Educators have argued over the value and importance of homework for decades. They have argued over the amount of time students should spend on homework, whether parents should be involved, and at what age homework should start. According Robert Marzano (2007), there are a number of recommendations regarding homework: homework should be structured; amount of time spent on homework should be carefully considered; homework should have a clear purpose that aligns to the learning objectives; students should be able to complete the homework independently; and parents and guardians should be involved in appropriate ways (p. 71). Many of these recommendations resonate in Classroom instruction that work with English language learners. Hill and Flynn (2006) assert the amount of time spent on homework should increase as students get older; parental involvement should be minimal; the purpose of homework should be clearly articulated; and feedback must be given on homework assignments (p. 78-79). Homework for ESL students needs to take other factors in consideration. For example, teachers must consider their language proficiency, access to technology at home, and how much parents or guardians can help (do the parents or guardians have any English skills of their own?).
In my classroom, I will need to take into consideration my students literacy skills and their access to technology. I strongly believe the way students become better readers is to read, and this will be the focus on my homework routine for students. Students will be expected to read for 30 minutes four days a week. I chose four days because many of my students will be working or responsible for taking care of siblings. I must keep this in mind. Students will have many options for reading materials. Below is a small list of what they can read:
- Novel
- Poetry
- Magazines
- Newspapers
- Reading for another class
- Internet sites
- Short stories
- Reading aloud to a sibling or parent
There are many ways for students to engage in reading and I intend on giving students every option available to them. Choice in reading increases student engagement in reading. Students won’t just read though. They will complete a task related to their reading. They will pick one task per week to complete. Each week students have to choose a different task—they cannot chose the same one more than once every nine weeks. This assignment will be due on Monday of the following week. The activities they can choose from are below:
- One pager
- Text Connections graphic organizer (minimum of 4 connections)
- Summarization pyramid
- Marking up the text
- Storybird summary
- Blog Book Talk
This list will grow throughout the year; however, at the start of the school year, it will take some time to familiarize them with the different tasks. The objective of this particular structure is to have my students engage in authentic reading. Rather than my students just reading, they will need to extend their understanding of the text in many different ways. Each of the tasks engages them in their text in a different way: summarizing, making connections, annotating the text, and synthesis. Each task will have specific feedback from me including the thoughtfulness of their responses, thoroughness of completion, and writing skills (this will used as a way to give feedback on their writing). Technology will play a role in homework. Depending on the task chosen, students will need access to a computer. I will be available to students before and after school in the computer lab to give them access if they need it. Parents and guardians will be informed of this homework policy at the beginning of the year. The will encourage them to read along with their student or have their child read to them.
Marzano, R. (2007). The art and science of teaching: A comprehensive framework for effective instruction. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Hill, J. & Flynn, K. (2006). Classroom instruction that works with English language learners. Alexandria, VA:ASCD.
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