Getting Students to Do Homework

I admit I am still struggling with motivating students to do their homework. It seems that no matter what I try, I can never get 100% participation, and forgive me for being pessimistic, but I am willing to bet that none of you are either. Even the best of teachers must surely struggle with students not completing assignments. So first years, if you and your students are struggling with homework, you're in good company. I'll let you in on a few of my secrets.

The first thing I do is to establish a homework routine. There are of course, many components to this routine, some obvious, others not so obvious. Every day, I write the homework assignment in the same place and in the same format. Yes, I tend to give homework every night (except Friday) with a few exceptions. This is all part of the routine. Every day, before class, they put their homework in the homework box (which hangs on the wall just as you pass through the door) before they do anything else. They always do their homework in the same format, using the same headings, and on the same type of paper (loose-leaf of course!) So there is an air of familiarity with every assignment. The intent is that they will establish this routine and it will become second nature to carry it out. (In a perfect world.)

Second, I hold students accountable. If they don't turn in an assignment, they must sign their name on the "I chose not to do my homework last night" sheet. This ensures that they at least consider the fact that they didn't do it and it will affect their grade. Too often, I think students who are not explicitly held accountable don't even realize that they are not doing their homework anymore. It's almost as if they are living in a fantasy world in which homework doesn't exist. Signing their name forces them to consciously think about their choices each time they chose not to complete an assignment. Furthermore, it also gives me ammo for parent-teacher conferences. I can simply pull out the no homework sheet and easily explain that Tamekwa is actively "choosing" to fail my class.

Last, I solicit the help of the parents. I send home a letter each quarter reminding parents that I do in fact give homework, and they should be expecting their children to be working on it at night. I also include a plea to the parents to take homework seriously and to simply ask little Suzy if all of her homework for Mr. Lochen's class is complete.

Even with this three-pronged approach, I still fall short. On a good day, I can get about 70-80% participation. On a bad day, I'm lucky to get 50% participation. Some days I feel like pulling out all those studies that suggest students are given too much homework, and lightening up a little. It would certainly do away with some stress, but I truly believe that homework is beneficial for students (to an extent of course) because it allows them to practice the material independently, a feat not usually accomplished in school thanks to the cafeteria (the site of rampant cheating.) Anyway, that's my two-cents on the homework war.