the conflict over what or how much homework should be comes partly from the fact that people can't seem to agree on the purpose of homework.
what do teachers think? some teachers think that homework is necessary to reinforce what is learned in school. and so they ask their students to memorize what was discussed in class through homework. some teachers think the point of homework is to cover material that the class didn't
have time to get to, so their homework is to let students learn additional things. other teachers like homework simply because they want students to form work habits and still others believe homework is necessary because it is the best way for parents to learn what their children do in school.
parent's opinions? but many parents seem to have different ideas. elissa cohen, who has twins at lafayette elementary school, doesn't like the fact that the third-grade students in elementary schools are asked to write about 25 book summaries a year. "they do the same thing over and over without
really getting into altertnate ways of thinking about books and thinking about reading and writing."
experts' opinions? some education reformers, such as howard gardner, a harvard university professor, well-known for his theory on multiple intelligence, think that cohen is on the right track.
but it is often hard to persuade overworked teachers to give much thought to homework tasks.
对作业的不同看法
关于应该留什么样的作业或者留多少作业的争论，部分源自于人们似乎无法就作业的目的达成一致这一事实。
老师们怎么想呢?有些老师认为需要作业来巩固在学校中学到的知识，所以他们让学生通过作业记住课堂讨论。有些老师认为作业的意义在于覆盖那些课堂上无暇涉及的
知识，所以他们留的作业是让学生学习额外的知识。 另外有些老师喜欢留作业就是因为他们想让学生形成工作的习惯，还有一些老师相信有必要留作业是因为这是让家长了
解孩子在校学习情况的最佳途径。 ：
家长的意见呢?但好多家长似乎对此有着不同看法。依莉萨·科恩有一对双胞胎在雷菲特小学读书，她就不喜欢小学三年级的学生被要求一年完成大约25篇读书总结。“他们重复做着同样的事情，而并没有真正把思考书本与思考阅读和写作的方法结合起来。”
专家的意见呢?有些教育改革家，例如以多重智力理论著称的哈佛大学教授霍华德，加德纳，认为科恩的想法完全正确。
但是通常很难说服那些过度辛劳的老师们去仔细思考家庭作业的问题。