Importance of homework in the schooling of children

Topic: Some people believe that school children should not be given homework by their teachers, whereas others argue that homework plays an important role in the education of children. Discuss both views and give your opinion?

My essay:

People have different views about the value of setting assignments for students. While some argue that homework fail to grant children better academic achievement and therefore should be abolished, I believe that it is a necessary aspect of education.

On the one hand, those who think that homework is unnecessary burden on students base their arguments on two main reasons. Firstly, there is evidence to support the idea that homework would have no impact on improving educational outcomes. This is particularly valid in Finland, where school-aged children are not given daily homework yet regularly top international education league and outperform nations where setting assignments is the norm. Secondly, the demands of homework is believed to unexpectedly cause sleep deprivation and consequent stress in students instead of original goal of helping them learn. Even though the school day is already long enough and leave children too tired to do further study when they return home, they have to sacrifice their time on sleeping and participating in extra-curricular activities to daily homework.

In spite of above arguments, I support the view that homework has an indispensable role in the schooling of children. The main benefit of homework is that it facilitate the ability to assimilate the knowledge acquired from school, which is impossible to achieve just by listening to lectures in class . For example, by doing mathematics exercises at home, students are able to consolidate their understanding of the concepts covered in the classroom. Besides that, homework encourages independent learning and problem solving, as children are challenged to work through tasks alone and at their own pace. In my view,it is essential for children to develop an independent study habit because this prepares them to work alone as adults.

From the issues outlined above, one may conclude that although homework certainly has its drawbacks, the benefits outweigh them in the long term. However, I opine that excessive homework might be counterproductive and therefore teachers should avoid extremes when assigning homework.