How Much is too Much? The Head-Royce Homework Load

A poll was sent out to students regarding the homework at the School to gain opinions on it. A student, in response to a question about the load, stated “Yes, I think it’s too much and inconsistent. Some days I have three hours of homework, and some days I have one. Also, excluding working on projects, the homework that I have feels meaningless. It doesn’t really “check our understanding” of the lesson that we took for that class earlier in the day. Sometimes we’re told to read something for a class, and the next day all we do is say a few words about it, and then we move on.”

This opinion that the homework load is overbearing in high school is popular amongst students. Many feel that they are being given excessive and sometimes even meaningless work. This extra work creates stress, adding to the pressure of achieving good grades. Furthermore, students who play sports have a large homework load because of their limited time after school due to practice. The need to squeeze tons of extracurriculars to impress colleges leaves no time for studying, causing students to stay up late at night working. This can be problematic because teenagers need at least eight to ten hours of sleep to grow and develop. Thus, the underlying question below is, “Why isn’t the homework load being changed?” 

In 2018-2019, the School partnered with Challenge Success, a non-profit associated with Stanford’s Graduate School designed to elevate students’ voices in schools by gauging the percentage of time students dedicated to homework. Assistant Head of School Joel Sohn explained, “We started with Challenge Success, measuring and asking students, ‘How much time are you spending on homework?’ [In doing so], we got a baseline.” Yet, after the first year with Challenge Success, the overall homework load grew. Notably, juniors and seniors experienced an increase in their load. However, after the pandemic started, homework for underclassmen decreased significantly during remote learning, remaining relatively steady upon returning to in-person classes. Meanwhile, junior and senior work amounts fell slightly but never dipped below the pre-Challenge Success levels. However, a complicating factor emerged when underclassmen advanced to become juniors and seniors. They experienced a significant increase in homework compared to their first two years. This workload shift particularly placed stress on juniors, leading them to feeling underprepared for their classes. 

Although it’s hard to tell, the School is actively addressing this issue. Sohn shared, “My sense is when people ask, ‘Are we doing anything,’ it’s really hard for them to see what is being done because oftentimes it’s done at a faculty meeting or in individual conversations.” The School is consciously taking steps to minimize homework-related stress. Initiatives such as no homework weekends and increased awareness of cultural celebrations are part of the ongoing efforts. Sohn further commented, “Developmentally though, kids can’t do that much work on their own. We just know that. It’s not healthy for them. So, we have to be careful about managing the time component of homework and also managing the type of homework we give.” 

Overall, the homework load is heavy and for many, feels unnecessary at times. Luckily, the school is acting upon reducing student’s work levels by creating more meaningful homework to expand students’ knowledge instead of giving them busy work.