Homework has always played a role in education, but as education adapts with the times, so must the role of homework. After listening to input from the public, research, and a committee dedicated to reviewing the district’s homework policy, the Board of Education (BOE) recently approved an updated version of the homework policy.

The policy hadn’t been changed since it was originally adopted in 1999. While the new version doesn’t dive into specifics—such as exact amounts of homework—the policy sets out a series of guidelines for teachers and administrators to follow when considering the role of homework.

Specific guidelines on homework are to be determined by the individual school’s officials and the superintendent, as one set of guidelines would likely not work for both a high school and an elementary school student. While the guidelines will differ from building to building, all guidelines must take into account the connection of homework to curricular objectives, quantity and timing of homework, accommodation of varying student needs and resources, feedback and assessment, roles of parents/guardians, and processes for communicating homework per the revised policy.

BOE Chair Bill Bloss said the goal of updating the policy is to ensure that homework is consistent with the learning goals at each grade or building.

“We expect that homework will further curricular goals and, given the changes in curriculum over the past 20 years, the homework policy should keep pace,” he said. “We also want to encourage thoughtful coordination of assignments when possible, and also consideration of quantity so that assignments are reasonable. We look forward to reviewing the guidelines developed by the administration and faculty.”

Members of the public, school, and BOE worked together on the Homework Committee to update the policy. Guilford High School teacher George Cooksey said the committee tried to listen to all concerns.

“We were trying to the listen to the voices of the students, of the parents, of the community and we were also being attentive to the research that we read extensively,” he said. “We were really trying to craft a policy that was research based where we could listen to and respond to the concerns of the community at large.”

BOE member Gary Kaisen said the new policy will hopefully ensure that homework assignments are clearly connected to a learning task.

“By allowing building leaders to work with Superintendent Paul Freeman to develop specific guidelines to effectuate this goal, the new policy provides that homework at each grade level we will helpful and appropriate,” he said. “Given the many daily stresses on our students, we want to ensure that the quantity and timing of homework supports curricular objectives, so no assignment is given simply for homework’s sake rather than for student’s sake.”

With the policy now adopted, building leaders and the superintendent can begin drafting guidelines for each building and grade.