is homework banned in ireland yet

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President of Ireland calls on schools to stop giving pupils homework

Children should be able to use time at home ‘for other creative things’, says michael d higgins, article bookmarked.

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Schools should strive not to give pupils homework where possible, the president of Ireland has suggested.

In an utterance likely to be seized upon by children for years to come, in classrooms far beyond the shores of the Emerald Isle, Michael D Higgins argued that school should not extend beyond the final bell.

“Time in school … should get finished in school,” the president told pupils at a school in County Tipperary this week during a broadcast for RTE.

Children should be able to use their time at home “for other creative things”, Mr Higgens continued.

Reiterating his point, the 81-year-old president added: “I think as much as possible that [homework] should happen in the school and I think it’s more relaxed than it used to be.”

Mr Higgins was asked for his thoughts on homework by pupils at St Kevin’s National School in Littleton, during a broadcast celebrating the 20th anniversary of RTE’s children’s news show – viewers of which sent their questions in for the president.

Asked if he had a message for the children of Ireland, the president, who has been in office since 2011, said: “Stay curious about everything. Make sure you don’t miss the joy of getting information.

“And I think an important thing is friendship, and that nobody is left without friendship.”

Suggesting that children of Ireland place “great value” on friendship, Mr Higgins lamented that this makes it even more tragic when there is an “abuse of phones for bullying”.

Mr Higgins revealed that, having started school himself at the age of seven, his love for reading soon saw him decide that he wanted to be a teacher – and he attended teacher training as an adult before going on to spend 25 years in Ireland’s lower house of parliament Dail Eireann.

It is not the first time that Mr Higgins has offered his thoughts on children’s education. Last year, on his 80th birthday, Mr Higgins suggested that yoga should be taught in schools across Ireland.

Research suggests that Mr Higgins’ is far from alone in his views on homework, at least in the UK.

A 2018 survey of parents by British education regulator Ofsted found that more than a third did not think homework was helpful for primary school children.

Homework is a “huge cause of stress” for many families – and for children with special educational needs or disabilities it can be detrimental to their health, Ofsted was told.

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President Michael D Higgins says homework should be banned in Ireland

The country’s favourite leader believes that school activities should end at the school gate and students should be encouraged to engage in more creative pursuits

• 10:39, 21 JAN 2023

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President Michael D Higgins has called for homework to be banned.

The country’s favourite leader has given hope to a new generation of students that the bane of their afterschool evenings could be scrapped. President Higgins argues that this would make time for young people to engage in more creative pursuits outside school hours.

The former Arts Minister believes that school activities should end at the school gate. He was speaking to RTE’s news2day current affairs and news programme for children on the occasion of the programme’s 20th birthday.

Read more: Children being 'corrupted' by drug dealing situation in Oliver Bond flats, Dail told

When asked what his opinion of homework President Higgins said: “I think myself, really that the time at home, and the time in the school is an educational experience and it should get finished at the school and people should be able to use their time for other creative things.”

To mark the show’s two decades on air, students from St Kevin’s National School, Littleton, County Tipperary put questions from RTÉ news2day viewers to President Higgins at Áras an Uachtaráin. In a wide-ranging interview, the children asked the President questions like, what was your favourite sport when you were in school?

When you were nine years old what did you want to be? And when did you decide you wanted to be President?

The students also asked the President about his dogs, his official trips abroad, his favourite subject in school, differences between now and when he was a child and his favourite book. The President also spoke to the children about his love of handball and the importance of friendship in their lives.

RTÉ news2day will broadcast some of the President’s interview as part of Friday afternoon’s birthday celebrations at 4.20pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ News channel and the full interview will be available later on Friday evening on the RTÉ Player. In a message to the children of Ireland and the viewers of RTÉ news2day, President Michael D. Higgins gave this advice: “To stay curious about everything and I think it’s important to make sure you don’t miss the joy of sharing information.

“And I think an important thing is friendship and to make sure that there’s no one left without friendship and that people belong. And we will all do individual things... but I think friendships that you make will in fact always be great memories and that is so important. And also have the courage to stand your own ground and let other children be allowed the space of standing their ground too because none of us are the same.

“We’re all unique but at the same time we have a lot going for us.” President Higgins also encouraged the children of Ireland to speak the Irish language.

He encouraged them to speak Irish in a fun way and to feel free to use whatever bits of the language that they have.

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Two primary school principals debate a homework ban

President Michael D Higgins ignited a national conversation about homework when he told primary school students that he believed schoolwork should be completed in school – and that children should be able to use their time at home for "other creative things".

Simon Lewis, a primary school principal in Carlow, broadly agrees with President Higgins. But Chris Donnelly, a principal in Belfast, staunchly disagrees. In recent days, Mr Lewis and Mr Donnelly debated the issue over WhatsApp, as part of The Conversation from RTÉ's Upfront with Katie Hannon.

Simon Lewis: Hi Chris, great to talk to you. Homework is one of those topics that comes up in the media from time to time as it's an emotive one and it affects family life in a direct way. To give you my own perspective, I broadly agree with President Higgins at primary level.

Chris Donnelly: Hi Simon! I've got to say that, although I’m a great admirer of President Higgins, I’m not with him on this one. I believe that we have to continue to encourage and cultivate parents’ involvement in their children’s education, and the most obvious way of ensuring that is done remains through regular and consistent homework. I do accept that, as teachers, we must constantly review and assess the value and merit of what is included in homework, but in principle I’m in favour of it remaining.

Simon Lewis: Absolutely with you in terms of cultivating parents' involvement in children's education, but I think there are far more effective ways of doing so. Perhaps it might be worth exploring what homework looks like? I think most parents experience homework as finishing off work that wasn't completed or a page or two of a workbook. I think they think every child gets the same work. I think they find it meaningless. I also think, in most cases, they are right. I'm not surprised to hear calls for it to be banned.

Chris Donnelly: We’ve heard so often about the wisdom of the proverb that "it takes a village to raise a child". We can’t nod our heads in agreement with that and yet add the caveat that, when it comes to the 3 Rs – reading, writing and arithmetic – they’re strictly for school alone.

I take the point that some homeworks can be more effective than others, but if we’re serious about promoting parental involvement in kids’ education, then we need to recognise that homework provides the framework and guidance for parents to be involved, and at the appropriate level, for their kids.

Simon Lewis: I don't know if I agree with you completely on that. There are other frameworks that can involve parents without drill and practice exercises in books. I think technology has given us the ability to communicate with families in ways we could have only imagined even 20 years ago. Schools are now equipped with complete communication systems where they can inform and help families with their child's progress in all areas. A teacher can record themselves explaining any concept, they can set individualised tasks and projects, and they can point a family to anything conceivable.

Chris Donnelly: I’ve spent all of my 20-plus years in the vocation as a teacher and school leader in school communities in what might be described as areas of higher socio-economic deprivation, so educational underachievement is an issue very close to my heart.

Children in such communities are statistically much more likely to not realise their full potential, and I have always found that a part of addressing that is to draw parents in closely to their kids’ educational experience. Homework has been integral to that as it provides both a means to guide parents, but also a way of monitoring and essentially holding parents to account, flagging up when intervention may be necessary to ascertain if there were any issues, and to provide suggestions and solutions.

One of the projects I initiated was a "dads and lads" reading initiative in inner-city north Belfast, encouraging fathers to view reading a book with their kid each night as a shared experience akin to taking their child to a football match. For that initiative, Cliftonville Football Club got on board and we were able to hold workshops attended by many, providing ideas and strategies to encourage the fathers to pick up a book each night.

Simon Lewis: That's really interesting. It sounds like we both work in very similar contexts. Funnily enough, we had a very similar programme for reading with children in the evenings as part of a research project on homework at primary level. If homework is to exist, it needs to be meaningful, fun and optional. If possible, it needs to be individualised to a child's needs.

One other point is that if we give homework, we need to focus on the 4Cs – critical thinking, collaboration, creativity and communication – as well. Again, technology is key here.

Would you think there's such a thing as bad homework?

Chris Donnelly: Oh, absolutely, Simon. I think there’s a real case for rethinking homework for the modern age. Whilst I’m obviously a strong advocate for it, I appreciate that it can come in many forms and not always in a manner that is productive.

I believe, if we perceive its function as being to not simply consolidate pupil understanding of learning themes introduced in class, but also to encourage parental input into children’s learning, then it opens up opportunities to move away from the more mundane worksheet activity and towards encouraging parents to help with, for instance, computer-based activities.

Simon Lewis: What are your thoughts on it being optional?

Chris Donnelly: Not in favour of optional homework. For me, it has to remain a part of what "education" involves for cultural reasons – to ensure buy-in across society.

I’m a great believer that kids learn from what is caught as well as what’s taught. Those incidental chats with the adults in their lives who help with the homework or who see a reference in a homework and take conversation in a different direction, perhaps revisiting a life experience.

We have to keep evaluating what we do as educators and what the impact we are having, in class and at home. That’ll necessitate changing the format and focus of homework as much as it does teaching styles and strategies in class. But getting the parents and grandparents involved in a child’s learning journey on a regular basis can only be a positive development.

Simon Lewis: Completely agree with families being involved in the learning journey. I have to admit I didn't agree with the President when he said that "time in the school is an educational experience and it should get finished at the school", because education and learning can and does happen anywhere.

However, whether a school should impose those learning experiences, I would question that. I believe schools can suggest learning activities to families if they feel there would be a benefit, but I believe it is the right of a family not to do it. With so many families much busier than back in our day, with many children spending more and more of their day in childcare, after-school clubs and so on, they have little downtime as it is.

Adding the extra stress of more work seems unjust. I have seen some good examples of schools providing a summary of what is being covered in class and a suggested list of activities on a Monday that can be done any time during the week. I also love the idea of choice boards and the Flipped Classroom concept.

Perhaps we need to reclaim the word "homework?" The mere sound of the word sends shivers down the spines of many people. It was (and probably still is in places) seen as a negative experience? Worse, for me, it is often used as a punishment.

That brings me to the opposite point, which really winds me up. I'm not sure if you ever have this in Northern Ireland. If there's ever a celebrity visitor to a school, often the first thing they will do at an assembly is ask the teachers to give the children the night off from homework! Even our politicians get in on it.

Chris Donnelly: The difficulty I would have with optional homework is that, unfortunately, my experience would lead me to believe that many of the very children who would benefit the most from the additional learning opportunities provided by homework would likely lose out as their parents could be the ones to opt out.

The current understanding and acceptance of what homework entails at least ensures all are aware that input from home is expected and is monitored in the sense that teachers and school leaders will query if and when it is not completed.

I don’t agree about free time for kids. Whilst I get that homework can be a stress point for many parents returning from work at night, the truth is that Irish children have never been more likely to be involved in after-school clubs than they are today, which is a good thing. It’s a question of balance.

Simon Lewis: What happens if a child doesn't do homework and parents are either refusing to do it, or just aren't engaging?

Chris Donnelly: That’s where we, as school leaders, intervene, knowing that their refusal will increase the probability of the child underachieving educationally. We both know there are such cases out there, and identifying the problems and challenges early is key to organising the one-to-one chats with parents, and even possibly seeking to find other ways of supporting the kids.

Simon Lewis: I get that, but for the growing number of families who might be emboldened by the President's call to action, how will you deal with outright opt-out?

Chris Donnelly: The President can speak for himself, of course, but I can’t agree with his central point about educational experiences being confined to school. If we accept that, we are destined to fail in endeavours to close achievement gaps and run the risk of failing to help kids realise their potential.

I think we can agree schools should constantly evaluate the usefulness and value of homework tasks.

Simon Lewis: What would you recommend now as good practice for homework?

Chris Donnelly: Spelling and reading are a given for me – and I’d worry about parents believing they should not have a role in these areas, not least due to how important they are to children’s educational development in the earlier years.

An element of written homework should also be incorporated. We also make use of online maths and reading programmes, which are useful for encouraging adult involvement.

Simon Lewis: It's been great to have this chat. I think, if nothing else, we've made a case that there needs to be more of a conversation about homework and what it looks like in a modern education system. I love how, in the education sector, we can have different views on different things but leave almost every conversation with something new to learn and discover!

Chris Donnelly: Absolutely, Simon. Great to chat with you. Education is always evolving, and we have to keep our minds open to fresh perspectives whilst learning from previous experiences. Thanks again!

Read last week's edition of The Conversation, where we asked Fine Gael Senator and former Government minister, Regina Doherty and People Before Profit TD Paul Murphy to debate whether Irish politicians have high standards in public office, here.

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President Michael D Higgins says he doesn't think children should have homework

In a wide-ranging interview with Irish children, the president was asked for his thoughts on homework

• 15:35, 20 JAN 2023
• Updated 11:44, 20 APR 2023

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President Michael D Higgins has called for homework to be banned.

End of homework

Higgins has suggested that school activities should end at the school gates.

A smile is likely to have cross children and teenagers' faces after the president of Ireland suggested that homework should be scrapped.

Higgins argued that getting rid of homework would allow young people more time to engage in creative pursuits outside of school hours.

Speaking on RTÉ's news2day programme for the occasion of its 20th anniversary, children were able to put questions to Higgins at Áras an Uachtaráin.

Higgins was asked about his opinion on homework.

The president replied: "I think myself, really that the time at home, and the time in the school is an educational experience and it should get finished at the school and people should be able to use their time for other creative things."

This isn't the first time a political leader has sought to curry favour with future voters.

In March 2022, when then-Taoiseach Micheál Martin was isolating in the US during his St Patrick's Day visit, told the children of Ireland that they could have the day off homework if they did a kind deed.

Other questions for President Higgins

Other questions that the children asked the president included:

• What was your favourite sport when you were in school?
• When you were nine years old what did you want to be?
• When did you decide you wanted to be president?
• What is your favourite book?

The president was asked about his dogs, his official trips abroad, his favourite subject in school, the difference between his childhood and nowadays.

Higgins told the children he loved handball and spoke about the importance of friendship in their lives.

He encouraged the children to speak the Irish language.

A message to the children of Ireland

In a message to the children of Ireland and the viewers of RTÉ news2day, President Michael D. Higgins gave this advice: "Stay curious about everything and I think it's important to make sure you don't miss the joy of sharing information.

"I think an important thing is friendship and to make sure that there’s no one left without friendship and that people belong.

"And we will all do individual things... but I think friendships that you make will in fact always be great memories and that is so important.

"And also have the courage to stand your own ground and let other children be allowed the space of standing their ground too because none of us are the same.

"We're all unique but at the same time we have a lot going for us."

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President Michael D Higgins calls for school homework to be scrapped

President Michael D Higgins stopped by St Kevin's National School in Tipperary where the pupils interviewed him about his dogs, his time in school and his view on homework

• 15:01, 21 JAN 2023

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President of Ireland Michael D Higgins has said he supports the scrapping of homework.

He addressed students of St Kevin's National School, Littleton, Co Tipperary, this week in an episode of RTE's news2day programme.

The President said that schoolwork should be completed in school time so children can use time after school to pursue more creative activities.

Read more: Ireland weather: Met Eireann pin point the end of the cold snap as temperatures skyrocket next week

“People should be able to use their time for other creative things,” he said.

"I think as much as possible that [homework] should happen in the school and I think it’s more relaxed than it used to be.”

He said that not all lessons are learned from books, but that the responsible use of phones is something that he hopes the younger generation will be acutely aware of.

The children of Ireland "have a great value of friendships" and this makes it even more tragic when there is an "abuse of phones for bullying", the President said.

The pupils were also curious about some of the other residents of Aras an Uachtaran - dogs Brod and Misneach.

"He's probably a very famous dog now," said President Higgins of Brod. "He will be 11 in February, which is a very good age for a Bernese Mountain dog and Bród is wonderful.

"He came here at six weeks old, so he's lived all of his life at the Áras..

As for Misneach, he said: "He came during Covid and because I couldn't collect him because of the ban on inter-county travel, he didn't come to me until he was five months old.

"He also didn't have a good journey here, so he's actually shy. He's a beautiful dog."

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President of Ireland calls for ban on school homework - should all forms of school work stay in school?

He has said that it would make time for young people to engage in more creative pursuits.

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‘We should be able to go home and play’, Dublin kids speak up about homework ban

Penni McCarthy (10) and Layla McCarthy (11) showing off their banners for the children’s rights rally in Meeting House Square on February 24. Pic: Mark Stedman

Layla McCarthy showing off her banner at the workshop in The Ark, Temple Bar

Dublin children preparing for a rally on children’s rights are supporting President Michael D Higgins’ idea that homework should be banned.

Last week, President Higgins said he believes homework should be done in school so children can spend more time pursuing creative activities.

Fifth class children from St Laurence O’Toole primary school took part in a workshop today to create banners for a children’s rally later this month as part of the Right Here, Right Now! festival, in association with The Ark in Temple Bar.

The colourful banners reflect on issues children are concerned about and want their voices to be heard on.

Layla McCarthy (11) told Independent.ie: “I think homework should be banned. I’d love that. Sometimes school can be really hard and stressful on people. Sometimes we don’t want to do it, but we have to.

“You should be able to rest when you go home, because kids do enough work in school, so they should be able to go home and play.

“They should feel okay and not have to worry about doing homework.”

Aideen Howard, director of the Ark, added: “I think both children and parents would be supportive of the idea of getting rid of homework. It’s very heartening for the children that the president of Ireland supports that as well.

“We see the arts as a rights issue. Children have the right to art and culture and they’ve a right to be heard, we’re combining those things today so the kids can really be supported.”

Lola Sue Caffrey (11) showing off her and a classmate’s banners for the rally. Pic: Mark Stedman

Child participation is at the heart of the festival, and the children at St Laurence O’Toole are very passionate about what they’re rallying for.

“We’re talking about children’s rights here and what children should know. Kids should be able to talk and express themselves. We should be heard too, we’ve a right to be listened to,” Layla said.

Meanwhile, Ella Rose Gavin (11) added: “People don’t care about children’s rights, they only care about adult rights.

“We’re making posters today, then in February we’re going to do a march for kids’ rights. We want more clothes, more food.”

Penni McCarthy (10) added: “We’re making signs for a protest about children’s rights. I think it’s very important, bullying goes on in most schools in Ireland, it can go on anywhere.

“I say the victims feel sad. We’re protesting about homelessness and the cost of everything. Things are more expensive now.”

Shanna Lee McCarthy, one of the 5th class children from St Laurence O’Toole primary school taking part in a workshop at The Ark

Aideen Howard is supportive of the children and hopes the creative workshops can help them become more conscious of their rights while enjoying themselves.

“We’re preparing kids to know more about their rights, we’re looking at these issues through the lens of the arts,” she said.

“These fundamentally are art workshops, but inspired by the theme of children's rights.

“It’s really important to us because we want to promote awareness among schools, teachers, and we also want kids to be able to understand what they’re entitled to and what the grown-ups’ duties are.

• Homework’s best lesson is about life and not just about our standards in education

“It’s important that these workshops happen in good time so the kids can attend the rally in a few weeks’ time, so they’re really informed and really engaged.

“It’s also to give them the platform to be able to express themselves and be crucially heard.

“The rally on February 24 is all about children’s voices, it’s about them being listened to when it comes to important decisions that involve them.”

The children’s rally in Meeting House Square is part of The Ark’s Right Here, Right Now! festival which has children’s voices and rights at its very heart.

Other events include a disco called Right Moves!, a visual circus-sound theatre called Plock!, and a Butterfly and Mockingbird music performance.

All events are free and will take place from February 23 until February 25.

• President Michael D Higgins has suggested homework should be done in school to allow time for creative pursuits
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The President Of Ireland Wants To Get Rid Of Homework & Honestly, He's Onto Something

“The time in the school is an educational experience and it should get finished at the school.”

Do you know who doesn’t like homework? Kids — and certain presidents. In an impassioned plea to the people of his nation, President Michael D. Higgins has called for a ban on homework across Ireland. And if small children were given the right to vote tomorrow, I feel fairly certain I know whose name they would be supporting on the ballot.

Higgins, who is himself a former Arts Minister of Ireland and therefore, in my opinion, knows a little about the subject, spoke to Ireland’s news program for kids RTE’s news2day at St. Kevin’s School in Tipperary about a number of subjects. What he wanted to be when he was a kid himself. What was his favorite sport in school, which he said was handball. When did he decide he wanted to be president. And then, the mutual bane of their existence — homework.

“I think myself, really that the time at home, and the time in the school is an educational experience and it should get finished at the school and people should be able to use their time for other creative things,” Higgins told his interviewers, four children hanging on his every word.

While it remains unclear if Higgins has begun any official paperwork to ban homework, which would ironically be homework for him, his sentiment resonated with his many fans. Children and social media users alike in fact. One person tweeted their appreciation of the fact that Higgins was “running his nation like the little Hobbit he is.”

Another social media user wondered if Higgins was really a “forest sprite.”

This social media user found the idea inspiring , writing, “We need a national conversation on how to bring more play, creativity, imagination, movement and positive experiences into our children’s lives. Banning homework would be a great first step.”

Higgins ended his interview with a message to children about the importance of fostering their friendships and telling them to “stay curious about everything and I think it’s important to make sure you don’t miss the joy of sharing information. And I think an important thing is friendship and to make sure that there’s no one left without friendship and that people belong. And we will all do individual things... but I think friendships that you make will in fact always be great memories and that is so important.”

I think he’s on to something.

President Michael D Higgins says homework should be banned in Ireland

President Michael D Higgins has called for homework to be banned.

The country’s favourite leader has given hope to a new generation of students that the bane of their afterschool evenings could be scrapped. President Higgins argues that this would make time for young people to engage in more creative pursuits outside school hours.

The former Arts Minister believes that school activities should end at the school gate. He was speaking to RTE’s news2day current affairs and news programme for children on the occasion of the programme’s 20th birthday.

Read more: Children being 'corrupted' by drug dealing situation in Oliver Bond flats, Dail told

When asked what his opinion of homework President Higgins said: “I think myself, really that the time at home, and the time in the school is an educational experience and it should get finished at the school and people should be able to use their time for other creative things.”

To mark the show’s two decades on air, students from St Kevin’s National School, Littleton, County Tipperary put questions from RTÉ news2day viewers to President Higgins at Áras an Uachtaráin. In a wide-ranging interview, the children asked the President questions like, what was your favourite sport when you were in school?

When you were nine years old what did you want to be? And when did you decide you wanted to be President?

The students also asked the President about his dogs, his official trips abroad, his favourite subject in school, differences between now and when he was a child and his favourite book. The President also spoke to the children about his love of handball and the importance of friendship in their lives.

RTÉ news2day will broadcast some of the President’s interview as part of Friday afternoon’s birthday celebrations at 4.20pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ News channel and the full interview will be available later on Friday evening on the RTÉ Player. In a message to the children of Ireland and the viewers of RTÉ news2day, President Michael D. Higgins gave this advice: “To stay curious about everything and I think it’s important to make sure you don’t miss the joy of sharing information.

“And I think an important thing is friendship and to make sure that there’s no one left without friendship and that people belong. And we will all do individual things... but I think friendships that you make will in fact always be great memories and that is so important. And also have the courage to stand your own ground and let other children be allowed the space of standing their ground too because none of us are the same.

“We’re all unique but at the same time we have a lot going for us.” President Higgins also encouraged the children of Ireland to speak the Irish language.

He encouraged them to speak Irish in a fun way and to feel free to use whatever bits of the language that they have.

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President of Ireland calls for homework to be banned

President of Ireland Michael D Higgins. (Source: Getty)

The President of Ireland has made his thoughts known about homework, saying it should be left at the gate and children should be able to use their leisure time for "creative things".

Speaking to RTE’s news2day - a current affairs and news programme for children, Michael D Higgins answered questions on a wide range of topics, the Irish Mirror reports .

When pressed on his views about homework Higgins said: “I think myself, really that the time at home, and the time in the school is an educational experience and it should get finished at the school and people should be able to use their time for other creative things.”

Higgins, a former arts minister, told children “to stay curious about everything and I think it’s important to make sure you don’t miss the joy of sharing information.

“And I think an important thing is friendship and to make sure that there’s no one left without friendship and that people belong. And we will all do individual things... but I think friendships that you make will in fact always be great memories and that is so important.

“And also have the courage to stand your own ground and let other children be allowed the space of standing their ground too because none of us are the same.

“We’re all unique but at the same time we have a lot going for us.”

Higgins also encouraged the children of Ireland to speak the Irish language.

While the role of president in Ireland is mainly a ceremonial one, it does have some sway over how the government operates.

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'Why I believe homework should be banned', by one primary school student

As the discussion around state exams through the Covid-19 shutdown continues, a separate debate about the very need for homework itself rumbles on. Over the years, many have argued that homework for students in busy modern-day family structures is no longer workable.

This year, the Green Party sought to open a discussion about the banning of homework in future. Here, primary school pupil Misha McEnaney, a fifth class student from Dublin, outlines why he believes homework is more of a hindrance than a help.

IRISH CHILDREN SPEND around 274.5 hours on homework in a year. Is it a waste of time? Generally speaking, homework does not improve academic performance among children, although it may improve academic skills among older students especially lower-achieving kids. Homework also creates stress among students who could be doing other things.

I think it is a waste of time. Here’s why I think so. 

Many students think homework is extremely boring and hard so it increases our stress levels. You might fight with your family or friends and that gives the impression you are angry and irritated when often it’s just because your homework is increasing your stress.

Also, a study by scholar Denise Pope at Stanford shows that out of 4,300 students at high-performance schools, 60% stated that their homework was their primary source of stress.

Movement is more important

I believe that homework eliminates time when you could be exercising, playing sports, carrying out hobbies, reading etc. So when your friends are playing outside or something exciting or important is happening you can’t go out because you’re stuck inside doing your homework. 

Homework messes up your sleep cycles and it causes you to be more tired. After school when you’re tired from working you still have to do your homework, so you don’t deliver your full concentration and that makes your performance not as acceptable as it should be. This can cause your grade to go down and so that defeats the whole point of education to become better and smarter. 

A study from teenink.com shows that students perform best in school when they receive 10–12 hours of sleep each night, while only 15% of teenagers in America reported themselves sleeping eight hours or more on school nights, according to the national sleep foundation of America. Sleep disruption is very bad for our health.

Teacher trust

If you’re completely booked up for the day doing sports or other activities you have no time to do your homework. Your teachers start to trust you less and less and this develops a bad view of you when it’s not entirely your fault. 

It’s also repetitive so you’re doing the same work at school and there’s no effectiveness, it’s not going in. So all that homework becomes a waste because you have already completed it at school. You can also easily get distracted.

Homework takes away revision time for tests and that can affect the test scores. That develops a bad reputation for the student and for the school. The parents then assume that the teaching at the school is bad and they might move school. So the kid might lose friends and over time the school becomes less liked and popular.

All because there is too much homework. 

Bad for the mood

If you don’t sleep enough it can cause mood swings which can affect students’ performance and relationships. To think we can stop all of this by just banning homework makes me wonder why schools still give out homework at all.

People who believe that homework should not be banned have reasonable points and arguments. They believe that doing homework at home can be better for the students and they would receive higher results. 

They also think the parents of the students will have an idea of what type of work they are doing in the classroom, at what scale the student is doing their work and how the student is doing that work. There is absolutely no reason why parents shouldn’t know what the student’s work is like. 

Some people believe that homework boosts interaction between a student and his or her teacher. Homework might develop their presentation skills. They believe that homework is “a remedy against weaknesses”. These can all be done at school. They believe it teaches the students responsibility because they have to make sure that they do their work and not lose it or destroy it. 

They think the students learn much more new information as well as in school. So people think it teaches the students important life skills. They also think it keeps the students busy and entertained. I would argue that these should all be the responsibility of parents, not school.

A shift in the debate

The Green Party in Ireland has promised to explore the banning of homework for primary school children. They also vow to review primary and secondary schools curriculum “to meet the needs of the 21st century”. Catherine Martin, deputy leader of the Green Party, said that “the phasing out of homework is something that definitely should be explored”. 

“This isn’t new, this has been on our policy for the past several years. And I think we really need to have a conversation on how best to develop the creative juices of our children, or really change how we do homework, homework could be, ‘go home and draw a picture of something that means a lot to you’,” she said.

“They’re so young, especially up to the age of seven or eight, it’s a conversation that we need to have”. 

She used the example of Loreto Primary School in Rathfarnham, Dublin, which is currently trialling a “no-homework” programme for all classes except sixth. Ms Martin said that they had found the pilot scheme “amazing” and children were spending a lot more time with their families as a result. 

Mental health considerations

Psychotherapist Mary McHugh believes that we are reducing children’s natural “curious, imaginative and creative” tendencies by “pressuring them to conform”. 

“Our children from the age of three, are being trained to sit still and from five upwards, it’s expected that this is the norm.” McHugh also says that “stress is showing up at an alarming scale and we’re still applying more pressure academically younger and younger”. 

Let’s look at Finland. In Finland, there is no homework in all schools. Finland agrees that there should be no homework because it increases stress, it wastes time etc. Finnish students regularly top the charts on global education metric systems.

Some 93% of Finnish students graduate from secondary school compared to 75% in the USA and 78% in Canada. About two in every three students in Finland go to college which is the highest rate in Europe. The students’ test scores dominate everyone else.  These are the scores for the PISA test (Program for International Student Assessment) 2006.  There are other reasons why Finland’s education system is so good but no homework is definitely an important one. 

Homework increases stress levels among students. It replaces time for hobbies and sports. It messes up your sleep. It can’t always be done and that causes trouble. It’s repetitive. You can develop health problems from lack of sleep.

It takes away time for studying and also when you don’t get enough sleep you can get mood swings and that can affect performance and relationships. There are reasonable arguments for why people who believe that homework shouldn’t be banned are wrong.

We have seen that the Green Party also thinks that homework should be banned and that some schools have already trialled it. We have looked at Finland banning homework and we have seen the impact it has made compared to other countries. This is why I think homework should be banned, not just in my school but in all schools. 

Misha McEnaney is a fifth class student at St Mary’s College, Rathmines, Dublin.

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'Please enjoy' - Taoiseach cancels homework for all children in Ireland on March 24

Mary McFadden

23 Mar 2022 6:01 PM

Children in Ireland have been excused from homework tomorrow by Taoiseach Micheál Martin as part of National Confidence Day. 

The Taoiseach announced he had cancelled homework for one day in a special message sent to Ireland from Washington DC, and encouraged acts of kindness instead.  

He said, "I’ve been speaking to your teachers, and they’re happy to let you off your homework for one day. All you have to do is one kind deed instead of your homework. That could be looking out for a friend, looking after someone in your family, it’s up to you, you choose. So please enjoy." 

The message is part of a special show created by Starcamp called 'I BELIEVE IN ME', which will be shown in all classrooms across Ireland tomorrow (Thursday March 23). 

It was created in the wake of a Starcamp survey which found almost 50% of parents feel their children are less sociable since the introduction of restrictions, with 43% experiencing new anxieties, fears or worries. 

The Taoiseach's message is one of several, including messages from Rory O'Connor from Rory's Stories, comic books artist Will Sliney and and magician Keith Barry. 

As part of his message, Mr Martin asked children to believe in themselves and their abilities and thanked them for all their hard work.

He said, "There is so much more we can all achieve if we believe in ourselves more and I’m asking you to believe in yourself today and every day." 

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National Homework Ban for April 12, declares An Taoiseach

'no homework for donegal students' says an taoiseach micheál martin.

National Homework Ban for April 12, declares Taoiseach

Catherine McGinty

12 Mar 2021 3:04 PM

[email protected]

In his most pressing interview to date, when questioned by 9 year old Dean Aherne about the abolition of homework, An Taoiseach Micheál Martin declared: “On Monday, April 12, there will be no homework, and that’s for the whole country.” 

This is the first time ever such an event has taken place, or not taken place.

On the anniversary of Covid-19 related school closures, Starcamp is on a mission to keep children’s spirits uplifted as the pandemic continues.

And as part of its two-hour 'St Patrick's Day Show', which Starcamp is rolling out for free to all children in Ireland, An Taoiseach, Micheál Martin, chatted to Starcamp kids and gave them a very important message to share with the country.

An Taoiseach spoke about about overcoming shyness and the importance of confidence. He also told them that “it’s kinda cool” having a personal driver, that “he’d like Cork actor, Cillian Murphy to play him in a movie” and that his hidden talent is “mimicking people, I can take people off but in politics they don’t allow me to do that anymore”. Watch out Mario Rosenstock.

Starcamp, with Gala retail, is offering this free 'St Patrick's Day Show', which will be available to view from Saturday morning at 9am until March 18. It is oozing with positivity, smiles, uplifting messages, distraction, creativity and a feel good factor that children desperately need in their lives at this time. Starcamp has committed to creating something special for the sake of children, to aid their ailing spirits in what continues to be a challenging and confusing time for them as they return to the classroom.    

The action packed St Patrick's Day line up for the event includes: The Story of St Patrick, music, games, baking, Irish dance with Riverdance performers, The Gardiner Brothers, Don Conroy will teach how to draw leprechauns, Joe the Magician and so much more.

With children due to lose out again with the cancellation of parades, Starcamp wants to encourage children all over Ireland to get creative and imaginative over the next week or so, and in association with Gala retail are offering a whole host of prizes for Best Performance, Best Art, Best Parade, Best Baking and Best Costume. All entries must have a St Patrick’s Day (or Irish) theme. To enter, simply upload your photo or video onto the Starcamp Club Facebook page or Starcamp Instagram page by March 18.

The winner will be announced on March 23.  There will be a prize for each category and the overall winner will also win a Yamaha Electric Piano for their school.  

 To register now for the Starcamp “St Patrick’s Day Show”, simply go to: www.starcamp.ie .

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Call for children to be 'involved' in discussions around homework as President speaks out against it

It comes days after President Michael D Higgins called for homework to be banned at home and for all work to stay in the classroom. Irish Mirror readers were also overwhelmingly in favour of banning homework, with 98% of our readers in favour.

• 18:37, 25 JAN 2023

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A Government Minister has said that it is “important” to include children in discussions about homework policies in schools.

In a landslide decision, 57,440 readers voted yes, while just 1,211 voted no.

READ MORE: President Michael D Higgins calls for homework to be banned in Ireland

In an interview with RTÉ’s News2Day, President Higgins said that he believed that time at home should be spent doing more creative activities,

He said: “I think myself, really that the time at home, and the time in the school is an educational experience and it should get finished at the school and people should be able to use their time for other creative things."

Education Minister Norma Foley recently said that her Department does “not issue any guidelines relating to homework being given in schools. It is a matter for each school, at local level, to arrive at its own homework policy”.

It followed a question from Fine Gael Minister of State Neale Richmond who asked if research has been carried out by her Department into the benefits of ending the provision of homework for primary school pupils.

He told the Irish Mirror that children should be involved in conversations about their schools homework policy.

Minister Richmond said: “I submitted the Parliamentary Question following a visit to one of my local primary schools.

“The pupils were genuinely interested in the policy relating to homework going forward and I agreed it’s an important discussion to involve pupils in.”

Minister Foley told her Government colleague that the Department of Education has not commissioned research on the matter.

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Ban homework for all schools in ireland

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Why homework should be banned.

Homework – Top 3 Pros and Cons

Pro/Con Arguments | Discussion Questions | Take Action | Sources | More Debates

From dioramas to book reports, from algebraic word problems to research projects, whether students should be given homework, as well as the type and amount of homework, has been debated for over a century. [ 1 ]

While we are unsure who invented homework, we do know that the word “homework” dates back to ancient Rome. Pliny the Younger asked his followers to practice their speeches at home. Memorization exercises as homework continued through the Middle Ages and Enlightenment by monks and other scholars. [ 45 ]

In the 19th century, German students of the Volksschulen or “People’s Schools” were given assignments to complete outside of the school day. This concept of homework quickly spread across Europe and was brought to the United States by Horace Mann , who encountered the idea in Prussia. [ 45 ]

In the early 1900s, progressive education theorists, championed by the magazine Ladies’ Home Journal , decried homework’s negative impact on children’s physical and mental health, leading California to ban homework for students under 15 from 1901 until 1917. In the 1930s, homework was portrayed as child labor, which was newly illegal, but the prevailing argument was that kids needed time to do household chores. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ 45 ] [ 46 ]

Public opinion swayed again in favor of homework in the 1950s due to concerns about keeping up with the Soviet Union’s technological advances during the Cold War . And, in 1986, the US government included homework as an educational quality boosting tool. [ 3 ] [ 45 ]

A 2014 study found kindergarteners to fifth graders averaged 2.9 hours of homework per week, sixth to eighth graders 3.2 hours per teacher, and ninth to twelfth graders 3.5 hours per teacher. A 2014-2019 study found that teens spent about an hour a day on homework. [ 4 ] [ 44 ]

Beginning in 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic complicated the very idea of homework as students were schooling remotely and many were doing all school work from home. Washington Post journalist Valerie Strauss asked, “Does homework work when kids are learning all day at home?” While students were mostly back in school buildings in fall 2021, the question remains of how effective homework is as an educational tool. [ 47 ]

Is Homework Beneficial?

Pro 1 Homework improves student achievement. Studies have shown that homework improved student achievement in terms of improved grades, test results, and the likelihood to attend college. Research published in the High School Journal indicated that students who spent between 31 and 90 minutes each day on homework “scored about 40 points higher on the SAT-Mathematics subtest than their peers, who reported spending no time on homework each day, on average.” [ 6 ] Students in classes that were assigned homework outperformed 69% of students who didn’t have homework on both standardized tests and grades. A majority of studies on homework’s impact – 64% in one meta-study and 72% in another – showed that take-home assignments were effective at improving academic achievement. [ 7 ] [ 8 ] Research by the Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA) concluded that increased homework led to better GPAs and higher probability of college attendance for high school boys. In fact, boys who attended college did more than three hours of additional homework per week in high school. [ 10 ] Read More

Pro 2 Homework helps to reinforce classroom learning, while developing good study habits and life skills. Students typically retain only 50% of the information teachers provide in class, and they need to apply that information in order to truly learn it. Abby Freireich and Brian Platzer, co-founders of Teachers Who Tutor NYC, explained, “at-home assignments help students learn the material taught in class. Students require independent practice to internalize new concepts… [And] these assignments can provide valuable data for teachers about how well students understand the curriculum.” [ 11 ] [ 49 ] Elementary school students who were taught “strategies to organize and complete homework,” such as prioritizing homework activities, collecting study materials, note-taking, and following directions, showed increased grades and more positive comments on report cards. [ 17 ] Research by the City University of New York noted that “students who engage in self-regulatory processes while completing homework,” such as goal-setting, time management, and remaining focused, “are generally more motivated and are higher achievers than those who do not use these processes.” [ 18 ] Homework also helps students develop key skills that they’ll use throughout their lives: accountability, autonomy, discipline, time management, self-direction, critical thinking, and independent problem-solving. Freireich and Platzer noted that “homework helps students acquire the skills needed to plan, organize, and complete their work.” [ 12 ] [ 13 ] [ 14 ] [ 15 ] [ 49 ] Read More

Pro 3 Homework allows parents to be involved with children’s learning. Thanks to take-home assignments, parents are able to track what their children are learning at school as well as their academic strengths and weaknesses. [ 12 ] Data from a nationwide sample of elementary school students show that parental involvement in homework can improve class performance, especially among economically disadvantaged African-American and Hispanic students. [ 20 ] Research from Johns Hopkins University found that an interactive homework process known as TIPS (Teachers Involve Parents in Schoolwork) improves student achievement: “Students in the TIPS group earned significantly higher report card grades after 18 weeks (1 TIPS assignment per week) than did non-TIPS students.” [ 21 ] Homework can also help clue parents in to the existence of any learning disabilities their children may have, allowing them to get help and adjust learning strategies as needed. Duke University Professor Harris Cooper noted, “Two parents once told me they refused to believe their child had a learning disability until homework revealed it to them.” [ 12 ] Read More

Con 1 Too much homework can be harmful. A poll of California high school students found that 59% thought they had too much homework. 82% of respondents said that they were “often or always stressed by schoolwork.” High-achieving high school students said too much homework leads to sleep deprivation and other health problems such as headaches, exhaustion, weight loss, and stomach problems. [ 24 ] [ 28 ] [ 29 ] Alfie Kohn, an education and parenting expert, said, “Kids should have a chance to just be kids… it’s absurd to insist that children must be engaged in constructive activities right up until their heads hit the pillow.” [ 27 ] Emmy Kang, a mental health counselor, explained, “More than half of students say that homework is their primary source of stress, and we know what stress can do on our bodies.” [ 48 ] Excessive homework can also lead to cheating: 90% of middle school students and 67% of high school students admit to copying someone else’s homework, and 43% of college students engaged in “unauthorized collaboration” on out-of-class assignments. Even parents take shortcuts on homework: 43% of those surveyed admitted to having completed a child’s assignment for them. [ 30 ] [ 31 ] [ 32 ] Read More

Con 2 Homework exacerbates the digital divide or homework gap. Kiara Taylor, financial expert, defined the digital divide as “the gap between demographics and regions that have access to modern information and communications technology and those that don’t. Though the term now encompasses the technical and financial ability to utilize available technology—along with access (or a lack of access) to the Internet—the gap it refers to is constantly shifting with the development of technology.” For students, this is often called the homework gap. [ 50 ] [ 51 ] 30% (about 15 to 16 million) public school students either did not have an adequate internet connection or an appropriate device, or both, for distance learning. Completing homework for these students is more complicated (having to find a safe place with an internet connection, or borrowing a laptop, for example) or impossible. [ 51 ] A Hispanic Heritage Foundation study found that 96.5% of students across the country needed to use the internet for homework, and nearly half reported they were sometimes unable to complete their homework due to lack of access to the internet or a computer, which often resulted in lower grades. [ 37 ] [ 38 ] One study concluded that homework increases social inequality because it “potentially serves as a mechanism to further advantage those students who already experience some privilege in the school system while further disadvantaging those who may already be in a marginalized position.” [ 39 ] Read More

Con 3 Homework does not help younger students, and may not help high school students. We’ve known for a while that homework does not help elementary students. A 2006 study found that “homework had no association with achievement gains” when measured by standardized tests results or grades. [ 7 ] Fourth grade students who did no homework got roughly the same score on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) math exam as those who did 30 minutes of homework a night. Students who did 45 minutes or more of homework a night actually did worse. [ 41 ] Temple University professor Kathryn Hirsh-Pasek said that homework is not the most effective tool for young learners to apply new information: “They’re learning way more important skills when they’re not doing their homework.” [ 42 ] In fact, homework may not be helpful at the high school level either. Alfie Kohn, author of The Homework Myth, stated, “I interviewed high school teachers who completely stopped giving homework and there was no downside, it was all upside.” He explains, “just because the same kids who get more homework do a little better on tests, doesn’t mean the homework made that happen.” [ 52 ] Read More

Discussion Questions

1. Is homework beneficial? Consider the study data, your personal experience, and other types of information. Explain your answer(s).

2. If homework were banned, what other educational strategies would help students learn classroom material? Explain your answer(s).

3. How has homework been helpful to you personally? How has homework been unhelpful to you personally? Make carefully considered lists for both sides.

Take Action

1. Examine an argument in favor of quality homework assignments from Janine Bempechat.

2. Explore Oxford Learning’s infographic on the effects of homework on students.

3. Consider Joseph Lathan’s argument that homework promotes inequality .

4. Consider how you felt about the issue before reading this article. After reading the pros and cons on this topic, has your thinking changed? If so, how? List two to three ways. If your thoughts have not changed, list two to three ways your better understanding of the “other side of the issue” now helps you better argue your position.

5. Push for the position and policies you support by writing US national senators and representatives .

More School Debate Topics

Should K-12 Students Dissect Animals in Science Classrooms? – Proponents say dissecting real animals is a better learning experience. Opponents say the practice is bad for the environment.

Should Students Have to Wear School Uniforms? – Proponents say uniforms may increase student safety. Opponents say uniforms restrict expression.

Should Corporal Punishment Be Used in K-12 Schools? – Proponents say corporal punishment is an appropriate discipline. Opponents say it inflicts long-lasting physical and mental harm on students.

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