What Is the Role of Homework? How to Design It So That It Is Effective in Consolidating Knowledge

One of the main factors when making a decision as teachers is the students’ socioeconomic context. Rønning (2011) highlights that homework can become a factor of inequality: students from high socioeconomic status families tend to perform better when assigned homework, while students from less advantaged backgrounds do not show any improvement. PISA data supports this idea: it indicates that students from disadvantaged environments spend less time doing homework and do not improve their performance. If we are aware of this inequality, we must ensure the learning of each student, regardless of homework. Both discovery and consolidation of essential learning must focus on the classroom, giving homework a role of additional reinforcement.

Family context is relevant. For example, the lack of a quiet space to study or limited internet access can hinder the usefulness of homework. However, beyond material conditions, research indicates that the way families provide support can make a difference. PISA studies (2018) suggest that a supportive study environment is key, while other research (Šilinskas and Kikas, 2017) shows that students benefit when they do not perceive parental supervision as control, but as interest in their learning process. Lange and Meaney (2011) observed that if a contradictory message is transmitted at home about what students learn at school, it can cause frustration. From this, we can conclude the need to strengthen the bond between school and family, with spaces to share information and the work being carried out in the classroom.

One of the objective factors in which the evidence is clearest is age. The older the students are, the greater the potential benefit they can obtain from homework. In primary school, for example, the gains are small, even in the best scenarios. In fact, in one of the most rigorous studies focused on mathematics and science, Fan et al. (2017) found that the effect in primary school was almost null. At these ages, students begin to develop their study habits and get distracted more easily, which makes it harder for homework to be especially effective (Cooper et al. 1998; Hoover-Dempsey et al. 2001; Leone and Richards 1989; Muhlenbruck et al. 2000).

Returning to the question of purpose, what we hear most from teaching staff is that students should practice and consolidate their learning. However, it’s essential that this purpose is also perceived by the students. To achieve this, we must be clear in our communication, explaining why the homework we assign is necessary, and be attentive to how they receive it. If students believe that the only goal is the grade, only those who already have prior knowledge will do it. The rest, on the other hand, often resort to methods that can harm their learning, such as copying or applying procedures mechanically (Liljedahl, 2020).

Liljedahl (2020) reinforces this message and also speaks about inequality:“The students who really do the homework are those who need it the least, and those who need it the most are the ones who do it the least.” Moreover, we realize that the effort dedicated to doing homework is more important for academic achievement than the time or frequency with which it is done (Trautwein, 2007; Fan et al., 2017; Cooper et al., 1998). This invites us to carry out appropriate follow-up, which should not consist of grading, but of valuing those who have put effort into completing the task.

Likewise, when students perceive that we carry out a conscious follow-up of homework, they tend to dedicate more effort to it and engage more deeply with the tasks (Fan et al., 2017). As Cooper et al. (1998) says, doing homework out of fear of suffering negative consequences turns an autonomous learning situation into one of lack of trust. If we want to avoid this, it’s key that we be consistent—not only with our message, but also with our assessment.

One last factor to take into account is the impact homework has on standardized test results. In this regard, Maltese et al. (2012) found that in secondary school there is a positive relationship between homework and the results of these tests. Beyond that, we must not confuse the purpose of their evaluation: although the evaluation of these tests is summative, we can practice without the need to grade. Along these lines, a 2018 PISA study focused on 10th-grade students explains that although doing more homework correlates with better results both individually and at the school level, this improvement does not carry over to the overall results of a country. This implies that there are other factors, such as the quality of instruction or school management, that have a greater impact than homework on test results.
We encourage you to reflect on these factors and to think about how they are reflected in your day-to-day. What decisions have you made so far? What impact have you observed in your students?

Surely different situations come to mind. Why in some cases have they sparked interest and worked, and in others not so much? How can we design them so they motivate all students? What else must we take into account as a teaching team? Let’s explore it together.