We hear a lot about current teaching practices that go hand in hand with the changing academic trends. Interestingly, something that continues to stand the test of time is HOMEWORK!
Homework has been an age-old tradition. It’s been as much a part of education systems as teachers and students are. Learners have spent a good chunk of their lives poring over homework on school nights, weekends, and on holidays.
Somehow, though, as disliked and detested as homework has always been, Gen Z is even more averse to the homework trend. The question that comes to mind is, “Why is homework bad?”, and even worse for Gen Z.
Here are the reasons why homework is bad for students and why Gen Z is especially struggling with it.
Homework – Unpack The Word
Homework is the work that’s given by the school teachers and done at home for practice purposes and more.
It’s the work that teachers assign for learners to do at home on their own. Typically, homework includes reading and review work, reinforcement work, and project work.
Homework serves the following purposes:
- Reinforcement: Whatever concepts are introduced in the class are sent home for reinforcement. This could include an essay to apply a new grammar rule that was introduced in class or a word problem to apply a new mathematical formula.
- Sense of Accountability: Learners develop a sense of responsibility when they know they have work to do and meet deadlines. When they know that they’re accountable for their homework, they develop a sense of accountability.
- Time Management: Naturally, homework isn’t the only thing learners do at home, as there is family time, dinner, and playtime too. Students learn how to squeeze homework into their routine and ensure prompt submission to avoid consequences.
- Independent Work: Learners are expected to complete their assignments on their own. This gives them the courage to manage their tasks on their own and apply their learning independently.
- Parental Engagement: Parental engagement is sure to take place when students are doing their assignments. School, students, and parents are all stakeholders and need to work together. Homework gives parents a chance to connect with their children and stay updated on their academics.
- Sharpening Skills: When students attempt assignments on their own, they develop and sharpen problem-solving and critical thinking skills. Along with other life skills, like time management and a sense of responsibility, they learn to approach problems smartly.
Why is Homework Bad? Top 9 Reasons
Now, the reasons why assignments are still part of academics are incredibly strong.
Then why is it that homework is becoming increasingly burdensome for Gen Z? And why is Gen Z considering it more of an orthodox and traditional practice?
Education is an admirable thing, but it is well to remember from time to time that nothing that is worth knowing can be taught.
Oscar Wilde
Following in Mr Wilde’s footsteps, I’d say, give them a break! They have their reasons, too. It’s time we see what’s bothering them.
While school takes up the first half of the day, assignment takes up the other half of students’ day.
Gen Z learners are especially upset about this as this doesn’t give them time to socialize, play, pursue a hobby, or watch their favourite movies.
What to Do
Perhaps creating reports and projects in groups can help Gen Z socialize while they learn.
Teachers can also plan out homework and make sure that all subjects are spread over the week, and it is easier to manage.
Homework for Gen Z doesn’t involve active learning. Students are still receiving homework that lacks critical thinking skills, real-world application, and problem-solving.
If Gen Z is doing repetitive writing work, then I’m afraid we can’t ask them why homework is bad for students.
What to Do
You can try to make the homework more engaging than it looks.
For instance, you are free to start over by changing the topic to maintaining the engagement with their favorite activities.
Gen Z likes smart work based on active learning strategies. Their style of work is quick and smart, something that’s hands-on, involves less effort, but produces great results.
Filling in worksheets, rephrasing text, and endlessly practicing math sums are all conventional forms of homework.
What to Do
Here’s homework that they can do as smart work. A word puzzle about the elements in chemistry, where the clues are real-life applications of each element.
Just as homework assignments lack engagement and active learning, they mostly lack creativity. Gen Z wants to put all their skills to use.
They want to create, decorate, model, and present. They want their out-of-the-box ideas to take shape.
What to Do
Gen Z loves creating 3d models of historic events, like the Second World War or the Civil War. Give them the challenge and see how they rise above it.
Homework, whether engaging or not, creative or not, must be submitted before the deadline.
It’s time-consuming, isolates learners, and removes the joy in their lives, as they struggle to get done with it done.
What to Do
Break the assignment into parts for Gen Z learners. If it’s a report submission, they can submit the introduction on the school LMS first, the history or significance next, and so on and so forth.
They can have separate deadlines for each part until they’ve submitted the whole report, and can finally compile it.
The classroom has mixed-ability learners who need an assignment that is according to their needs.
Teachers can’t design individual assignments, but they can include exercises, questions, or activities that can help with differentiated learning.
What to Do
A literature homework could look something like this: write a diary entry as Anne of Green Gables on the first night that she spends with the Cuthberts.
Illustrate the diary entry.
Give them boring, cumbersome homework, and they’ll find ten thousand other things to do, doom scrolling being one!
An engaging piece of work won’t let them turn to their devices for social networks, playing games, or watching movies.
What to Do
Go back up and see how to make homework engaging for Gen Z learners instead of asking why homework is bad for students.
In all honesty, assigning homework for the sake of giving homework is not a great idea. Gen Z needs to see the purpose and value in everything they do.
So, if a homework is simply a repetition of something they did in school, they are not motivated to do it.
What to Do
Design homework that has a purpose and encourages critical thinking, creativity, and real-world application.
Share the expected outcomes with students, or the learning objectives, for them to see the worth in the homework assignment.
Teachers can be harsh and unreasonable about assignment deadlines and possible consequences.
Gen Z doesn’t respond well to detention warnings or threatening statements, for an assignment that doesn’t hold any value, anyway.
What to Do
You may try to use language that motivates students to do their assignments.
Tell them that doing a certain piece of homework will help them prepare for an upcoming quiz or test.
Before You Go
Homework isn’t bad per se, but the way teachers look at it and how students treat it make a difference.
Yes, COVID and the radical tech advancement have contributed to the current Gen Z mindset. Nevertheless, it’s high time homework practices were modified to the needs of this generation, as that will also reap better results and greater learning.
Now, if you ask me, why is homework bad for students, I’ll say it’s bad when you assign bad homework.
People Also Ask
The work that teachers send home with students is homework. It needs to be submitted by a certain deadline and meet certain requirements.
Assignment hasn’t always been a pleasurable task, but it’s more despised by Gen Z as it hasn’t changed according to the current academic trends.
An assignment is assigned to help students review the taught concepts or build upon their existing knowledge.
Each piece of the assignment should last 15-20 minutes only. Teachers can design an assignment keeping in mind the time it would take students to do it.
