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Ways to Increase the Likelihood that Your Homework Assignments WILL Get Turned In

It has happened to all of us. You give a student a homework assignment. You go over the correct procedure for completing it. You explain what you want. You explain when you want it. You even send the directions home to your students’ parents. But, when it’s time for the homework assignment to be turned in, it isn’t. You are at a loss. Nothing seems to work. So, what do you do? Do you stop giving homework assignments? Do you punish the students? Do you drive yourself crazy trying to get your students to care enough to do the work? The following are solutions to your homework problem:

Shortened Assignments

Shorten the homework assignment. I know…I know. You feel like the students are winning when you shorten the assignment. However, you can’t think of it like that. This isn’t tug of war. This is education. And, yes, homework is a great way to reinforce the skills covered during regular class sessions. However, if the students are not doing it, are you “really” achieving your goal? So, try compromising instead

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Shortening the homework assignment is also a plus for you. This means there is less work for you to grade. And, remember, you should not be grading a whole bunch of homework assignments anyway.

Give Students a Choice

We all like having a choice. Your students are the same way. They want to be able to make some decisions about their learning process. Provide students with a choice of assignments to complete for homework. This is especially important when you are working with middle and high school students. No, you don’t have to sacrifice the rigor of the assignment, but you can offer alternate assignments that have the same level of rigor and that reinforce the same skill. It simply takes a little planning on your part.

Examples of Student Choice include:

Allowing the students to choose the topic.
Allowing them to choose between 2 different topics.
Using Choice Boards for assignments.
Allowing the students to choose the format of their assignment.
Allow group assignments.

Student Interest

Students can be fickle. However, it is so much easier to get them to do their homework when it is centered around something that they are interested in. Not all your homework assignments can be about monster trucks, playing basketball, or the latest trend on social media. However, you can find a way to incorporate some of their favorite topics into their homework assignments.

One way to do that is to use Student Interest Inventories. These allow students to have a voice in their own learning process.

Student Contracts

Students are never too young to learn about responsibility. Student contracts are a good way to teach them about self-control and reliability. Students who habitually don’t turn in their homework can be placed on student contracts.

What’s the purpose of a Student Contract?

These contracts should outline the teacher expectation. They should clearly identify the problem. In this case, the problem is that the student isn’t turn in his/her assignments. The contract should also focus on a solution to his problem. It should include the steps for correcting this problem. And, it should also detail the consequences of failing to complete any homework assignments. Student contracts will help to make students responsible for their own educational destiny. They can also help to prepare students for the “real world” were there are consequences for not completing tasks or for having poor performance at work.

Vary the Format

Not every student learns the same. While some students are visual learners, some students are auditory learners. Let’s not forget that some students are tactile learners. One size certainly doesn’t fit all when it comes to education. So, make it a point to have a variety of activities for your students to complete that address the different learning styles. Instead of worksheets, try video assignments. Instead of paragraphs or essays, have your students create blog posts.

Rewards & Praise

Who doesn’t like to be recognized for the great things that they do? I know I do, and so do most students. Praise and reward the students who turn in their homework assignments. Make it a big deal. Give them that pat on the back. Tell them that they are doing a great job. If you can, give them a “Shout Out” across the intercom for consistently turning in their homework. If that’s not possible, then find a way to display some of their best work. Giving your students praise will work wonders. It will motivate them to continue to complete their homework. Plus, it will give those students who are not turning in their homework an incentive to begin completing their work. Gone are the days that students will turn in their homework because it’s the right thing to do. Most of todays’ students need some type of an incentive.

Provide Time during Class

Homework is to be done at home, right? Well, not necessarily. For students who are less likely to complete their homework at home, allowing time during class to complete assignments could be beneficial. Some students simply don’t have the time when they get home. Others may not have parents or guardians who can help them with their homework. Unfortunately, there are those students who are simply too unconcerned to do it. No matter what the reason, it can be to your advantage to provide students with a few minutes during class to begin working on homework assignments.

However, you shouldn’t stop class for your students to start on homework. Instead, you can devote the last few minutes of your class to starting homework assignments. This way, students who are confused or those who need help will have the opportunity to ask questions.

Review Homework

If you give it, check it. Please be respectful of your students’ and their parents’ time. If you assign homework, be courteous enough to check some of it. And, definitely make a point of reviewing it with your students. This way they will be able to identify their mistakes and avoid making the same ones in the future.

Parental Involvement

Young mother and daughter working on homework

I can’t emphasize enough the impact of parental involvement. When your students aren’t turning in their homework assignments, your first step should be to make parental contact. Parents can be your best asset.

You can keep them informed by sending home class newsletters. You can send them home with your students. To ensure that these newsletters reach your parents, you can also send them via email. You can post pertinent information on your classroom’s or your school’s social media website. You can also use other apps to contact your parents.

It can be frustrating when your students don’t turn in their homework assignments. However, the above strategies can be used to increase the likelihood of your homework assignments being turned in.