Homework completing by students is a continuing struggle for me. I do feel that homework is essential for math. Watching a teacher model examples, working in groups, and trying problems on your own in class are great. The true test for understanding material is when you have to do it on your own, that is where homework comes into play. When a student works independently on a math problem, they identify what they understand and what they don’t completely understand.
I started out the year not checking or grading homework because it was practice, and I didn’t think students should be graded on practice. But then fewer and fewer students were doing their homework. The day that 3 out of 32 students had done their homework, I knew I had to change how I handled homework. At the start of 2nd quarter, I started to put homework in the grade book worth zero points, and state whether it was as turned in or missing. That improved homework completing a little, but not enough. At the start of 3rd quarter I started randomly checking and grading homework, making it worth points in the grade book. This brought homework completion up to about 80%, and test scores improved for those students completing their homework.
Next year I plan to start collecting and grading homework daily, do emphasize how important it is to practice what we do in class outside of class. When homework scores are in the grade book, parents have a clear understanding of what their student is doing and understanding so there are no surprises. This means more work for me … and more late nights. But I want students to on top of the material we are learning, and practicing via homework is the best strategy I have right now.
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