The End Of 24 Hour Assignments

In the asynchronous class many fundamental aspects of the schooling process are dramatically altered. A few years ago, I made a large shift in my homework ideology in large part from the results of this student survey. What I learned was that I was treating my class as the center of the universe for students and this was not right. I was giving too many questions too often and while I was providing reassessment opportunities on these assignments they were just way too much for students balancing school, sports, interests, and family. 

Enter Lesson Questions

In rebranding this part of student experience I chose to rename this assignment classification to de-emphasize the drudgery associated with homework. Just putting a new face on something old and disliked wasn't what I was going for so I figured what size of assignment I was typically assigning over a week and packaged that into one somewhat larger assignment. Instead of being due the next day, it was now due the next week. Additionally, students can work on these lesson questions at any time including class.

Respecting The Learning

Seemingly chaotic, asynchronous pacing puts the learner in control of timing and creates autonomous learners who are proficient in time management. After putting these changes in place, what do the students have to say about it? I asked them recently to respond to open ended questions (in bold) regarding their opinions about longer term assignments in place of ones that were due the next day. Here are a selection of their responses (in quotations and italicized).

What do you like about having you Lesson Questions due once a week rather than each day?

"I like it a lot because it gives you the freedom to complete the assignment when you want. You can do a few questions a day, or do it all at once at a time convient for you.Overall, I like it a lot better than 24 hour homework."

"I have more time to do it and i have more time to think and really pay attention because i am not in a rush."

"It gives you the ablility to budget out your time and even finish your homework a few days before its due. Also, it reduces the stress of having it due by the next day. Having many sports to attend it is great to know i can start my homework later."

"I can do more hw when I have time and less hw when I have other activities."

"I like how you dont have to worry about always having to get done like 40 questions a night. This way you can do a little bit each night until the day its due."

"I like having a week to finish my homework assignments because I don't have to worry about rushing to finish. I can take my time and make sure I understand the topic."

"I like having them once a week because it allows me to take time each day to conmplete a few questions and time to work out each question carefully. It is also better because each night I get numerous amounts of other homework assignments so having a week to do these questions lets me focus on just earth science."

Compare getting points taken off for late homework to getting full credit even if its late. Which inspires you to complete your work?

"I would rather have the 2nd option beccause i wouldnt do my work knowing that if its late i would get 50%." 

"Getting full credit on my homework even if its late inspires me to complete my work because not only does it help my grades but when i get fulln credit it makes me want to keep learning and doing my work to get good grades." 

"Getting full credit even when I hand it in late, so that I can feel less rushed and actually learn frm my hw. I wont make it late the next time I submit my homework." 

"If you hand in your homework late most teachers would take off points. But sometimes kids don"t have time to do the homework and hand it in late when it is not there fault. But when you could hand in your homework in late if you have emergencies you still get full credit which is nice." 

"Getting full credit even if its late inspires me to complete my work because knowing that I feel more accomplished getting my homework assignments done early and even if its late it makes me want to fix my mistake and finish the homework to receive credit." 

"I like it when you dont get points off becuase it motivates me to fully complete my homework correctly insteada of having to rush to meet the deadline. It helps me absorb more information so i can learn more." 

"If the teacher is willing to not take off points after the due date then it means they trust you and you should respect that trust and finish as soon as possible." 

"It's the fact that my teacher trusts me to get it done that makes me get it done. I try to stay up to my tasks, especially since it shouldn't take me longer than a week or 24 hours to get them done." 

"to get full credit even if its late makes me more motivated to take my time and answer the questions carefully" 

"I think that getting full credit makes me work harder because I feel like I am getting what it is worth." 

"What inspires me is that it helps me learn more and understand the topic better. And even if you get one question wrong, Mr. Fox will go over it with you. Plus the benefit of not getting any points taken away is a bonus." 

"you feel that you learn much more when you have more time. when it is late you may have Mr Fox talk to you about not completing it but you learned the topic"

Survey Says...

Surprisingly, not one student spoke up for shorter time frame assignments. This corroborated with the multitude of positive unsolicited feedback from students as well as parents and guardians this year relating to assignment timing and my lateness/ reassessment policy. In fact, at back-to-school night after only one month of school I received a standing ovation from a room packed with parents when I mentioned longer term assignments. I feel compelled to bring the learning to my students not force it upon them. By accepting that they lead busy lives filled with interesting, fulfilling activities and accommodating my requirements within their time frame I've been able to build community with a willingness to learn and grow unlike I've seen before. With respectful time frames students then come to the learning on their own with the desire to engage and learn.