Learning & 

Teaching.

Rethinking Homework through our Home Learning Portal

Homework is often the source of much frustration from parents, students and teachers. So is it all worth it? The current research into homework isn’t as clear as a yes or a no. In his meta-analysis of educational research Hattie found that homework did have an effect on learning for high school students, however had minimal impact on primary students' learning. One reason he stated for this was that high school students were old enough to work independently and critically think about the homework set for them. This is not always the case for primary students who are still developing their critical thinking skills. 

So what does this mean for homework at St Joseph's? We value life long learning so it doesn't mean we throw out homework, we just need to think about it in a different way to ensure that learning at home is a positive and purposeful experience. To begin with, we are throwing out the word ‘Homework” and calling it what it is, Home Learning! Learning is a process that is unique to each student and it is key to growth and change. As suggested in Hattie’s study Home Learning should not be about students grappling with new or difficult concepts, this is what they do at school under the guidance of teachers who use up to date researched teaching practises. Home Learning is an opportunity for students to practise and share the skills they have been learning at school. Unfortunately how students learn today looks very different to when we were learning. Research continues to show that memorising or rote learning content does not support students to be critical, creative thinkers and these thinking and problem solving skills are key to students being successful lifelong learners.

To ensure parents share our understanding of learning and can better support their children we are relaunching our Remote Learning Site as our Home Learning Portal! Through this portal our learning communities will share ideas for learning at home that will embed skills your children are learning at school. They will also share student work and videos to show what learning looks like at St Joseph’s. The aim of the portal is to continue to create a shared understanding of learning so we can support students to continue to grow.

With students home for the next few days, we have shared some learning ideas on our new Home Learning Portal for parents who would like to engage their child in learning during lockdown. As we are only in lockdown for 3 three days it is not a requirement for students to complete the shared tasks. The tasks are designed to support children to practise the skills they have been learning over the past couple of weeks. All students were sent home with extra readers and an exercise book on Friday and teachers shared a slideshow with learning suggestions for your children. The slideshow has also been shared on our Remote Learning site and are linked below.

Click on the links below to go straight to your child's Learning Community page.

While some parents may not use these, we do ask that students continue to read each night and practise some writing skills each day. We also encourage you to practise their maths skills through games or real life experiences such as cooking. If you need further support with any learning please contact your classroom teacher. We look forward to seeing you all back on Thursday.

Just Remember!!

Learning is a process that is unique to each student and takes time.  Don’t get fooled by companies who create books such as these “NAPLAN” practise books. 

These do not help your child’s learning and give the wrong message that learning is about remembering and tests. If you would like to know more talk to your classroom teacher about the best way to support your child’s learning at home.