Student Opinion Column: Should Homework Be Graded?
Launch the media gallery 1 playerShould homework be graded? When asking a teacher this question, many would say yes, but, perhaps surprisingly, a few would say no.
It is my own personal opinion that homework should not be graded. There are many reasons for this opinion. Homework reflects what we learned in a class. Homework shows the teachers that we understand what they taught us. A teacher may not explain an assignment well, and then a student gets a bad grade. That grade reflects what the teacher taught, but the student gets the short end of the stick with a bad grade. If this rule would apply, teachers should count homework as a completion grade, to make sure the students are still doing their homework, regardless of what grade they get. Although graded homework helps motivate students to stay on track with what they are learning, homework also causes students to fail.
With graded homework, you have to provide the perfect answer with perfect work in order to get a good grade. Ungraded homework could create a space for students’ creativity without getting a bad grade. With having completion grades, I believe students will not feel pressure against their grades.
Students could still show they have mastered the subject through tests, projects, and other things that are graded, but homework should be treated for what it is: practice. And it should be graded as such.