Homework: It's Really Not That Important

A few months ago, my wife and I were having a game night with our neighbors. During the games one of our friends, from out of the blue just said, "You know what guys? The thing about homework is, it's just not that important." And this is coming from an Information Systems Master student. His thought was very surprising; however, it did get me thinking.

Was what he said true? Or is he out of his mind? I think every student likes the idea, but deep down inside they won't accept it because they see homework as points. Without points, there is no good grade. Without good grades, there is no diploma. Without a diploma, there is no job. Without a job, well I think you get the idea.

I often see many students who focus completely on points and grades that they forget to learn the material.  They are learning how to get points, but not necessarily learning the course objectives. You know what they are. You see them in the syllabus, and skip over them because you want to see the points and how they breakdown. But as we learn from the improv show Whose Line is it Anyway?, the points don't matter.

I agree with my friend about homework. It's really not that important. What's more important is the learning process. If a student has a perspective of mastering the course's learning objectives, then the points will come. Then the good grades will come, and everything else will fall right in line. A shift from focusing on points and grades to focusing on learning and scholarship, will dramatically change a student's education.