Classroom Practices that Work-Providing Homework and Practice

According to Robert Marzano’s Classroom Instruction that works, the fourth of the nine instructional strategies proven to increase student success is Homework and Practice.
With schooling only occupying 13% of the waking hours of the first 18 years of life, which is less than the time spent watching television, homework has become necessary for teachers in order to extend the school day, and to provide necessary practice opportunities for students.
Much research has been done on the effectiveness of homework. Homework assigned in high school achieves the most gain, approximately 24 percentage points, however, in middle school the gain is much less, coming in at 12 percentage points with elementary coming in with a debate over the percentage of effective gain in the elementary grades. Researchers go on to say, even though the correlation between homework and test scores is weak, elementary students should be asked to do some homework.

Not all homework is equal. Homework that is assigned and not commented on by the teacher only has a percentile gain of 11 points; however, if a teacher provides feedback on the homework, the percentile grows to a 30 point gain.

There are many other aspects that Marzano discusses as it relates to homework, but one significant aspect we cannot ignore is the effect of practice on learning a new skill. His research tells us that students must have at least 24 opportunities for focused practice in order to achieve 80% competency with that skill.

So how does Marzano’s research on homework and practice relate to us as technology educators? This research has bearing on the teaching and learning of technology skills as well as academic ones. It also has potential when teaching fellow educators as well as students.
If we know that homework has a positive effect on learning a skill set, then we must provide this as a component to learning when training others in technology skills. The people we teach about technology should practice those skills independently in order to develop an adequate proficiency level. However, how often do we demonstrate and then disappear, with no further expectations for practice and follow-up?

Incorporating training that utilizes a practice component will improve personal computer use as well as have an impact on classroom instructional practices. Not only must we provide those opportunities for practice through mentoring, but we must provide the necessary feedback on student practice attempts. Using this research best practice through educational technology will allow those we teach to both extend their knowledge, but refine their technology skills.