Most students complain about homework at some point in time. Most teachers give homework to supplement in class learning, and it will continue regardless of our displeasure, so perhaps the answer is to be more efficient. The following five steps can help ensure a successful experience.
1. Actually do it
Yes, this should go without saying, but some people don’t do their homework and that’s why we need to start here. Obviously you should get all your homework done, to be able to understand what you’re learning and to keep your grades up. If you do your homework and that helps you understand what you’re learning, it actually makes things easier and help you to find areas you might be struggling with so you can ask for support. Joyce L. Epstein, a professor, says that students do better in school when they’ve done their homework. So yes, more work in the short term, but a good reward in the long run.
2. Get a planner
You’ve probably seen your friends’ planners, and maybe you’ve thought that they’re unnecessary and extra work. Some people might not like planners because it’s extra work, but if you try using one consistently, you’ll probably find that it’s actually a great way to keep track of all your homework, tests, projects, etc. While Schoology shows your homework assignments, tests, projects, etc. from teachers, you might have something school-related that you want to remember to do that won’t be on Schoology. And you can use planners for personal dates too, though if you want to do that you might want to get a different type of planner, since some are very school-focused.
3. Find a way to study for tests that works well for you
Some people might be able to study nonstop for hours. If that idea makes you shudder and think, I could never do that! then it’s not like you can’t study as well as those people. You just need to find a way to study that works well for you. There’s not a lot to say about this one because I personally don’t know who’s reading this or what type of studying will work well for you. But you might want to consider studying efficiently for a little while, then rewarding yourself with a short break, studying again, taking a short break, and repeating this process. This might help because you can break up the studying, and that can help focus and make you less frustrated. Another thing that might help is listening to music. The right kind of music can help you a lot. Phyllis Medina, an expert with a PhD, said that listening to music can help you be less stressed about homework, concentrate more, and not get as restless. And if none of these things work for you, find something that does!
4. Have a specific time to do homework, and don’t procrastinate
Maybe it’s different on different days depending on what you have after school. Maybe one day you do it after dinner because you have sports for two hours directly after school. Maybe you delay doing it because you really don’t feel like it. Personally, I think it’s best to do it as soon as you can. You’ll have as much time to do it as possible. Also, you might feel better with doing whatever you want if you know that your homework is done and out of the way. You won’t have to worry about it in the back of your mind if you know it’s done.
5. Don’t stress about it too much
If you have a lot of homework or it’s hard, don’t get stressed about it. That will only make it harder and take longer to do. Additionally to the comments on music, Medina says that stress makes it harder to learn. Homework can be stressful, especially if it’s hard or you have a lot of it, but try to keep calm and start it. So if you have a lot, just go home, take out your things, and get to work.
Works Cited
“How Music Can Help You Study.” University of Maryland Global Campus,
www.umgc.edu/blog/
how-music-can-help-you-study#:~:text=%E2%80%9CStudying%20can%20be%20stressful%2C%
20and,maintain%20attention%20during%20study%20sessions.%E2%80%9D.
“Credit:August de Richelieu Q+A Does homework still have value? A Johns Hopkins
education expert weighs in.” Johns Hopkins University, hub.jhu.edu/2024/01/
17/are-we-assigning-too-much-homework/
#:~:text=This%20leads%2C%20statistically%2C%20to%20results,cause%E2%80%94this%20%
22result.%22.