Homework

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Consultation Process

A broad selection of stakeholders was engaged in the review process of our Homework Policy during 2022 as our community requested consistency and clarification. Our main purpose was to develop a policy which reflects the Caningeraba State School community beliefs and values regarding homework.

The consultation process involved:

• Three formal review meetings involving community and school-based staff
• Homework Survey Completed
• Students- Approximately 216 Year 5 and Year 6 students (5 Qs)
• Parents – 282 parents completed the survey
• Teachers – 36 teachers completed the survey
• Draft review was examined by stakeholders
• Implementation from January 2023
• Next Review – 2026

A full summary of the survey results can be found on the school website.

This policy has been established because survey results determined that the majority of the school community believes there is a purpose for homework, and it improves student learning.

75% of students indicated they believed that homework improves their learning and only 8% of students believed there was no purpose or benefit to homework. The purpose of homework included to revise curriculum concepts (85 % teachers, 60% parents, to prompt and involve parents in the learning 67% teachers, 54% parents. Teachers and parents also indicated the benefits of homework included revision and practice 82% teachers, 60% parents) parent partnership in learning, 60% teachers, 54% parents and the development of study habits 42% teachers, 70% parents. In addition, 55% of teachers and 66% of parents believed homework was useful and 68% of teachers and 52% of parents believed that homework has the desired impact for the students.

Preface

Caningeraba has a commitment to our community to work towards achieving happy, healthy, confident 21^st century learners therefore the following guidelines reflect our community beliefs.

Three guidelines were highlighted as necessary for an effective Homework Policy.

They are:

1. Consistency – all students, teachers and parents/caregivers will ensure guiding principles, timeframes, approaches are maintained to ensure consistency throughout the whole school community.
2. Valued by the school community – All students, teachers and parents/caregivers adhere to the responsibilities outlined in the policy.
3. Clear expectations – teachers communicate expectations of students and parents regarding homework at the start of the year and when required.

Guiding Principles

Home reading and high frequency words are not considered homework but essential to all Caningeraba students.

We believe homework is most effective when it:

• is clearly related to class work
• is appropriate to particular year levels of schooling
• is varied and differentiated for learning needs (including some individualised programs)
• consolidates, revises and/or applies students' classroom learning
• is monitored and marked with useful feedback to the student to improve learning
• is time limited due to students engaged in many outside school activities

The Purpose and Impact of Homework

The community believes homework has a positive impact on students. 75% Students surveyed believe homework improves their learning. 68% Teachers surveyed believe homework had the desired impact. 

Three main purposes of homework have been identified. They are:

1. To revise and practise curriculum concepts
2. To prompt and involve parents/caregivers in the learning
3. To develop study habits

Homework approaches appropriate to each stage of learning at Caningeraba State School

The recommended amount of time a student should be expected to spend on homework

The setting of homework tasks for a student appropriate to the student's ability

To ensure homework is accessible to all a differentiated approach is needed. This involves proactively planning varied approaches to what and how students learn in order to be inclusive of student diversity. There are four differentiation core elements: content (what the student learns), process (how the student learns), product (how the student shows learning) and environment and affect (the climate in which the student learns).  Differentiation is organised, yet simultaneously flexible and responsive (Tomlinson 2017).

The responsibilities of teachers, parents and students in relation to homework

The partnership occurring with the student, the parents/caregivers and the class teacher is essential for a successful homework policy.