Does Your State Assign More Homework Than Others?

Homework

It’s a safe bet that just about no student actually enjoys doing homework. Far from it: homework is a largely-hated part of school. However, just about every school, starting as young as elementary school, assigns homework regularly. Different schools, of course, assign different amounts of homework, some wildly different from other. Did you know, though, that homework amounts can change dramatically based on the school? Read through this analysis of which states have the most homework to learn more.

Elementary and Middle School

For the most part, elementary school is where homework tends to start. Elementary and middle schoolers may not be learning very difficult concepts, but a small amount of homework can be beneficial in creating study habits in young children. The light homework requirements of these states probably do a good job with that. 

  • Rhode Island: 30 minutes
  • Kansas: 30 minutes
  • Nevada: 30 minutes
  • Oregon: 33 minutes
  • Arkansas: 34.3 minutes

On the other hand, some states take a much more heavy-handed approach, piling on a pretty substantial amount of homework every night. These high-homework states clearly believe that homework is good for their students.

  • California: 56 minutes
  • Maine: 55.7 minutes
  • Louisiana: 54 minutes
  • New Mexico: 54 minutes
  • Washington: 53.1 minutes

High School

Most high schoolers expect a lot of homework. High school requires a lot of effort from many students: it’s tough to juggle extracurriculars, a social life, class work, and homework all at once. These states try and take a light hand to offer students less homework every day. 

  • Kansas: 60 minutes
  • Rhode Island: 60 minutes
  • Utah: 60 minutes
  • Iowa: 62.3 minutes
  • Oklahoma: 63.8 minutes
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What about the other side? Well, some states assign a very significant amount of homework to high schoolers. These states assign more homework than some states assign for college students on average.

  • Vermont: 110 minutes
  • Maine: 107.2 minutes
  • West Virginia: 102 minutes
  • Louisiana: 102 minutes
  • Connecticut: 93 minutes

College

Typically, college leads to more homework. Class time tends to lower, with many students spending drastically less time in class listening to lectures and doing in-class work. Some states take that mindset to homework as well, with a fairly reduced amount of homework on average. 

  • Delaware: 85 minutes
  • Hawaii: 88 minutes
  • New York: 90 minutes
  • Rhode Island: 90 minutes
  • Indiana: 94 minutes

Of course, there are also colleges and states that have a well-earned reputation for being brutal when it comes to homework. These states assign over two hours of college homework daily on average.

  • Idaho: 141.3 minutes
  • Oregon: 140 minutes
  • Nebraska: 135 minutes
  • Wisconsin: 135 minutes
  • Kentucky: 134.3 minutes

Improving Your Grades: Is Homework the Answer?

Reading through this analysis, you may think that the states assigning less homework are less severe on their students and therefore push them far less. After all, homework is a measure of how much someone’s willing to work, which means that more homework should equal higher grades, right?

The evidence shows that you’d probably be wrong. On a state level, there’s really no evidence to show that more homework increases SAT scores or GPA. It seems like homework might be more for show than for actual learning.

Then what’s the answer? The short answer is that easily-accessible, personalized methods of learning seem to have the most impact. Tutoring and online resources like OneClass can have significant impacts. If you’re willing to pursue an alternate method of learning, it may help you much more than just slaving away at homework.

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