Setting Students up for Success

Here's a very interesting article: Setting Students up for Success. One cannot question the wisdom of this article. I posted a comment and I hope to get a reply. There is a natural transition from this article to a criticism of modern homework policy. I wonder if teachers will recognize that issue.  Here's the comment I left:

This is a very interesting article. Now, let's apply it to homework.  The author makes it clear that a teacher can think through the physical setting of the classroom to maximize learning. The teacher has no control over the physical setting of the home. So why do teachers put so much emphasis on homework as part of the learning process? It would seem to disempower teachers to base student grades on work that is not done in class.

Second, the author here talks about must do and may do assignments. When, if ever, do teachers give homework assignments with the labels must do and may do? The author here talks about using this technique in the service of helping children learn to manage time. Without those distinctions, homework works against learning time management since the allocated time can spread out through the night.

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Dr. Kenneth Goldberg, is the author of The Homework Trap: How to Save the Sanity of Parents, Teachers, and Students, published by Wyndmoor Press.