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The conflict over what or how much homework should be comes partly from the fact that people can't seem to agree on the purpose of homework.
What do teachers think? Some teachers think that homework is necessary to reinforce what is learned in school. And so they ask their students to memorize what was discussed in class through homework. Some teachers think the point of homework is to cover material that the class didn't
have time to get to, so their homework is to let students learn additional things. Other teachers like homework simply because they want students to form work habits and still others believe homework is necessary because it is the best way for parents to learn what their children do in school.
Parent's opinions? But many parents seem to have different ideas. Elissa Cohen, who has twins at Lafayette Elementary School, doesn't like the fact that the third-grade students in elementary schools are asked to write about 25 book summaries a year. "They do the same thing over and over without
really getting into altertnate ways of thinking about books and thinking about reading and writing."
Experts' opinions? Some education reformers, such as Howard Gardner, a Harvard University professor, well-known for his theory on multiple intelligence, think that Cohen is on the right track.
But it is often hard to persuade overworked teachers to give much thought to homework tasks. |
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