There is a book by Alfie Kohn: The Homework Myth. Some takeaways (in italics) from Robert Harrell:
1. No homework should be the default setting.
2. Whenever homework is given, it needs to be justified, i.e. it accomplishes something that cannot be done in class.
3. “Homework” should be things that students are able to do on their own and can enjoy.
Here are some things I do as a result:
1. Rarely give homework.
2. Assign culture projects as “homework” – students can do them in English, they have a choice of projects, they are doable alone, and they are things we can’t get done in class. (The cultural projects include making target culture food, going to museums to look at target culture exhibits, going to concerts of music from the target culture, and much more.)
3. Each year we inevitably get to likes, dislikes and favorite things in level 1 or 2. When we do, I assign a “worksheet” that asks in German for favorite music, favorite actor/actress, favorite class, favorite book, favorite film etc. The next day I read them in class in German (correcting and editing – and sometimes translating – as necessary), and the class tries to guess who it is. I always have a turn-in rate of nearly 100% on the due date, and those who didn’t get it in then quickly do so. We are, after all, talking about them. What I need to work on is using the answers more effectively as springboards to conversation. I don’t mind taking several days to go through these.
Harrell’s reaction to Kohn’ book is very validating to me personally, because this is pretty much the stance I have had on homework for over three decades. We are now breaking, smashing, destroying, and ripping apart traditional thinking, which are no more than chains on us dragging us back from the future. I had always felt like I was doing something wrong with homework because I wasn’t playing the role of the “sergeant” John Piazza talks about at https://benslavic.com/blog/2011/07/07/alfie-kohn-vs-fred-jones/comment-page-1/#comment-20329]
Melissa also shares: That is exactly what I got from the book when I read it last summer. For me, as a newer teacher, it helped me really find out how I felt about homework. It was transformative for my students, in that I didn’t give much homework (busywork) last year. But as my schools’ administration is big on homework every night, I sometimes succumbed to the nag that I needed to give homework just for the sake of having it (kind of like teaching ser vs. estar in year one because you have to). But I LOVED your assignment of likes/dislikes/favorites and the idea of culture projects since the new CO standards really emphasize culture. I’ll definitely be using these next year. Thanks for sharing!