If there is one thing that many college students can agree on, it is the fact that we do not take any enjoyment in homework, and we simply do not like doing it.
However, there are benefits to having but more importantly, doing homework. Homework in college is different than the homework usually assigned in high school.
Long gone are the days of being required to use twenty vocabulary words in sentences. We are now past the years of having teachers assign us homework which involves coloring, drawing and turning it in the next day for credit.
Homework in college is meant to serve as an additional learning experience outside of the classroom to ensure that students are fully grasping the material. If students do not practice what they learn in the classroom, how can they be prepared for the exam?
This is one of those situations where practice really does make perfect. Putting to use the material you get from the textbook, as well as class lectures, is what tells you where you stand in regards to how much you have actually learned. Simply being in a class and reading the textbook does not automatically constitute learning. Putting in the effort to test your knowledge, by doing homework is what alerts you as to what you have actually learned.
For instance, in a math class the benefits of doing homework on a regular basis should be obvious. As a finance major, and s o m e o n e who has to take more math classes than I would like, homework in these classes is vital to your survival. Doing homework helps with preparation for the next class, and it will outline your strengths and weaknesses in a class, as well as tell you what you need to have clarified by your professor. Not doing homework can be the quickest way to fall behind. The last thing anyone wants is to feel totally lost in a class that is a major requirement.
On the other hand, there are some classes where the homework assigned feels like busy work meant to take up the valuable time you could be spending doing something you actually enjoy.
How many times have students been forced to do homework that is not remotely related to what will be on an exam, nor does it better our understanding of the course material? How many times have we had to read pages and pages of things we can’t even remember minutes after reading it for a literature or history class, only to feel like we are wasting our time because the class does not require a formal exam, but rather, a “final essay”?
As much as we all really hate busy work, especially on our own time, at the end of the day, homework is homework, and it still needs to be done and taken seriously. Although it is natural that we put a little more effort into some classes than others, it is important to remember that there is a plus side to homework. Besides using homework as a method of self assessment, many professors give homework grades or they count grades given for homework as class participation. Why risk the chance of missing out on free points because you didn’t feel like giving up 30 minutes or so of your day?
Not to sound too much like an echo of your professors (or like your mother), I want to stress (especially to first year students) the importance of doing homework. Although it may seem like you can start (or continue) blowing off homework now that you are in college, I can almost guarantee that it will eventually catch up to you because negative academic habits only work for so long before they become a major problem.
For those in need of advice on how to stay on top of homework, the first step is staying organized. A huge part of doing homework is remembering that it was assigned. If you find yourself forgetting that you were assigned homework the minute you walked out of the classroom, get a planner and use it. Write all of your assignments for each day in one place, and be sure to keep track of due dates. If you can keep the assignments and their due dates, you are on the right track.
The next step in staying on top of homework is to find a system that works for you in terms of how the assignments should be done. Some students prefer to designate a certain day of the week and spend several hours doing homework, others prefer to do a little at a time every day. What works for one person may not work for another because academics is not one size fit all.
However, it is important to make sure that homework does not pile up until the point where it becomes overwhelming. If you know that the homework assigned for one particular class is time consuming, it might be best to work on it a little at a time and give yourself a few days to get it done.
With good organization and an effective system, any student can get back on track when it comes to his or her homework. Consistently doing homework can cause a steady improvement in grades and show professors that you care about the class and learning
