The Covid 19 pandemic has created a parallel epidemic of students not handing in assignments. We can point to the change in what going to school looks like as having an
impact. It certainly has. We need to remind our children they are in control of their own behavior regardless of what is happening around them. We need to support them in their move towards success in all they do.
The routine our children have followed for their entire school career - whether it be a 1 year or 12 has changed. ‘Going to school’ has taken on a new meaning. There is no reason to argue differently. It is what it is, and will, most likely, be in the future. The possibility of never having a ‘snow day’ again is a reality!
Why are students not handing in assignments? In my work as an advocate my students often get accommodations of extra time, they can hand in work at a later date. Sometimes, they have a modified, or smaller workload. Another option may be the ability of showing what they know in a different way. Some students get larger assignments broken down into smaller ones with varying due dates. They never get an accommodation of no homework.
So when students are not handing in assignments I do not mean 1 or 2 - I mean 30 to 40 per marking period. This is new behavior, not typical of these students. What is happening? Have they lost the idea of the purpose of homework because of remote instruction?
What is homework?
Homework is a conversation between your child and the teacher. It let’s the teacher know that your child understood what the teacher taught. It may tell the teacher, your child learned some of the material yet other parts were not understood. It may tell the teacher WHOA! I need to teach this material again - because no one in the class did it correctly.
When your child hands in their work tells the teacher they tried. It tells the teacher the level of success they have or do not have based on what they did. It gives the teacher a path to follow that better meets your child's needs the next day.
When homework is not handed in it sends an immediate message that your child did not care enough to do it. Unfortunately, that is the message. There is no conversation to make learning better. T: “Where is your homework?” S: “I didn’t do it.” T: Why? S: I didn’t understand it? T: “Show me what you did, so I can see where you were having the problem.” S: “I didn’t do it.” End of conversation.
Doing homework reinforces the day's learning. It ‘pushes’ what is learned from short term to long term memory. Doing homework provides the scaffolding for the next day's instruction. It is the daily foundation of success.
If your child is having an issue with understanding the material being taught, whether it is in
person learning or remote - that is not a homework issue. Consistently not understanding
needs to be addressed as a learning issue.
If your child is not handing work in as a choice it is vital that you address it. Don’t let this
become a habit. Make sure they turn in whatever they have done regardless of how well they did it. Some homework is better than none. Having the ‘homework conversation' with the teacher is vital to your child’s success. It sets them up for success in life. You can not have ‘a well done job - if the job is not done’.
Have a question or concern, reach out today.
impact. It certainly has. We need to remind our children they are in control of their own behavior regardless of what is happening around them. We need to support them in their move towards success in all they do.
The routine our children have followed for their entire school career - whether it be a 1 year or 12 has changed. ‘Going to school’ has taken on a new meaning. There is no reason to argue differently. It is what it is, and will, most likely, be in the future. The possibility of never having a ‘snow day’ again is a reality!
Why are students not handing in assignments? In my work as an advocate my students often get accommodations of extra time, they can hand in work at a later date. Sometimes, they have a modified, or smaller workload. Another option may be the ability of showing what they know in a different way. Some students get larger assignments broken down into smaller ones with varying due dates. They never get an accommodation of no homework.
So when students are not handing in assignments I do not mean 1 or 2 - I mean 30 to 40 per marking period. This is new behavior, not typical of these students. What is happening? Have they lost the idea of the purpose of homework because of remote instruction?
What is homework?
Homework is a conversation between your child and the teacher. It let’s the teacher know that your child understood what the teacher taught. It may tell the teacher, your child learned some of the material yet other parts were not understood. It may tell the teacher WHOA! I need to teach this material again - because no one in the class did it correctly.
When your child hands in their work tells the teacher they tried. It tells the teacher the level of success they have or do not have based on what they did. It gives the teacher a path to follow that better meets your child's needs the next day.
When homework is not handed in it sends an immediate message that your child did not care enough to do it. Unfortunately, that is the message. There is no conversation to make learning better. T: “Where is your homework?” S: “I didn’t do it.” T: Why? S: I didn’t understand it? T: “Show me what you did, so I can see where you were having the problem.” S: “I didn’t do it.” End of conversation.
Doing homework reinforces the day's learning. It ‘pushes’ what is learned from short term to long term memory. Doing homework provides the scaffolding for the next day's instruction. It is the daily foundation of success.
If your child is having an issue with understanding the material being taught, whether it is in
person learning or remote - that is not a homework issue. Consistently not understanding
needs to be addressed as a learning issue.
If your child is not handing work in as a choice it is vital that you address it. Don’t let this
become a habit. Make sure they turn in whatever they have done regardless of how well they did it. Some homework is better than none. Having the ‘homework conversation' with the teacher is vital to your child’s success. It sets them up for success in life. You can not have ‘a well done job - if the job is not done’.
Have a question or concern, reach out today.
RSS Feed