The purpose of homework should have a clear academic purpose, demonstrates student learning, promotes ownership through choice in assignment, instills a sense of competence, is enjoyable or interesting. (Vatterott, 2010)
Homework should provide students with practicing of skills, previewing knowledge, encourage higher levels of thinking and applying knowledge learned in the classroom. Students should be able to complete homework independently, and a choice in how they demonstrate their knowledge of the skill. For example students could choose how to demonstrate knowledge of vocabulary words by writing definitions, writing a story using the words, making a pictorial representation or, creating flashcards to practice. Homework should also be differentiated so that students who have a slower processing time will not become overwhelmed. Parent involvement should be centered more around providing a good study atmosphere and habits not on completing the task.
It is important for the student to receive feedback, however it does not always need to come from the teacher. Students can share homework with other students in order to share struggles and successes. The teacher can provide class discussion time to clarify questions and address needs. Students can have the opportunity to make corrections on homework in order to practice skills correctly. Students should also have time to reflect upon their work achievement and effort level in order to build the connection between effort and achievement. Occasionally the teacher should provide specific individualized feedback for students.
Technology can be used to provide specific homework assignments through teacher websites. Along with assignments listed, teachers could provide additional resources to aid in homework completion and websites for additional practice and project creations. Parents should be familiar and have access to this information in order to be aware of homework expectations and when assignments are due so they can help their child with time management.
Kerri, I feel a bit guilty because my feedback on blogs has not been timely due to extenuating circumstances (weather, technology glitches, etc)! I like how you included peer review and feedback. This a great tool for students to engage in "talk" and think critically. Technology has so many uses to support homework and I think we need to be mindful of this when preparing differentiated asignments.
ReplyDeleteDonna