Ugh, Homework

For many students homework is an ugly fact of life. They don’t like the idea of having to do extra work on their own time. They don’t want to do it. And some, simply don’t do it. 

Some scholars understand the value of homework, even if they’d prefer not to have to do it. These are the students who embrace the idea of a “growth mindset.” They understand that hard work is required to achieve their highest levels of learning. They do the work even when they don’t like it. These are not the students I’m thinking about right now. As far as I’m concerned, if you’re a student who regularly does his or her homework, you can stop reading right now.

If you are not in the habit of doing your homework, I invite you to read on.

Despite my prior blog post, I do not assign homework because I’m getting some sort of benefit from it - like a Ferrari.

I have four main reasons I assign you homework:

• I want you to practice what you learn in school. Everyone practices - Tiger Woods practices, Tom Brady practices, Keith Lockhart practices, Jennifer Lawrence practices and you practice. It’s the only way anyone ever gets good at anything. 

• Can you really do the work? It’s wonderful if you understand what we’re working on while you’re in the classroom. You have a lot of support in school. You have at least one teacher in the room, and you have friends and fellow students right next to you. The acid test is; what happens when you’re alone in your bedroom. Can you do the work without help? Can you really do it on your own? What happens if you get stuck, can you use what you’ve learned to figure it out?

• Homework shows you and I what you know and what you need to work on. If you’re serious about doing your homework, you’ll know what you need to work on. You’ll know what questions to ask in class tomorrow and what areas you’ve mastered. Homework tells you what you’ve learned and what you need help with. It also tells me the exact same thing.

• Other reasons...well, since you’re all going to high school next year, you’re going to need to engage in some self-regulation by motivating yourselves. In other words, you’re going to find fewer and fewer teachers bugging you to get your work done. If you are going to be successful, you are going to have to bug yourself to get your work done. 

You are going to have to learn how to avoid distractions, to understand the importance of time management, and, this is the hardest part - the importance of delaying gratification. That is, doing your work before playing video games, or texting your friends, watching TV or doing something fun. 

Trust me, if you don’t get a handle on these things, High School is going to be very difficult and “college” is going to look a lot less like a dorm room, bookstore, and lecture hall and a lot more like the inside of a Burger King kitchen.

Do yourself a favor - do your homework. You might not like it, but it’s for your own good. Invest a little time in yourself and, believe me, it will pay off in the end.