Articles on why homework is not helpful?

[CaliMommie]

Hi! I am looking for articles/resources that document/discuss why homework is not helpful in heaping children to learn. Does anyone have any links they can share with me? Thank you!

[moominmamma]

I can't think of anything more persuasive and incisive to recommend than Alfie Kohn's writing on the topic:

http://www.alfiekohn.org/teaching/rethinkinghomework.htm

Miranda

[LynnS6]

There's also the book called: The Case Against Homework.

When googling for the exact title of that book, I also came across this article from Time Magazine (2006): The Myth about Homework. It distills some of the findings of the books and cites a few studies. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1376208,00.html

[KestrelDream]

http://www.greatschools.org/students/homework-help/1938-what-research-says-about-homework.gs?page=1

http://stophomework.com/

HTH!

[CaliMommie]

Thank you! :)

[beanma]

CaliMommie, I hope those links helped. I actually have come to appreciate a little bit of real homework (not busy work) although I used to be pretty fervently in the no homework camp. 

I think for many kids it is a waste of time and takes up too much time when they could be playing and growing and learning through play.

However, it does serve as a connection point between involved parents, the teacher, and the child. My dd1, in particular, has a tendency to get anxious and distracted and will miss some concepts her teacher is trying to get across. 10-20 minutes or so of homework from her math teacher really lets me make sure she understands the concept and is not falling behind. She really is not connecting with this year's math teacher and the teacher is not connecting with her either so homework is helping me fill in the gaps. My dd1 is a tricky case, though, and for a child who is understanding in school I think homework can be annoying and redundant. For a child who isn't catching on, though, and is too anxious or uncooperative with the teacher (not all the teacher's fault I assure you) homework can allow a parent (or tutor, etc) with whom the child has a better relationship to make sure the child is getting the concepts.