Why Less homework is better Essay Example for Free

Why Less homework is better Essay Just The Right Amount Of Homework Did you ever think that the pressure from too much homework can cause health problems such as anxiety, and uneasy sleeping? Or that homework fuels the cheating epidemic? Well it does. Homework was originally meant to be a review of what was learned earlier that day in class. But, now at days students are coming home with more and more unnecessary busy work. Some of the down sides of too much homework is that it destroys family life and social structure, because it keeps the child in their room for hours working. Also, the stress of too much after school work can really take a toll on student’s mental health. Nevertheless, homework can be useful. It teaches necessary life lessons such as responsibility and time management. For these reasons, I strongly believe that if students are given an appropriate amount of useful work to take home, homework can be very beneficial. Now at days, students are given an unbounded supply of after school work.. Alice, a sixteen year old student from Washington D.C. says that she often has about 4 hours of homework each night(Jesella). Added to the approximately 7 hours of school, she spends 12 hours a day working. In comparison, the average adult works approximately 8 hours a day. How are we students supposed to enjoy our youth if we spend more time working than our parents? Also, agonizing amounts of homework can take a gigantic toll on a student’s health. The weight of a high schoolers bookbag can fuel their back pains for years. Furthermore, the mental stress can leave a student sleepless and grouchy. (No wonder why most of us teenagers are so cranky most of the time!) The stress of homework can even be the reason of why students start cheating. According to a 2005 study of 1800 students conducted by Donald McCabe of Rutgers University, more than 60 percent of students admitted to have committed some sort of plagiarism(McAdams). The mental stress caused by an overly unnecessary amount of homework has lead to students to believe there is no other choice than taking the easy way and cheating, thus, making them worse students. Just let that sink in. On the other hand, homework CAN be a useful tool if students are given an appropriate amount. If taken seriously by the student it teaches them important life long tools such as responsibility and time management. Also, by being able to review the work done earlier in the day, it helps settle  the information into a student’s long term memory(Heyman). Such assessments are particularly useful for those students who do not take time out of their day to crack open a book and study. By reinforcing homework that is checked the next day, teachers are assured that the more lethargic students are not falling behind. I think that as a nation, we should work together to bring back the highlights of homework. Teachers should have monthly meetings to plan out the dates of tests and quizzes. Also, teachers should really double think to guarantee the work they are giving their students is actually beneficial, and not just busy work. We students should make more study groups, so we can bring out the joy of learning. If we all work together, we can make the concept of homework an amazingly beneficial thing