56 percent of the students considered homework a primary source of stress, according to Stanford News. Taft students and staff have mixed feelings about this subject.
Adrienne Carmona, Taft Language and Literature teacher, isn’t against homework fully. She tends to think about literacy. She said reading once in a while is healthy for the mind and literacy is important in the world. She believes homework should be given to a certain extent. When students are struggling with homework at home, but never ask for help in class, they need to be open to communicating with their teacher.
Carmona said, “Not everyone has an equitable place to go home and do their homework.” Carmona believes homework shouldn’t be banned, but it shouldn’t be given every day. Before just handing her students homework, she thinks of their priorities that they have to do before doing homework. Homework and grades should not reflect how smart a student is.
Destini Gomez, a Taft junior, said, “Homework does not accurately show how smart you are.” Gomez believes that homework should not have to define whether people are smart or not. Gomez is pro banning homework.
Chelsea Nichole Gonzalez, a Taft junior, thinks, “We go to school to learn eight hours a day five days a week. After hours I just want to go home and relax. Our homes should be a sanctuary not a place of stress.”
Gonzalez also spoke out on how kids have other responsibilities after school. “After school I have to work and I know I’m not the only one.” She brought up how some kids need to take care of siblings and generally how homework is not everyone’s first priority, she thinks the time set for school every day should be enough.
Jessica Strauss, Taft Individuals and Societies and Diverse Learners teacher, thinks homework really should just depend on the class and the student. Strauss thinks that the homework load should be given to students that can handle the workload such as AP and IB students.
Regular classes and honors classes should be on an as needed biases. “If a teacher gives you more than enough time in class and you choose to waste your time then know you have homework,” said Strauss.
