Homework Policy

The homework system should encourage the well-motivated student. It should not overburden students with work which is impossible to complete in a reasonable period of time.

Homework should be effective and so:

  1. The student should understand the task to be completed.
  2. The resources for the homework should be readily available.
  3. It should be possible to complete the task in the set time.
  4. The work should be linked to Schemes of Work.
  5. The teacher should have time to collect, evaluate and assess the work before returning it to the student.
  6. Homework should be organised through the use of the College Planner.

Students should be left in no doubt as to the length of homework and the number of subjects they are to receive on any particular night.

Parents should be able to easily monitor the amount of homework received by their children and should have defined channels of communication through which to contact the college regarding homework.

The Purpose Of Homework

Properly designed homework can play a valuable part in a student's education.

  1. It offers opportunities for work which is independent of the teacher.
  2. It can exploit materials and sources of information which are not accessible in the classroom.
  3. It allows students to complete work started in college and to practise skills learned in class.
  4. It permits the setting of tasks suitable to individual students and it can help to strengthen links between home and college/school, involving the parent in their child's learning.
  5. Homework can invite students to pursue their own lines of enquiry on particular topics and provide them with the valuable experience of working by themselves.
  6. There is a strong link between homework and educational achievement. The completion of homework can increase the time available for study by nearly 25%, and over a 5 year period this can be equivalent to at least one additional year of full-time education.
  7. It helps to counter the argument that learning is confined within the walls of the classroom.
  8. Regular completion of homework is essential if a student wishes to realise his or her full potential.

How Can Parents Help?

We ask parents to support us in seeing that homework is done conscientiously and in the best possible conditions. A room where your child can study quietly and comfortably without distractions is the ideal.

There are many ways in which you can encourage and support your child in the completion of homework.

  1. By checking the presentation of the work, including spelling and handwriting.
  2. By testing what has been set to be learned.
  3. By listening to, and reading what has been written.
  4. By asking for explanations about the subject being studied.

Try to have available a few books which can be consulted eg: dictionary, atlas, encyclopaedia.

Items of equipment - pens, pencils, a calculator etc. should also be readily available.

Check through your child's student planner, see that all the work has been done and then sign it.

Student Planners

Time will be allowed during the lesson for the completion of your child's Student Planner. It is important that it is filled in correctly and kept up to date as it is a valuable record for staff, students and parents.

If the work is set to last over a number of homework allocations this should be clearly marked in the planner at the time the work is set.

Parents are asked to check their child's Student Planner/Homework Diary and sign it on a weekly basis, adding any comments they may feel appropriate.

How Much Homework?

The nature of homework itself makes it more difficult to organise and control than classwork. It is not only undertaken without the direct supervision of a teacher but it is also subject to pressure from other activities and it takes place in a variety of home conditions. For these reasons it is not possible to state precise amounts of time which should be allocated. As guidance, however, students in Years 7-9 should be set approximately between 7-10 hours per week, and in Years 10-11 between 10 and 15 hours per week.

What About GCSE?

The demands of GCSE coursework make it necessary to set homework in advance and therefore a degree of flexibility is necessary. A timetable of GCSE assignment deadlines will normally be drawn up for students and parents.

A Word Of Warning!

While we like to encourage parents to become involved in helping their children with homework, GCSE assignments demand that the work submitted should be that of the student only. To help your child directly with aspects of GCSE assignments will infringe the examination regulations and could invalidate the work.

What If There Are Problems?

Communication is the key! If you are worried about any aspect of homework, for example too much or even too little on certain nights, or problems caused by other commitments then the following procedure should help.

If there is a problem with one particular subject, then first contact the relevant Curriculum Leaders.

Art - Mrs V Robinson

Business & Enterprise - Mr V Groak

English - Mrs J Creese

Humanities (History, Geography, RE) - Miss S Byrne

Information Technology - Mrs J Guilliatt

Mathematics - Mrs C Riden

Modern Languages - Miss D Parker

Music - Miss S Boothroyd

Physical Education - Mr M Birtwhistle

Citizenship - Mr R Colbert

Science - Mr S Larsen

Learning Support - Miss L Ciechanowski

Technology - Mr I Farrell

If there is an overall problem with homework in a number of subjects then please contact the teacher in charge of the pastoral teams, ie your child's Head of House.

House Name Head Of House
Cygnus Mrs M Toyne
Indus Mrs C Yates
Lyra Mr R Colbert
Orion Mr D Mitchell
Perseus Mr M Birtwhistle
Vela Mrs T Webb

If you receive a communication from college (either a letter or a telephone call) we do ask that it is treated very seriously. If your child receives a Code of Conduct or a detention for failing to complete or present homework, we ask you to support our efforts to encourage your child to establish a normal homework routine.

A deterioration in the quality of homework presented becomes the shared responsibility of both home and College.

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