Summary Notes on
"Homework? What Homework?" by J. R. Young, The
Chronicle of Higher Education,
Summarized by J. T. P. Yao,
"The tip given most consistently by professors and college officials is that students should simply do their homework. The most commonly prescribed amount is at least two hours of class preparation for every hour spent in the classroom - meaning 25 to 30 hours a week for a typical full-time student. … Results from the latest National Survey of Student Engagement… found that only 12 percent of last year's freshmen at four-year residential colleges reported spending 26 or more hours per week preparing for classes, while the majority, 63 percent, said they spend 15 or fewer hours on class preparation, which the survey defines as 'studying, reading, writing, rehearsing, and other activities related to your academic program.' … The most striking statistic: nineteen percent of full-time freshmen say they spend only 1 to 5 hours per week for classes. … And seniors who answered the same survey reported studying even less than freshmen, with 20 percent studying 1 to 5 hours per week."
"A national study based on a survey of first-year students, 'The American Freshmen: National Norms for Fall 2001,' shows that time spent studying in high school has steadily dropped since 1987, when questions about the topic were first used in 1987, about 53 percent of students reported spending fewer than 6 hours per week on homework and studying, while in 2001, that number jumped to 65 percent."
"'Grade inflation makes a student think
it's difficult to tolerate a bad grade or two," said… a
"Researchers recommend the following steps for encouraging more or better studying by students:
· Require students to take study-skill courses or to attend orientation sessions that emphasize time management.
· Involve faculty members in campus tours for prospective freshmen, to emphasize the importance of academics.
· Better reward faculty members for teaching and spending time with undergraduates.
· Provide more financial aid or otherwise encourage students to work fewer hours in jobs, to allow more time for studies.
· Create 'learning communities,' in which students are placed in groups of about 25 and share a set of classes to build a better sense of connection to the university and to academic work.
· Take steps to halt grade inflation."
[Readers who are interested in this article are encouraged to read the original paper in its entirety. Other summary notes on faculty reward systems are available on the Internet at http://lohman.tamu.edu under the heading "Summaries of Papers ..."]