Homework by: Aaron Eichenlaub

“I hate homework” I think I’ve heard that statement from every kid in my grade at some point. Honestly, I don’t mind it unless I have a boat load of it, which in middle school never happens. Though, what I’ve noticed is now a day’s homework seems like it’s always done at school, instead of at home which is the intent. Whether it be in homeroom before the day officially starts, or kids scrambling at the start of class to get it done before the teacher collects it. The whole point of homework is to further our understanding and get us to work without a teacher near us. Now though it only seems like a nuisance to everyone it’s assigned too.

            In my math class we are assigned homework every night, but even if we don’t complete it there are no consequences. One night my math homework totally passed my mind and I forgot to complete it. The next day I walked in expecting a fuss from my teacher, but she didn’t care. As I looked around I noticed probably only 20% of the class had actually completed their homework. With homework I feel like there’s two types of teachers, those who will come down on you with consequences if you don’t complete it, and those who just don’t care about it. Even if some students don’t complete it at home, I still think homework is necessary.

            In my mind, homework should be a challenge. For one you’re at home with no help (unless you count your parents), so you’re basically all alone to complete it. Who doesn’t love a challenge? But it’s up to the teacher to decide if the students are actually going to attempt that challenge, or if they will just ignore it. My science teacher this year is great. He’s funny and really cares about teaching the material. He really comes down hard on kids that don’t complete their homework, which creates an urgency to get it done. In my science class I’d say a strong 95% of kids complete homework when it is assigned, whereas in math no one really cares.

            I think if the teacher can show they are serious about homework and they’re willing to crack down on kids who don’t do it (without being too harsh of course), this will create an urgency to complete homework and get it done. As stated above I think homework is good to strengthen what we have learned in class, and I do think it is necessary.