NATIONAL NEWS
October 3, 2003
Not Enough Homework?
Most U.S. kids do less than an hour's worth of homework each night, a new study says
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Feeling buried under the books with too much homework? A new study says that probably isn’t the case. Not all kids in the U.S. are overloaded with homework,two recent studies show. The majority of U.S. students at all grade levels spend less than an hour on homework each night, according to studies from the Brookings Institution and Rand Corporation.
 |  Teacher Quinton Vance, left, greets his students as they arrive at class. |
The studies say kids spent the same amount of time on homework today as they did 20 years ago. In fact, the percentage of 9-, 13- and 17-year-olds that reported doing more than one hour of homework a night has actually gone down since 1984.
Homework in the News
These studies tell a very different story than what has been reported in the news. Since 2001, stories about kids getting too much homework have appeared in newspapers and magazines, including Time For Kids, across the country.
Despite the study, some kids across the nation actually are overloaded with homework. "It's important to acknowledge that this is not true for everybody," said Brian Gill, co-author of the study done by the Rand Corporation. The study shows that kids in elementary school are receiving slightly more homework, about one minute’s worth, than they have in the past.
Still Too Much For Some
The study shocked many kids and parents who are used to kids carrying heavy backpacks and spending hours on homework every night. Many districts are trying to limit the number of hours a kid should spend on homework. But others are forced to give more homework because test preparation has increased the demands on class time.
One expert suggests schools and parents should come up with new ways to help overwhelmed students handle their homework. Suggests Stephanie Fanjul, director of student achievement for the National Education Association: Try putting together after-school programs with teachers.
