Amanda McElfresh

amcelfresh@theadvertiser.com

Brandy Young decided to try something different.

For years, Young, who teaches second grade at Godley Elementary School in Godley, Texas, gave her students a weekly homework packet.

This year, Young ditched the packet. Instead, she sent a letter to parents, letting them know the only homework this year would be work the student did not finish in class.

“For me, the age of the students and the socioeconomic statuses were big factors,” Young told The Daily Advertiser. “I wanted to focus on activities that would be more beneficial in the home.”

“I believe homework has a place,” Young continued. “It has to be meaningful, engaging and relevant. The weekly packet was not fitting that criteria.”

Young’s practice went viral on Facebook when Samantha Gallagher, whose daughter is in Young’s class, posted a photo of the letter. The post has been shared more than 72,000 times on the social media platform.

“I ask that you spend your evenings doing things that are proven to correlate with student success,” Young wrote. “Eat dinner as a family, read together, play outside and get your child to bed early.”

Young said she’s received “nothing but positive feedback” from Godley parents. Although she said she is surprised the letter has taken on a life of its own, she said she is thrilled that it has sparked a nationwide dialogue.

“It’s really exciting, because it started a conversation about what’s best for the kids,” she said. “This little note has caused people to reflect on that and think about our kids, which is wonderful.”

Focusing on Mastery

In Lafayette Parish as well, there are changing attitudes about how much homework to give and how teachers should use it.

“The emphasis of homework should be practice for mastery. We try to de-emphasize grading it for an academic value,” said Annette Samec, the school system’s chief academic officer.

According to the district’s pupil progression plan, homework “shall not exceed 10 percent of the total grade for each subject.”

That means there is no true requirement for teachers to assign homework, and no penalty if teachers do not assign it.

“We try to inform our teachers that homework should be informative to them as to whether students understand the material,” Samec said. “A lot of the time, teachers may be assessing homework and not grading it at all. They are reviewing it to see if the students are mastering the content, but not assigning an academic value to it.”

MORE ON SCHOOLS: Carencro High teacher relishes Finland experience | Lafayette preparing for non-traditional school in 2017

Lafayette teachers weigh in

In recent years, Michelle Lutgring has opted not to assign homework to her students at L.J. Alleman Middle in Lafayette.

Lutgring teaches sixth-grade English Language Arts. Because she is on a block schedule, she has each class for 90 minutes, allowing them extra time to finish assignments.

“My policy is that if you don’t finish the work in class, you finish it at home,” Lutgring said. “But it’s rare that happens, because we have ample time in class to do the work.”

Lutgring said she made the no-homework decision years ago, after finding many students did not complete the assignments, or didn’t seem to benefit from them in class.

Instead, she urges her students and their families to read together at home.

“My ultimate goal is for them to walk out of my room with a love of the written word,” she said. “I know that students are doing a lot after school. They’re in clubs. They’re playing sports. I don’t want it to get to a point where kids are doing that, coming home with homework and going to bed at 11 p.m. and hating school. We want our kids to enjoy school, and not have it create misery for them.”

Kimberly Domangue agreed homework shouldn’t create negative feelings among families.

This year, Domangue is teaching fourth- and fifth-grade English as a Second Language students at Charles Burke Elementary. The majority of her students live in homes where Spanish is the primary or only language spoken.

“I do not believe in sending homework that I have not covered in class,” said Domangue, who also is vice-president of the Lafayette Parish Association of Educators. “Homework is meant to be a practice. It is supposed to reinforce your good feelings about what you are doing at school. It’s meant to help with parent/child bonding, and allow the parent to better understand what the child is learning, not for parents to be frustrated or fighting with the child.”

MORE EDUCATION NEWS: Test scores show improvements at multiple schools | Lafayette sees increase in AP exams, passing scores

Domangue said she often creates YouTube videos that describe or demonstrate a homework assignment. In the videos, Domangue will model a weekly reading or math activity, and make sure both students and parents have the link.

She also sometimes sends books home with her students to read with their families.

“For me, if a child really has been doing their work in school with me, I don’t believe there needs to be a set amount of homework,” Domangue said. “My students have done well, so I feel comfortable with that method, and I find that the students will give me more of their attention and persistence in the classroom because they know that when they are home, they don’t have so much work that they can’t breathe and live a life.”

Assignments continue to vary

According to national education organizations, leading parent-teacher groups suggest 10 to 20 minutes of homework per night in first grade, with an additional 10 minutes of homework per grade after that. Studies show most homework guidelines have changed little over time.

Domangue said that in Lafayette Parish, many teachers she knows have made few changes in how much homework they assign.

“What seems to happen is a teacher develops their method, their teaching personality, and that’s how they do things,” she said. “They feel that it’s necessary, and so I haven’t heard anything much about it diminishing.”

However, Lutgring said she knows many other fellow teachers, on both block and traditional schedules, who now shy away from giving much homework.

“I know for sure it’s not just me,” she said. “We pride ourselves on holding our students to high expectations and developing good work habits with them. If you’re assigning homework and it’s not getting done and students’ grades are suffering, it really doesn’t benefit anybody.”