How teachers can encourage young children’s learning at home - reflections in the light of the lockdown by Tony Eaude

The importance and value of homework, especially for young children, has for many years been a matter of dispute. Some argue that it provides a valuable opportunity to reinforce and extend what has been taught in school and for children to develop good work habits, such as following instructions and organizing themselves. Others see it as frequently pointless and tokenistic, often adding to children’s stress; and Hattie (2012) argues that 116 studies from around the world which he studied indicate that homework has almost no effect on children’s learning when they are at primary school. Holte (2016) even suggests that homework can be counterproductive, if children get over-tired, lose interest in school and develop poor work habits such as rushing tasks rather than completing them carefully and thoughtfully. This article responds to Holte’s (2016) question ‘could homework be made more child-friendly?’ by reflecting on what has happened during the ‘lockdown’ when most children were not attending school for several weeks from March 2020 because of fears related to the Covid-19 pandemic. It is based on the beliefs that: there is much more to education than what is learned at school or taught by teachers and that children’s learning should be seen holistically; and

‘home learning’ is a much broader notion than homework (sent from school), to include learning in other contexts such as the family, voluntary, sporting or faith-based groups and more informal opportunities. I explore how the work set by schools could help to increase children’s engagement and independence and draw on these sources of learning, being as inclusive as possible, without becoming burdensome for teachers. How valuable homework is depends to a considerable extent on what is expected and how the activities are perceived by teachers, parents and above all children. Though many teachers provide imaginative challenges, homework too often consists mostly of reading, learning spellings and/or practising what has been taught at school. One significant problem is that middle-class parents can, and do, provide more support than those who are less highly-educated and confident about what the teacher expects, though they may also exert undue pressure. As a result, there is a danger that complicated homework increases the gap between those children who are supported at home and those who are not. But very simple, easily completed, homework provides minimal challenge to most children and becomes little more than a chore. During the lockdown, many schools sent work electronically to be completed at home and most families accessed other electronic resources, both to enhance children’s learning and to keep them entertained. Among these resources were taught lessons and quizzes, most of which were, in my view, too teacher-directed, based on expecting children simply to answer questions and memorize factual knowledge, rather than encouraging them to exercise their creativity. The lockdown demonstrated that most children over the age of about seven can communicate via technology with each other, with adult oversight where necessary; and even very young children have become more familiar with using video technology. While the research on the results of the lockdown is inevitably tentative, Müller and Goldenberg (2020) provide an overview of evidence about the pandemic and responses to this internationally. They conclude that ‘students’ success with home learning depends on their ability to access online learning, to study independently and the support they receive from home’ (2020, p. 17); and that ‘children from more deprived schools are less likely to complete the work set by their teachers, more likely to do work of a lower quality than their usual standard and less likely to have access to devices to help them access learning from home.’ (2020, p. 13) It seems, unsurprisingly, that those children who are most socially disadvantaged found it hard to access or use such resources because the necessary hardware is not available or they have to compete with siblings to use it; and even when they can do so may not have the necessary space or undisturbed environment which more advantaged families take for granted. Müller and Goldenberg also cite previous research which suggests that the learning missed or forgotten

during school closures (including long holidays) tends to affect younger children more than older ones. An Education Endowment Foundation report on distance learning (EEF, 2020) indicates that supporting pupils to work independently can improve learning outcomes and that peer interaction in distance learning – for example utilising peer marking, live discussions of lesson content, and sharing models of good work – was effective in motivating pupils and improving outcomes, though this may relate more to older than younger students. Such conclusions highlight the importance of adults, ideally teachers, in providing on-going guidance, support and feedback, especially for those children least experienced at, or capable of, learning on their own. In encouraging home learning, and setting homework, teachers must take account of the home environment, particularly the availability of technology and the space and undisturbed time to use it, and what level and type of support different children may need, as well as deciding what younger and older children can reasonably be expected to do. The experience during the lockdown of home learning suggests ways in which homework could be more meaningful and engaging. One, admittedly anecdotal, example of what was possible for a seven year old keen on sport was that he created over several days a powerpoint presentation with a range of information about football teams; and went on to devise the schedule for a tournament ensuring that this was fair to all twenty teams participating. Both activities proved both motivating and challenging. I suggest that, to encourage children’s creativity and engagement, homework should be: • enjoyable; child-led; different from school work; divergent; and (ideally) collaborative To enable this, teachers should try to draw on children’s ‘funds of knowledge’, a term used by Gonzales, Moll and Amanti (2005) to describe the types of knowledge which many children from disadvantaged backgrounds and minority cultures have, but which tend not to be highly valued in schools. These often involve practical activities such as cooking, childcare, growing plants and fishing – to give just a few examples. However, the idea can be extended to include many activities and interests of which the schooling system takes little or no account, but which children enjoy. These can be as diverse as chess or computer games, electronics or geology, knowledge of dinosaurs, martial arts or sacred texts – and many more. Such knowledge may be useful in the future but not necessarily so – but that is not the point, since much of what we learn is worthwhile for its own sake. Adults should not underestimate what young children can do on their own, but must remember the importance of guidance and feedback, to steer and channel children’s enthusiasm. Child-led work is likely to be divergent, that is to go off at tangents and into unexpected, often fascinating, places, so that its outcomes cannot be known with any certainty in advance. But most young children find individual work hard to sustain, without structure and help, so homework which encourages discussion and collaboration with friends or family (including siblings, parents, grandparents and perhaps others) is likely to help children keep going when they lose their enthusiasm or get stuck. I suggest that to meet the criteria above homework should involve sustained projects, researching an area in which the children are interested, ideally in groups of between two and four. While individual projects can be motivating, there is a risk of losing momentum, unless other people provide support. Groups larger than four become hard (for children and adults) to manage and make it too easy for some children to ‘tail-gate’, that is to rely on others who are more confident or work more quickly. Children should be encouraged to: • be divergent and follow their own lines of enquiry or interest, so that their knowledge is extended into

new, often unfamiliar, areas, rather than what the teacher demands; and use different ways of recording their work, such as drawings, different types of writing, photographs, graphs, models, video or powerpoint presentations with reading, almost inevitably, taking place in a meaningful context. Teachers need to be sensitive to personal circumstances and family and cultural concerns. Otherwise, I suggest that the topic does not matter much as long as the children are interested. Possible broad areas might include: the local neighbourhood; animals or birds; our families; different countries; space; toys and games;

music and dancing; vehicles; or food However, a more specific focus within such broad topics is required if children are to know what questions to ask and what to research and do, particularly if there is little adult support at home. Teachers may initially need to prove a strong steer on this, though, as children become more experienced at this way of working, they will get used to deciding such a focus and selecting more sophisticated areas to study. I suggest that children should be allowed to decide how much they want to do. This will help to avoid too much stress and enable those with additional needs to take part. However, a minimum expectation will need to be agreed each week with the teacher, if momentum is to be maintained. The appropriate length of any topic will depend on the age of the children and their experience of working in this way. But five and six year olds can

sustain this over a two or three week period and older children over several weeks, though interest in any such project will flag at some point. Some children may also like to adopt a similar approach over holiday periods. Children should be expected to complete such projects largely at their own pace and then come together in school to share their findings with other children and the teacher - perhaps on the lines of ‘something I/we found out that’s really interesting’ or presenting their finished work. Information is readily available through the internet (and all too easy to cut and paste) so, as children become more used to this type of work, they should increasingly be expected to discuss their work with other people, adults or other children, who can ask questions, challenge their conclusions and suggest new ideas. I suggest that such sessions should take place at least every week to maintain interest and decide on new lines of enquiry. This also, importantly, gives teachers the opportunity to provide additional feedback and support, for those who are finding it difficult. If schools are able to make devices available to those who do not have them at home, the availability of hardware can be addressed to some extent. If children do not have enough space and time at home, schools might consider sessions where some children can work with adult support in school but out of school hours, alongside or instead of booster classes which tend to offer more of what children experience in school. Working in this way provides the chance for home learning to become parallel to what happens in school, rather than just ‘more of the same’; and to be more meaningful and engaging for children so that they become both more independent and, ideally, able to work in groups, so fostering a sense of collective agency and achievement. While, like any good teaching, such an approach requires careful planning, much of the detailed planning can, and should, be in the hands of the children, helping them to develop good work habits. Moreover, it does not involve teachers having to mark endless worksheets of sums and spellings. In terms of assessment, it is vital that, if children are to see home learning as different from schoolwork, teachers do not insist on grading the results. But the work must be celebrated and assessed (in a more general sense) if it is to be seen as important and given status by children and their parents. The lockdown has highlighted some possibilities for how young children’s desire to learn can be drawn on and encouraged; and their sense of agency enhanced. In suggesting this approach so that homework provides greater breadth and enrichment of children’s learning, I emphasize that this is not a substitute for breadth and balance in the formal school curriculum. A change of thinking on the part of many teachers will be required, which is never easy, and these are only suggestions, to be adapted according to specific contexts. But I hope to have offered some pointers to how homework can be made more child-friendly and meaningful for primaryage children, while being manageable for teachers.

References EEF (Education Endowment Foundation) (2020) Best evidence on supporting students to learn remotely. London, EEF. Gonzales, N., L. Moll and C. Amanti (2005) Funds of Knowledge. Mahwah, Lawrence Erlbaum. Hattie, J. (2012) Visible learning for teachers: maximising impact on learning. London, Routledge. Holte, K. L. (2016) Homework in primary school: could it be made more child-friendly? Studia paedagogica, 21 (4), 13-33. Müller, L-M. and G. Goldenberg (2020) A review of research evidence on school closures and international approaches to education during the COVID-19 pandemic. London, Chartered College of Teaching available at https://my.chartered. college/wpcontent/uploads/2020/05/CCTReport150520_ FINAL.pdf Dr Tony Eaude established and runs ‘New Perspectives’ a small, independent educational consultancy.