Should schools get rid of homework? Some educators are saying yes

Federal data suggests that the amount of math homework assigned to fourth and eighth grade students, in particular, has been steadily declining. Stanislaw Pytel/ hide caption toggle caption Stanislaw Pytel/ A few days into the new semester this January, the LaSalle Parish school district in rural Louisiana made a pronouncement: No more homework. Since then, none of the 2,500 students in this district — from the youngest learners up through high school seniors — have been required to do schoolwork at home. Parents can request practice problems if they'd like, Superintendent Jonathan Garrett said, but that work won't be mandatory or graded. Homework assignments, it turned out, were among the biggest sources of complaints Garrett had heard from parents and students over the years. "When there was a negative feeling about school, it usually stemmed from what kids are bringing home, the frustrations they feel completing that, and that parents and guardians feel trying to help them complete it," he said in an interview. Beyond that, Garrett said the move was driven by concerns – shared by many educators – that much of the homework students are assigned – especially in math – is needlessly repetitive, takes too long to complete and hasn't adapted to the challenges posed by Artificial Intelligence. The response to Garrett's announcement was swift — and overwhelmingly positive. …