The researchers used survey data to examine perceptions about homework, student well-being and behavioral engagement in a sample of 4,317 students from 10 high-performing high schools in upper-middle-class California communities. Along with the survey data, Pope and her colleagues used open-ended answers to explore the students' views on homework.
Median household income exceeded $90,000 in these communities, and 93 percent of the students went on to college, either two-year or four-year.
Students in these schools average about 3.1 hours of homework each night.
"The findings address how current homework practices in privileged, high-performing schools sustain students' advantage in competitive climates yet hinder learning, full engagement and well-being," Pope wrote.
Pope and her colleagues found that too much homework can diminish its effectiveness and even be counterproductive. They cite prior research indicating that homework benefits plateau at about two hours per night, and that 90 minutes to two and a half hours is optimal for high school.
Their study found that too much homework is associated with:
: 56 percent of the students considered homework a primary source of stress, according to the survey data. Forty-three percent viewed tests as a primary stressor, while 33 percent put the pressure to get good grades in that category. Less than 1 percent of the students said homework was not a stressor.
: In their open-ended answers, many students said their homework load led to sleep deprivation and other health problems. The researchers asked students whether they experienced health issues such as headaches, exhaustion, sleep deprivation, weight loss and stomach problems.
: Both the survey data and student responses indicate that spending too much time on homework meant that students were "not meeting their developmental needs or cultivating other critical life skills," according to the researchers. Students were more likely to drop activities, not see friends or family, and not pursue hobbies they enjoy.
The results offer empirical evidence that many students struggle to find balance between homework, extracurricular activities and social time, the researchers said. Many students felt forced or obligated to choose homework over developing other talents or skills.
Also, there was no relationship between the time spent on homework and how much the student enjoyed it. The research quoted students as saying they often do homework they see as "pointless" or "mindless" in order to keep their grades up.
"This kind of busy work, by its very nature, discourages learning and instead promotes doing homework simply to get points," said Pope, who is also a co-founder of , a nonprofit organization affiliated with the GSE that conducts research and works with schools and parents to improve students' educational experiences..
Pope said the research calls into question the value of assigning large amounts of homework in high-performing schools. Homework should not be simply assigned as a routine practice, she said.
"Rather, any homework assigned should have a purpose and benefit, and it should be designed to cultivate learning and development," wrote Pope.
In places where students attend high-performing schools, too much homework can reduce their time to foster skills in the area of personal responsibility, the researchers concluded. "Young people are spending more time alone," they wrote, "which means less time for family and fewer opportunities to engage in their communities."
The researchers say that while their open-ended or "self-reporting" methodology to gauge student concerns about homework may have limitations – some might regard it as an opportunity for "typical adolescent complaining" – it was important to learn firsthand what the students believe.
The paper was co-authored by Mollie Galloway from Lewis and Clark College and Jerusha Conner from Villanova University.
___
.
Brooke Donald, Communications Manager, Stanford Graduate School of Education: 650-721-1402, | to our monthly newsletter
|
© Stanford Graduate School of Education | 485 Lasuen Mall, Stanford, CA 94305-3096 | (650) 723-2109 |
Sam Wineburg , a research psychologist at Stanford’s Graduate School of Education, recently conducted a nationwide study of the fact-checking skills of thousands of American high school students.
He didn’t go about it with a survey asking the kids to self-report their own behaviors. Instead, he devised a live experiment that charged the 3,000 students in the study to determine the veracity of a now-famous bit of fake news from the 2016 election. Wineburg and team were then able to follow along as students tried to find the true source of the video, which had been produced in Russia as part of a disinformation campaign.
In the end, just three students – one-tenth of one percent – arrived at the right answer. Rather than blame the kids, however, Wineburg says fault lies with the tools they are using, which have changed so dramatically in speed and scope that their fact-checking skills have had trouble keeping up.
All is not lost, he promises, but fixing the problem will require changing not just what information students consume, but the way they think about it, as Wineburg tells host Russ Altman in this episode of Stanford Engineering’s The Future of Everything podcast.
Listen on your favorite podcast platform:
Related | Russ Altman , the Kenneth Fong Professor of Bioengineering, of genetics, of medicine (general medical discipline), of biomedical data science and, by courtesy, of computer science
The research behind the academic and non-academic benefits of homework and how much homework children should have per night.
In recent years, homework has become a very hot topic. Many parents and educators have raised concerns about homework and questioned how effective it is in enhancing students’ learning. There are also concerns that students may be getting too much homework, which ultimately interferes with quality family time and opportunities for physical activity and play. Research suggests that these concerns may be valid. For example, one study reported that elementary school students, on average, are assigned THREE TIMES the recommended amount of homework.
So what does the research say? What are the potential risks and benefits of homework, and how much is “too much”?
First, research finds that homework is associated with higher scores on academic standardized tests for middle and high school students, but NOT elementary school students .
A recent experimental study in Romania found some benefit for a small amount of writing homework in elementary students but not math homework.
Yet, interestingly, this positive impact only occurred when students were given a moderate amount of homework (about 20 minutes on average).
The goal of homework is not simply to improve academic skills. Research finds that homework may have some non-academic benefits, such as building responsibility , time management skills, and task persistence .
Homework may also increase parents’ involvement in their children’s schooling. Yet, too much homework may also have some negative impacts on non-academic skills by reducing opportunities for free play , which is essential for the development of language, cognitive, self-regulation, and social-emotional skills.
Homework may also interfere with physical activity and too much homework is associated with an increased risk for being overweight . As with the research on academic benefits, this research also suggests that homework may be beneficial when it is minimal.
Research suggests that homework should not exceed 1.5 to 2.5 hours per night for high school students and no more than 1 hour per night for middle school students.
Homework for elementary school students should be minimal and assigned with the aim of building self-regulation and independent work skills. Any more than this and homework may no longer have a positive impact.
The National Education Association recommends 10 minutes of homework per grade and there is also some experimental evidence that backs this up.
Research finds that homework provides some academic benefit for middle- and high-school students but is less beneficial for elementary school students.
Research suggests that homework should be none or minimal for elementary students, less than 1 hour per night for middle school students, and less than 1.5-2.5 hours for high school students.
Research finds that parental help with homework is beneficial but that it matters more HOW the parent is helping rather than HOW OFTEN the parent is helping.
So how should parents help with homework (according to the research)?
Specifically, be present while they are completing homework to help them to understand the directions, be available to answer simple questions, or praise and acknowledge their effort and hard work. Research shows that allowing children more autonomy in completing homework may benefit their academic skills.
Research finds that too much parental involvement or intrusive and controlling involvement with homework is associated with worse academic performance .
Have a regular time and place for homework that is free from distractions and has all of the materials they need within arm’s reach.
Help your child to create a checklist for homework tasks. Create rules for homework with your child. Help children to develop strategies for increasing their own self-motivation.
For example, developing their own reward system or creating a homework schedule with breaks for fun activities. Research finds that providing this type of structure and responsiveness is related to improved academic skills.
Research finds an association between parents setting rules around homework and academic performance.
Parents who view homework as a learning opportunity (that is, a “mastery orientation”) rather than something that they must get “right” or complete successfully to obtain a higher grade (that is, a “performance orientation”) are more likely to have children with the same attitudes.
Research finds that this attitude is associated with student success. Research also indicates that more challenging homework is associated with enhanced academic performance.
Research shows that mothers’ showing positive emotions while helping with homework may improve children’s motivation in homework.
This type of praise is likely to increase motivation. In addition, research finds that putting more effort into homework may be associated with enhanced development of conscientiousness in children.
Research finds that open communication about homework is associated with increased academic performance.
Dr. Cara Goodwin, PhD, is a licensed clinical psychologist and mother to four children. She specializes in child development and has spent years researching child psychology and neuroscience and providing therapy for children of all ages and parent training. She is the founder of Parenting Translator, which translates recent scientific research into information that is helpful, relevant, and accurate for parents and caregivers through an Instagram account, a newsletter on Substack, and a blog on Psychology Today. Dr. Goodwin is also a bestselling author of the children's book, What To Do When You Feel Like Hitting.
IMAGES
VIDEO
COMMENTS
A Stanford researcher found that students in high-achieving communities who spend too much time on homework experience more stress, physical health problems, a lack of balance and even alienation ...
Stanford education expert Denise Pope says that the quality of a homework assignment and whether students find it meaningful can have a significant impact on student achievement, homework ...
The quality of a homework assignment is important to student achievement, says Stanford Graduate School of Education senior lecturer Denise Pope. But the devil is in the details, according to Pope, who recently published a book that included research on the subject. "The quality of the homework assignment and whether or not students find it meaningful can have a significant
In 2013, research conducted at Stanford University found that students in high-achieving communities who spend too much time on homework experience more stress, physical health problems, a lack of ...
students get older, homework shows an increasing trend in how much it affects the student's learning. One important study revealed that "the average high school student in a class doing homework would outperform 75% of the students in a no-homework class. In junior high school, the average homework effect was half this magnitude.
students spend more time on homework, they achieve more academically. If, the argument goes, homework provides an opportunity to reinforce learning from class, to practice skills and review content, then students who do more homework should have a better grasp of the material and, in turn, should earn higher grades and scores on standardized tests.
A Stanford researcher found that too much homework can negatively affect kids, especially their lives away from school, where family, friends and activities matter.
Alfie Kohn, an education and parenting expert, said, "Kids should have a chance to just be kids… it's absurd to insist that children must be engaged in constructive activities right up until their heads hit the pillow." ... "Stanford Research Shows Pitfalls of Homework," stanford.edu, Mar. 10, 2014: 30. AdCouncil, "Cheating Is a ...
Examining these arguments offers important perspectives on the wider educational and developmental consequences of homework practices. 1. Elevated Stress and Health Consequences. According to Gitnux, U.S. high school students who have over 20 hours of homework per week are 27% more likely to encounter health issues.
Higher-achieving students — those who may have more homework — are at particular risk for stress-related health issues including sleep deprivation, weight loss, stomach problems and headaches. Source: Stanford University, "Stanford Research Shows Pitfalls of Homework," 2014.
A Stanford education researcher found that too much homework can negatively affect kids, especially their lives away from school, where family, friends and activities matter. "Our findings on the effects of homework challenge the traditional assumption that homework is inherently good," wrote Denise Pope, a senior lecturer at the Stanford Graduate School of Education and a
In 2014, research at Stanford University found that too much homework can have a negative impact on children. Homework can help to establish a routine and to develop independent learning skills ...
Studies of typical homework loads vary: In one, a Stanford researcher found that more than two hours of homework a night may be counterproductive.The research, conducted among students from 10 high-performing high schools in upper-middle-class California communities, found that too much homework resulted in stress, physical health problems and a general lack of balance.
More than two thirds of students said they used alcohol or drugs, primarily marijuana, to cope with the stress. Back to the Stanford study for a second; many of the students claimed that the homework was "pointless" or "mindless." The study argues that homework should have a purpose and benefit, which should be to cultivate learning.
Instead of improving educational achievement in countries around the world, increases in homework may actually undercut teaching effectiveness and worsen disparities in student learning, according to two Penn State researchers. Most teachers worldwide are not making efficient use of homework, said David P. Baker, professor of education and sociology. They assign homework mostly as drill, to ...
Stanford education scholar Denise Pope offers ways to help students feel less stressed and more excited about school. ... When students see homework as busywork, or if assignments are too hard or too easy, kids can become disengaged in school in general. ... Every assignment should have a clear purpose, where students know how the lesson can be ...
More recently, researchers at Stanford University found that it causes considerable stress in students' lives. My colleagues and I have put together healthy homework guidelines, which we hope will stimulate conversation between teachers, parents, and students, and eventually lead to some common-sense solutions for the age-old controversy of ...
37% of 13-year-old students said they had "no homework assigned" on the day before a National Center for Education Statistics survey in 2023. In 2020, that figure was 29%. In 2012, it was 21%. Case in point: Butterfield Canyon Elementary School in Herriman, Utah, has had a no-homework policy since 2020.
The homework wars are back. As the Covid-19 pandemic began and students logged into their remote classrooms, all work, in effect, became homework. But whether or not students could complete it at ...
Most students nominate a supervisor at work to serve as their monitor. As more people have moved to remote work, more students are relying on professional services. As a result, more students (though still the minority) are paying a fee to take their exams. If you use a professional service, you may be required to pay an additional fee.
Here's a great suggestion to allow students to continue to enjoy the benefits homework brings while minimizing the associated negatives: the Center for American Progress (CAP) recommends the 10-minute rule, which, simply put, means that students should be able to finish their homework in no more than 10 minutes multiplied by their grade level.
7. Stanford University across many of its programs, gives substantial homework to its students, particularly for those in the Computer Science and Engineering fields. Remember, a challenging workload can provide an excellent learning environment and opportunities to delve deeper into subjects, but it's also important to have balance.
"Rather, any homework assigned should have a purpose and benefit, and it should be designed to cultivate learning and development," wrote Pope. High-performing paradox In places where students attend high-performing schools, too much homework can reduce their time to foster skills in the area of personal responsibility, the researchers concluded.
Sam Wineburg, a research psychologist at Stanford's Graduate School of Education, recently conducted a nationwide study of the fact-checking skills of thousands of American high school students.. He didn't go about it with a survey asking the kids to self-report their own behaviors. Instead, he devised a live experiment that charged the 3,000 students in the study to determine the veracity ...
Research suggests that homework should be none or minimal for elementary students, less than 1 hour per night for middle school students, and less than 1.5-2.5 hours for high school students.