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IELTS Topic: Education
Reading 1
Two hours homework a night may improve results
Original source: The Guardian
Spending more than two hours a night doing homework is linked to achieving better results in English, maths and science, according to a major study which has tracked the progress of 3,000 British children from pre-school to the age of 14.
Spending any time doing homework showed benefits, but the effects were greater for students who put in two to three hours a night, according to the study published by the Department for Education.
English schoolchildren who do at least two hours a night of homework get better marks for maths, English and science.
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Pam Sammons, a professor of education at Oxford University, says that time spent on homework reflected the influence of the school – whether pupils were expected to do homework – as well as children’s enjoyment of their subjects.
“That’s one of the reasons Indian and Chinese children do better. They tend to put more time in. It’s to do with your effort as well as your ability,” she says.
The research shows that working-class parents can help their children succeed “against the odds” by having high aspirations for them.
Children who did well from disadvantaged backgrounds were backed by parents who valued learning and encouraged extra-curricular activities. Parents’ own resilience in the face of hardship provided a role model for their children’s efforts, the research found.
Contrary results in Australia
However Australian researchers have come to a different conclusion. Sydney University’s Associate Profession in Education, Richard Walker, contends that only senior students in Years 11 and 12 benefit from after-school work.
“What the research shows is that, in countries where they spend more time on homework, the achievement results are lower,” Dr Walker says.
“At the moment homework is often an add-on because parents want it.”
Teachers are advised to keep homework levels low in primary school but are permitted to increase the study load by Year 7. Data from the Australian Institute of Family Studies (AIFS) found 95 per cent of 10 and 11-year-old students are given homework.
Australian researchers suggest that homework is often given by teachers solely because parents demand it.
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Dr Ben Edwards, manager of the AIFS’s study of 10,000 children, says it’s not only kids who get tied down with homework – parents are also heavily involved. Almost half of mums and dads – 41 per cent – helped out three or four days a week, with 15 per cent also chipping in on five or more days.
Almost half of mums and dads helped out three or four days a week …
“A little bit of homework is probably OK at all ages, if part of the reason is to help kids become self-directed learners,” Dr Walker suggests.
“But what the research shows is that only happens when upper primary and middle school students are given some assistance.