A New Start and New Homework Policies

After a year of condensed curriculums, schedule changes, and adjusted assignment levels, the return to in-person school has left many students wondering about the homework policy for religious and cultural holidays. The celebration of widespread or national holidays such as Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years Eve, and Presidents Week are recognized by breaks with no homework assigned. 

However, inconsistent policies for other holidays, like Yom Kippur (which recently passed) and Diwali, affect many Head-Royce students. One junior recalls that in past years when she missed school to celebrate Diwali with her family, she was not able to fully enjoy it because of the amount of homework her teachers assigned, on top of school work she had already missed.

Individual teachers currently have different policies for religious or cultural holidays. In the case of Yom Kippur, some gave no homework at all, while others assigned just as much as usual. 

Ricky Lapidus, the recently elected Head of Upper School, is aware of this dilemma. He is currently working with some teachers, aiming to give students “clarification and consistency” on homework policies. The revised policies will be released soon, but in the meantime, Lapidus is leaving it up to teachers to use their “teacherly judgement” and give students “grace and leeway” if they have a conflict. 

If you are looking for more things to write about, maybe research other schools and their perspectives on this, or workplaces, or even colleges.