As a student, you may have often found yourself struggling with completing homework assignments.

It can be overwhelming to balance school, extracurricular activities, and personal life, all while trying
to complete assignments that seem to never end. This begs the question, do students really need
practice homework?

According to education expert Alfie Kohn, the answer is no. In his book, \"The Homework Myth,\"
Kohn argues that homework does not necessarily improve academic performance and can even have
negative effects on students. He believes that the practice of assigning homework has become so
ingrained in our education system that we rarely question its effectiveness.

Kohn argues that the idea of homework as practice is flawed. He explains that practice should be
done in a supportive and collaborative environment, where students can receive immediate feedback
and guidance. However, homework is often done alone, without any support or guidance from
teachers. This can lead to frustration and a lack of understanding, ultimately hindering learning
rather than enhancing it.

Furthermore, Kohn argues that homework can have negative effects on students' well-being. It can
cause stress, anxiety, and even sleep deprivation. In today's fast-paced society, students are already
under immense pressure to excel academically, and homework only adds to this pressure. This can
lead to burnout and a negative attitude towards learning.

So, what should students do instead of traditional practice homework? Kohn suggests that students
spend time engaging in meaningful activities outside of school, such as hobbies, sports, or spending
time with family and friends. These activities can help students develop skills such as time
management, problem-solving, and social skills, which are essential for success in life.

But what about assignments that require practice, such as math problems or writing essays? Kohn
argues that these types of assignments should be done in class, where students can receive immediate
feedback and support from teachers. This allows for a more effective learning experience and
eliminates the need for homework.

So, if you find yourself struggling with homework assignments, remember that you are not alone.
Many experts, including Alfie Kohn, believe that homework is not necessary for academic success.
Instead, focus on finding a balance between school and other meaningful activities, and consider
seeking help from online writing services such as ⇒ StudyHub.vip ⇔ for any assignments that may
require practice.

In conclusion, the idea of homework as practice is deeply ingrained in our education system, but it
may not be as effective as we once thought. Instead of assigning practice homework, students should
focus on engaging in meaningful activities outside of school and seek help from online writing
services when needed. Let's rethink the concept of homework and prioritize the well-being and
success of our students.
Kohn has been described by Time Magazine as “perhaps the country’s most outspoken critic of
education’s fixation on grades and test scores.” He has appeared twice on “Oprah,” as well as on
“The Today Show,” NPR’s “Talk of the Nation,” and on many other TV and radio programs. He
spends much of his time speaking at education conferences, as well as to parent groups, school
faculties, and researchers. But the bigger picture with the child's interaction to education and
intrinsic motivation has that data too (as his other books have pointed to and as modern research
continues to reveal) and I think it provides the natural framework on which all the other minor points
made (and numerous ones unmade) could be explained. Adults surely aren't - we're allowed to relax,
watch TV, read, hang out with friends and do what we like. Kohn cites research and poses questions
on the skills approach, discipline, character education, Cooperative Learning, grading, and
businesses' influence in education. What I did feel good about was the section where Kohn describes
how we should rethink homework. In any case, school should not administer homework for
administrative sake: and they do. You know, as Dr. Ross Greene says, we’re not we’re not raising
kids, we’re raising these awesome autonomous, self actualized adults that we want to be launching
into the world. He lectures widely and works with educators across the country and abroad. Read
more. Artie is my hero. He understands the classroom and gives sound advice and constructive
criticism. Assessed? NO. Etc, etc, etc. Kohn's book is a plea to consider these things and not only
consider them but to really think about what good education looks like and what we want the quality
of our lives and our kids' lives to be. Or if you're a teacher and parents or colleagues are insinuating
you're lazy or a bad teacher if you don't give homework, it can seem a mountain to climb to change
the default, or you even start to doubt whether homework is that bad of a thing after all. And even
when a kid screws up, or falls short, the child never doubts, never is given reason to doubt that we
still care. If tasks are given to make the child want to work at home (to explore and create) I am
supportive, but in many instances as Kohn points out homework is given thoughtlessly to fill time -
this I agree is abusive to the child. I'd love to recruit teachers and parents to boycott homework.
Please upgrade your browser to improve your experience. Podcast episodes prior to 2022 were
hosted, produced, and edited by Tripp Babbitt. Very few people, if any it seems at times, critically
evaluate reasons for and types of HW. The author of fourteen books and scores of articles, he
lectures at education conferences and universities as well as to parent groups and corporations. I
don't give much homework, but that is because I don't believe in busy work; however, I should have
given more independent practice this past year, and that's something I intend to rectify next year. Is it
actually addressing the specific needs of every single student. Amid the vituperative scorn poured
upon the ignorant oafs that sire delightful children who are eager to learn about iambic pentameter,
we find some nuggets of sensible advice. List prices may not necessarily reflect the product's
prevailing market price. Me: Just because we did it doesn't make it good for students, especially since
younger and younger students are being assigned more and more work. How did you decide to put
toes on that pull her into her drawing, instead of praise, which pulls her out of the drawing and into
my face to see if I approve. Kids are living their real lives every moment of everyday and 2) why
should kids be productive every second of their lives. Includes initial monthly payment and selected
options. He cites many sources, as well as providing a list of those sources and about 40 pages of
notes at the end of the text about the cited research. Students learn from their peers and at the same
time learn teamwork and tolerance of others. We could change the world of education for the better
by revising our attitudes toward homework. Dieses Buch hat mich dazu bewegt, Widerstand zu
leisten.
As my HW has gone down, I've seen increased engagement in class and more WORK with more
results. While I didn't agree with all of his interpretations and recommendations, I found a lot of
what he said convincing. If you are an educator (one who sends kids of with loads of photocopied
worksheets: not your own assignments addressing what you are working on at that point in the
curriculum) you NEED to read this, and rethink. But second, because they purport to be a one size
fits all easy solution to all problems with all people. How do you do that in a way that isn’t connected
or attached to a sense of worth or, or love. Finally, standardized testing is based on the premise that
all children at a particular grade level must become academically proficient at the same things at the
same time. But of course, that’s always somewhat futile labor. That’s why anyone who, you know,
the central etiology that gets in the way of doing right by children, his behavior ism, and the people
who want you to become an accountant, keeping track of, of kids, kids actions, and then giving them
doggy biscuits when you like those actions. This book examines the research that has been used to
justify the mountains of homework kids are given, and finds that most homework isn't that
beneficial. What I did feel good about was the section where Kohn describes how we should rethink
homework. And in fact, it’s not as if we’ve got something that while imperfect, at least gets the job
done faster. But, and I realized that with kids who are less verbal, and kids who struggle to make
sense of social interactions, there’s no getting around the fact there is no shortcut to the fact that it
does take more time and patience. Everyday we bow to its demands and plan our activities around
it. One does wonder how one is to grade without homework however. Children who are frequently
rewarded or praised by their parents are less caring and helpful than other children. Kohn's incisive
analysis reveals how a mistrust of children, a set of misconceptions about learning, and a misguided
focus on competitiveness have all left our kids with less free time and our families with more
conflict. Alfie Kohn Brief content visible, double tap to read full content. Alfie Kohn Brief content
visible, double tap to read full content. If you are a parent and have not thought about this issue
before and are interested, it's a great mind opening read. SEARCH Background Remover Search
Trends Image Editor Browse. He lectures widely and works with educators across the country and
abroad. Read more. In our current Narcissist-in-Chief we see an exaggerated version of that
hypercompetitive pathology that reflects back the worst impulses of our whole culture. Them: But
there isn't enough time to do all that practice and cover the content. He also critisizes his opponents
use of citiations, while flaunting his own out of text citations. And then they look at the other thing
we can do instead of praise. I was left feeling very sad about my poor little girl facing hours of
mindless, yet frustrating homework that eats up her evening hours with her parents and her time to
relax. And so in my book on conditional parenting, I talked about ways by which we can make sure
that kids get this message that they never have to earn our love. The predictable stress and conflict,
frustration and exhaustion. Is all that practice really necessary when there isn't a large correlation
between homework and high school student achievement either. When do we fit in other equally-as-
important learning activities like music lessons, creative play, chores and family time.
As a teacher who never really understood the reason for homework but always felt like I had to do it
because the rest of my school assigns it, I was glad to read this book because Kohn's research
comforted me in what I had always felt, that homework does more damage than good. Full content
visible, double tap to read brief content. These are among the issues that I write about that lead
people not merely to say, “I disagree,” but to foam at the mouth. So I do think it’s so important that
our kids know that we have their back, you know that they’re our priority. Here, the or else is the
threat of grades and ultimately failure. So the book Unconditional Parenting, I probably read it when
my son who’s now 14 was 6 or 7. Also, continuing projects not finished in class when students
choose not to use class time is another new form of homework that Kohn recommends that I used in
my classroom with writing workshop. I really enjoyed that book and it informed my own educational
experiences. You can also find a link on the Tilt Parenting website on any of the show notes pages.
Because we don’t like to think of ourselves as punitive. Assessed? NO. Etc, etc, etc. Kohn's book is
a plea to consider these things and not only consider them but to really think about what good
education looks like and what we want the quality of our lives and our kids' lives to be. There were
parts of this book that were so compelling it made me really depressed about the future of education
in this country. It really makes one think about something before quoting a statistic to prove one's
point. Whether homework benefits students is an interesting question in its own right, quite separate
from this story. Why did you decide to, I mean, I remember when my daughter was drawing like
crazy, you know, when she was quite young, you know, the last thing I want to do is steal her
pleasure and pride in what she’s done by telling her in effect that she has to look to me to decide that
what she’s done is is good or impressive or nice. And that conditionality is what we’re looking for, if
not Trust, high self esteem. At first, Kohn's arguments and research are basic, grounded, and logical.
So why do we continue to administer this modern cod liver oil -- or even demand a larger dose. A lot
of it has to do with the moral weight that many of the issues I write and lecture about seem to have
for people. Kohn explores the reasons for the premise and comes up with no much at all to say in
favor of homework. And as you said, it does take a lot of time and patience. Read instantly on your
browser with Kindle for Web. You can only continue to reflect and try to improve and remind
yourself of what we’re looking for in the long run. And the point again, is just to please the person
with the goodies, which is to say, the person with power. This book treats this more as an aside in
attempt to focus instead on the data of effectiveness. Have more respect and involve them in
discussions and decisions about their own lives. In our current Narcissist-in-Chief we see an
exaggerated version of that hypercompetitive pathology that reflects back the worst impulses of our
whole culture. I don't give much homework, but that is because I don't believe in busy work;
however, I should have given more independent practice this past year, and that's something I intend
to rectify next year. I know as a teacher I though of homework as a given when planning, but mostly
so I could fit in as much as possible. Kohn argues for giving children more opportunity to participate
in their own schooling, for transforming classrooms into caring communities, and for providing the
kind of education that taps and nourishes children's curiosity.
I think he does make a number of really good points that help bring the question of homework into a
focus that many other discussions completely fail to. And, you know, I had just read Dan Pink’s
book Drive about what really motivates people. But the answer isn't Kohn's abolition of homework. 4
likes Like Comment Sophie 516 reviews 99 followers March 24, 2019 I much preferred the other two
books by Alfie Kohn that I've read - Unconditional Parenting and Punished by Rewards. Kohn's
complaints about HW: a burden to parents, stress for children, oh, I’m sorry, I thought school was
supposed to be work. And if the child doesn’t feel any gratitude, when you tell kids, they have to say
thank you, or I’m sorry, you’re just teaching them to be insincere. It won't make them better students;
just bitter at the experience. And even when a kid screws up, or falls short, the child never doubts,
never is given reason to doubt that we still care. The studies presented in the book by the author that
show homework is of little value validate what I have been saying for years. All PNG images can be
used for personal use unless stated otherwise. Yet many academics and civilians alike are nothing
short of infuriated by you. I get emails almost every day from parents and teachers saying, What do I
do with my kid?” And I say, I’d love to help but I never met you or your child. Why do we wonder
why students are not interested in learning and school is because we crushed that feeling of awe with
loads of homework, standardized testing, and the continual degrading of their trust and nature of
wanting to learn. I felt that anyone interested and intelligent enough to make it that far in the book
had gotten the point by then. But of course, it’s still a punishment, punishments and rewards. And at
worst is making it less likely that those goals will be reached. Is it actually addressing the specific
needs of every single student. Is learning regarded as a process that's active or passive. And I think
that’s so important, because and I want to talk about this, this unconditional love aspect, because so
many of our kids also are repeatedly getting the message that there is something wrong with who
they inherently are, you know, that’s right. That’s why anyone who, you know, the central etiology
that gets in the way of doing right by children, his behavior ism, and the people who want you to
become an accountant, keeping track of, of kids, kids actions, and then giving them doggy biscuits
when you like those actions. If you want to destroy children’s interest in reading, the fastest way to
do that is to give them a prize when they read a book. We don’t share your credit card details with
third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. Everyday we bow to its demands
and plan our activities around it. So in the book, I tried to talk about why we need to move away
from rewards and punishments, and more importantly, why we need to shift. And so I’m just excited
to share your wisdom with my listeners. We’re changing and I really appreciate your perspective and
everything that you shared today. Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is
and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. You know, my late friend, Herb Lovett, who I think
is one of my mentors when it comes to kids with special needs. I devote the bulk of my book to
asking why we persist in feeding kids this modern cod liver oil given the failure of good studies to
show that it’s useful, much less necessary. I am on board with Kohn that homework should be for
older students, and then we should modify how we think about it (more on that in a minute). You
know, it doesn’t for us as adults, and it doesn’t for children.
And it’s a trigger for us as their parents, we feel like they are these flashing signals that you know,
you’re not doing a good job as a parent. So can you talk about that difference between, you know,
unconditional love and us just saying we love them. This one felt like a lot of quoting others and
unnecessarily long-winded in places. Many people can see how homework takes up so much of kids
time, destroys their natural motivation to learn and affects their mental health. As a teacher who
never really understood the reason for homework but always felt like I had to do it because the rest
of my school assigns it, I was glad to read this book because Kohn's research comforted me in what I
had always felt, that homework does more damage than good. We don’t share your credit card
details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. I give this book 2 stars
instead of 1 because there is -some- practical advice, although it is incredibly sparse. And that’s
something it’s a work in progress, right for us to stop caring what other people think and really create
that ally ship with our, with our kids. So praise, like other forms of rewards, is a form of conditional
parenting. It also analyzed reviews to verify trustworthiness. I continue to give lectures on various
topics, or at least I did until we were all put under house arrest. And if the child doesn’t feel any
gratitude, when you tell kids, they have to say thank you, or I’m sorry, you’re just teaching them to
be insincere. In the And, his critical examination of current practice is complemented by a vision of
what schooling ought to be. Kohn suggests by keeping standards narrow or specific is not a
commitment to excellence but an outmoded, top down approach to controlling production. His
inclusion of some weaker arguments in the text also do not do justice to the subject. But also if
you’re lucky enough to have a co parent, to be learning about this working with approach together so
that you can sort of keep an eye on each other. Children just need to be given more input and control
into whether, how much, when and what that homework looks like. I start most of my workshops by
asking parents or teachers what their long-term goals are for their children or students. “How do you
want these kids to turn out years from now?” The answers I get are remarkably similar across
cultures and subcultures. Them: Other countries give lots of homework and we need to catch up to
them. And so I’m listening to them like, Huh, that’s just calling attention to things like that. Again,
you know, my audience is filled with parents who are raising kids who are in some way
neurologically atypical. I was thrilled to have the chance to talk with Alfie about parenting and
differently wired kids and really dig into the concepts that many consider to be highly provocative
and controversial because, in many ways, they are a radical departure from more traditional
approaches to parenting to praise rewards, punishment, discipline and motivation. But if you know
me, I deeply believe there is value in reconsidering everything we thought we knew about parenting.
And it’s not just true of generosity, which research shows, subsides or declines when kids are
rewarded or given positive reinforcement for helping, it’s true for all sorts of things. The less you
trust children, the more likely you are to be a big believer in the need for homework. While reading
The Homework Myth, I was tempted to buy copies for the superintendents of the school districts I
plan to be in contact with in the future. Amid the vituperative scorn poured upon the ignorant oafs
that sire delightful children who are eager to learn about iambic pentameter, we find some nuggets of
sensible advice. Parents respond by reassuring themselves that at least the benefits outweigh the
costs. I know as a teacher I though of homework as a given when planning, but mostly so I could fit
in as much as possible. And that’s the exact opposite of what kids need in order to flourish.
His views on homework (nutshell: kids shouldn't have homework) were new to me and got me
thinking more deeply about the homework I see Cameron bring home and whether or not it is
beneficial. However, as a gifted student, she already understood the material and only ended up
frustrated at having to spend more and more of her spare time doing work she already knew. That's
why one of the main challenges for a teacher is to help spark and sustain children's intrinsic
motivation to play with words and numbers and ideas. That is, families who don't drink milk with
mom and dad after school while embroidering pillows praising God and the government of yore. And
even when a kid screws up, or falls short, the child never doubts, never is given reason to doubt that
we still care. Because all of us, including me, the parent of two children, all of us are on a journey
here. Alfie Kohn writes and speaks widely on human behavior, education, and parenting. So that’s
step one. Step two, is sometimes when we think we do need to say something, we can simply
describe what it is that we saw, without a judgment attached, because that’s what praise is. But there
are still surely points acquired to meet the pass requirement. Which is a completely different question
from how can I get my kid to do whatever I tell her. Despite structural issues, it can be a very useful
starting point for self-research. But we respond to it by helping them to, to look at the impact of their
actions on other people, not shifting what they do in order to avoid getting our anger, or in order to
get our approval. The ways in which we’re saying to kids, I don’t love you for who you are, I just
get excited about you, when you do what I demand. This seems to be a good 20-page article (the
chapter on Rethinking Homework) surrounded by relentless attacks. If this is truly what the science
shows, and it appears to be so (the book is fairly well referenced) then it’s worth considering
changing it. In other words, the WRONG assumption most people make is that it's inherently good.
Yet many academics and civilians alike are nothing short of infuriated by you. I understand why
Alfie would want to provide responses to the behavioralist justification, as that might seem more
likely to change the opinions of non-hippy parents just looking for what's best and gives the type of
data scientists are more drawn to. This is what psychologists call perspective taking. I’m your host
Debbie Reber and I am so excited to share today’s episode with you. There were parts of this book
that were so compelling it made me really depressed about the future of education in this country.
It’s continual, it doesn’t ever end, our kids are always changing. Were, for example, using physical
violence on them, spanking and slapping, and so on, is gradually declining, at least within certain
subcultures, but only to be replaced by other forms of punishment. Or, in the case of rewards do this,
and you’ll get that. in it. The best scenario is, as long as kids think they’re in danger of being
punished, or as long as they think there’s a possibility they’ll be rewarded. I’m working on a longer
essay now about the role of factual knowledge in a good education, and why traditionalists tend to
overstate that role in my opinion. And I’ve already noticed a difference in what’s happening in my
family. Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) is a service we offer sellers that lets them store their products
in Amazon's fulfillment centers, and we directly pack, ship, and provide customer service for these
products. And I asked everybody to think about that for a bit. He breaks the content into many
chunks making it very easy to follow his ideas. Now they’ve learned that reading is obviously
something I wouldn’t want to do.
SEARCH Background Remover Search Trends Image Editor Browse. I begin from the premise that
we need to think about our long term goals for children, the kind of people we’d like them to
become. Kohn then proceeds to suggest throughout the book that maybe a no-homework policy is
best as homework can be assigned only if the teacher thinks it would suit a specific need of a
student, or if it is an enriching and organic activity, like helping parents to cook, care for plants,
leisure reading, etc. Kohn argues for giving children more opportunity to participate in their own
schooling, for transforming classrooms into caring communities, and for providing the kind of
education that taps and nourishes children's curiosity. After clicking the Request New Password
button, you will be redirected to the frontpage. It teaches you how to do work for when you are in
high school or college. But for those of you who would prefer a shorter synopsis, here is an article by
Alfie that hits some of the high notes. And then they look at the other thing we can do instead of
praise. There are many loving and, and authentic ways to encourage children, you know, just by
listening to them and loving them. It won't make them better students; just bitter at the experience.
He challenges us to reconsider some of our most basic assumptions about children and education. So
it’s not like well, we’ll reward them for now to jumpstart what we’re looking for. In this review, I
pulled in some of Kohn's main points that were meaningful to me. SEcond, the track record of those
who demand accountabiliyt and tougher standards has not been encouraging in terms of providing
needed resources for the many schools and districts that have long been known to be struggling.
Particularly, we don’t trust them with free time, so we feel we have to make their every moment
constructive rather than letting them decide how to spend their hours. And so we have to keep
whenever somebody says if I can’t bribe or threaten kids to get them to do what I want. That is,
families who don't drink milk with mom and dad after school while embroidering pillows praising
God and the government of yore. As far as I know, there isn't a school in the area that doesn't give
homework and I don't know that it's super likely that that will change anytime soon. While reading
The Homework Myth, I was tempted to buy copies for the superintendents of the school districts I
plan to be in contact with in the future. The value of a resource for parents is inversely proportional
to the number of times that contains the word behavior. I acknowledge that I have read and agreed
with the Privacy Policy. Kohn's book is well researched and he even gives ideas of how to forge
ahead. Kohn suggests by keeping standards narrow or specific is not a commitment to excellence but
an outmoded, top down approach to controlling production. I began teaching in Baltimore and the
principal mandated that we assign homework everyday. About the Author ALFIE KOHN is the
author of seven books on education, including Punished by Rewards and The Schools Our Children
Deserve. Additionally, as this was published in 2006 (i.e., pre-smart phones), I think some of his
arguments about what kids do in the evening have to change. Might such allegedly enlightened
practices as authentic assessment, logical consequences, and Total Quality education turn out to be
detrimental. It really makes one think about something before quoting a statistic to prove one's point.
In fact, one friend of mine who teaches college said that it’s possible that some instructors will
actually be forced to be more thoughtful about doing something other than just lecturing as a result
of online learning. If tasks are given to make the child want to work at home (to explore and create)
I am supportive, but in many instances as Kohn points out homework is given thoughtlessly to fill
time - this I agree is abusive to the child.