thing in avoiding too much homework for students. Teachers should take time to not only focus on the subject matter that they believe as being important, but also the impact of the quantity of work that they subject their students to. One thing that is worth noting is that if teachers effectively plan their courses, they can be able to give a detailed coverage of how a given course will be taught. In this way, students can be able to know some of the upcoming home works. In this way, students can effectively prepare in advance so that they are not handle piles of homework all at once.
Proper planning of the course not only aids the teacher in teaching a given course, but also aids the student to make timely preparations for the course. This implies that with proper and timely course planning, the teaching process becomes easier for both the teacher and the students. It is therefore important that students be allowed to carry out a continuous assessment of a course so that the teacher can be able to establish the best way to structure a given course.
References
Buell, J. (2004). Closing the book on homework: enhancing public education and freeing family time. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.
Vatterott, C. (2009). Rethinking homework best practices that support diverse needs. Alexandria, Va.: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
