Homework or Busy Work?

Home has always been a place of comfort, happiness, a safe haven.  Work, on the other hand, revolves around extreme concentration, organization, and due dates.  Why would anyone want to combine two polar opposite words into one dreaded, horrid, sickening compound word: homework? This word’s decision to defy its definition and join in union has had horrific effects. I, myself, can confidently say I have been personally victimized by homework (which may even be worse than being personally victimized by Regina George).

 

It is 11:59 pm and you are lucky enough to greet the next day memorizing how to conjugate Spanish verbs and find derivatives.  10/10 would not recommend. This process begins at about 5pm, after returning home from school activities, and who knows when the fun ends! It can go to 11, 12, 1…the possibilities are endless! Unfortunately, I am not the only who gets to spend hours doing this exciting task.  Students all over the world can probably agree that they spend a considerable amount of time doing homework.  This introduces the question: When will enough be enough? How many deaths will occur in the future from students drowning in homework? Will teachers ever be able to stop and eliminate future casualties?

 

After six hours of school, teachers think it is ok to give hours of homework. What I am unable to comprehend is why six hours of school is not enough time to get everything done. Three hundred sixty minutes. Twenty one thousand six hundred seconds. This is how long, by law, school must contain us. There is no reason why teachers should not be able to get everything covered in this amount of time. When, I return home, my time begins on the clock.

 

While some may argue that extra practice is necessary to ensure success in school, I believe that if students are diligent during their class time, they should be able to learn everything they need. Honestly, assigning hours of homework is like beating a dead horse.  According to Healthline News, children who receive greater amounts of homework have additional stress and negative health effects. Why should we set a precedent of having work be more important than one’s health?

 

According to Duke Today,  it is true that homework does directly correlate with academic success, however, what many fail to realize is that it is helpful without exceeding an adequate amount. Everything in life should be taken in moderation. Overkill will be counter-productive. I believe that homework should be limited to one hour per day. In doing this, students can still thrive academically by getting “extra practice.” It will also enable young children to do something with their lives besides school. Children should be able to not have to worry so much and enjoy their youth. They have an entire 50 or more years to become a working stiff. Children should enjoy their innocence, be imaginative, go on adventures, and gather experiences. Maybe if students were allowed to close the book they would realize that life is more than functions, grammar rules, and solving for x…

 

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