There have long been debates over homework and children’s resistance to doing it. It is seen to lead to fights at the kitchen table after school. This may stem from time-poor working families or parents and carers unsure of how to do it in the ‘right’ way.
As teachers, and parents, we too have struggled with homework. We decided to research this further. Homework is widely used in primary school. There is also a continuing debate in the media. But there is a limited body of research to explain the purpose, evidence for the practice or explanation of the power dynamics which underpin current homework approaches.
Homework doesn’t always lead to increased learning
Homework is generally given to revise learning concepts taught within the classroom. But studies have shown homework does not always add to increased learning and could, in fact, have the opposite effect. Teachers have reported that designing quality tasks, along with marking homework was time-consuming. It also proved difficult to meet the needs of the diverse students in their classes. Don’t we know it! Similarly, parents have shared concerns detailing the pressure of homework and how its expectations can create tensions within the home.
Since current practices are not working, what if the purpose of homework was to help children and their parents enjoy and engage in learning together, rather than purely consolidate learning and preparing for the next test?
Grej of the Day
We found a case study which offers a potential alternative to homework, all the way from Sweden. ‘Grej of the Day’ is an approach to homework that seeks to connect learning between school and home. Mikael Hermansson, teacher of the year in Sweden 2015, may have an idea here that works!
When using Grej of the Day in the classroom, children are given a clue (for example a giraffe playing a tuba below) to guess what it is about. Children take the clue home to discuss with their families then bring ideas back to school the next day. The class learns from all the ideas shared then have an 8-minute micro lesson from the teacher, who shares one WOW fact. For each topic a pin is put on a world map to show where it was from. Homework is then for children to retell what they learnt to their parents.
We saw this innovative approach, thought about the diverse learners we see in the classrooms, and wondered how it could support children in Australia.
What we found
We conducted an international online survey, which received 2025 responses from 16 countries. 240 teachers gave us further details as to how and why they use ‘Grej of the Day’ in their classrooms. Our initial analysis shows teachers reported mostly positive changes in the classroom to children’s behaviour and engagement in learning. Fewer parents reported a lack of interest.
We found three main benefits to using Grej of the Day:
- Cultural appropriateness: Potential to engage children from diverse backgrounds in meaningful ways inclusive of their home languages, time, skills and knowledge to learn new things beyond a narrow curriculum. Teachers have discussed that they can ‘use Grejs to cross bridges, to understand each other better, to learn about other religions, values, points of view and customs’.
- High engagement: Children were excited to participate in their learning and do homework. A huge step if you have a child who hated school! Micael Hermannson saw this in his own class where he found he was able to take a difficult group of children, who he could not reach, to being the class of the year in Sweden. Suddenly children wanted to be at school and learn. One teacher highlighted this ‘GoTD can absolutely be a way to support the [sic] diversity. I remember this student who really had a hard time at school and suddenly he said, ‘Now I know more than my mum, I think I`m going to become a teacher…’.
- Authentic learning: When discussing the impact GoTD has had to support authentic conversations to add to and build on the learning in school with families, teachers explained that parents suddenly became keen about homework, ‘There is a high participation. I have had parents waiting outside the classroom to find out whether they had solved the riddle’.
A way forward?
We are excited to present this case study as a potential paradoxical way forward that is authentic and enjoyed by children, teachers, and parents alike. Possibly it is a way that we can all enjoy homework and harness its true potential? The results from our case study pose the question to teachers and policy makers. Is it time for us to rethink homework in schools to make it an equitable playing field that values diverse funds of knowledge, ideas, and ways of learning?
Have you considered an answer to our Grej of the Day clue yet? What does the giraffe have in common with a tuba?
Monique Mandarakas (left) is a casual lecturer at the University of Southern Queensland. She has a background from both early childhood and primary teaching. Her research includes parent and family engagement in education and the support of pre-service teachers. This research is supported by her current PhD study. Melissa Fanshawe is an associate professor in the School of Education at the University of Southern Queensland. She has over twenty-five years experience within Queensland schools as a teacher, deputy and principal. She is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and has won several teaching awards.