Rationale
The school believes that homework and the ability to work independently away from school is an essential part of all students' education. It gives opportunity to extend and consolidate work done in class; it encourages the production of creative, reflective and investigative work independent of the teacher; it also develops skills in personal organisation and a sense of responsibility. Home learning is an essential part of preparation for examinations and it is vital that students dedicate time learning key information required for exam success. Home learning also provides a valuable opportunity for teachers to assess the progress of students and use this to inform future learning.
The Responsibility of the School
Teachers will set appropriate tasks according to the school's home learning guidelines. The nature of the task will vary considerably and can range from completion of short activities (such as completing worksheets or low stakes quizzes) to extended tasks. Where extended tasks are set over a number of weeks these should be broken down into a series of smaller steps for students to complete.
Show My Homework (SMHW) / SatchelOne
All home learning is recorded using the Show My Homework (SatchelOne) area. Details of the home learning also be explained in class so that students know what they have to do and can ask questions relating to its completion.
Students can communicate issues with home learning via Show My Homework or via the class teacher's email address.
When home learning is not completed on time teachers will take appropriate action to ensure that students complete the work. This will involve detaining a student to complete the task. If a student fails to hand in work regularly then the teacher will contact parents and inform them of this concern. If concerns continue then the student will be placed in after school detention with a faculty leader.
Show My Homework allows parents to view their son/daughter's homework online. Login details have been issued to all parents of current students who are contact 1 for their child. Other adults with parental responsibility may request login details. Parents of new Y7 students will be sent login details towards the end of September.
For any queries, please email SMHW initially at [email protected]. Otherwise, contact the school on [email protected]
The Responsibility of the Student
All students are expected to fully complete home learning tasks to the best of their ability by the deadline set. If a task has not been completed then students will be detained in order to complete the task. If students have difficulty completing the task then they should discuss this with the teacher before the deadline.
Show My Homework (SMHW) / SatchelOne
Students are expected to use the Show My Homework site to access their home learning tasks on a daily basis.
Absences from school
Students are expected, wherever possible, to complete home learning tasks set in their absence. On returning to school, students should find out what tasks need to be completed and the due date. If necessary the students should discuss with their teacher a later date for the work to be completed
The Responsibility of the Parent
We expect parents to take an interest in their child's homework and encourage them to complete it to the best of their ability. The following guidelines are offered to support parents in establishing good routines for home learning.
- Encourage students to find a suitable comfortable and quiet place for completing home learning task, ideally an area that has a table. This area should be free of distraction such as TV, music etc.
- Establishing a regular routine e.g. 4.30 - 6.00 pm every weekday is home learning time. This will be helpful in setting up good habits.
- Use Show My Homework log in to access the Home Learning site to check all home learning recorded for their child/children.
- Use email or Arbor to communicate with teaching staff if there is an issue
