Only logged in members can reply and interact with the post.
Join SimilarWorlds for FREE »

How much repetition should there be in math homework?

Most of us agree that some repetition helps us to be more fluent in certain problem-solving techniques. It is not a substitute for understanding theory, however. So, how repetitive should homework be?
eMortal · M
They say for 2 hours of lecture, you need 8hrs of home.
4hrs of lecture, you need 16hrs of homework. Statistics prove that 8hrs homework can actually take 12-20hrs to finish.
Moral of the story, if you're taking a math or physics class a semester, don't take anything else.

They said there's hard evidence that students do homework outperform does who don't.

Finland crushed all those theories.
They do far less homework yet outperform US and UK students in International PISA tests. Check the 2016 results, in Math, Reading and Science.
33person · 26-30, M
@eMortal So, in other words, you are not advocating the 4 hours per hour of class, right?
eMortal · M
@33person 4 hours class per week, that ok. 16hrs homework after that is ridiculous.
eMortal · M
@33person that system doesn't create thinkers, just some good robots.
This comment is hidden. Show Comment
This comment is hidden. Show Comment
33person · 26-30, M
@Glambarber Sometimes I think that there are certain people who are on in the morning and others who are on at night, so I assume, perhaps incorrectly, that the second time I posted it, most of the people hadn't seen it before. So I'd be getting answers from a different set of people.
This comment is hidden. Show Comment
REMsleep · 41-45, F
You asked a similar ? Yesterday can I ask the reason behind this question, curious?
33person · 26-30, M
@REMsleep I am a graduate math student and will be a professor, and I have been obsessed with this issue ever since I was 10. I have had teachers in that time who have given very repetitive homework and teachers who have given almost none. I have found that I tend to do well in classes where there is repetitive homework, but I have not had such a class since high school. Ever since then, I have been assigned a small number of very time-consuming problems.
REMsleep · 41-45, F
@33person I believe that at college level especially a graduate degree in any type of math there is no need to do hours upon hours of repetitive problems. That is for the students who are adults to do on their own. They have other classes and jobs etc. You should already have study skills and a good foundation by that time. It is important that the concepts are second nature to you and that you know how to go about solving the problems. Familiarity with theorems and all that. So longer problems that are more complex would be expected. Also no prof/TA has time to grade all of that. Now if you were teaching remedial college algebra to fresh out of highschool kids then a bit more repetition might be in order but not on the level of highschool.
eMortal · M
@REMsleep don't bother. He's looking for someone or just trolling.
33person · 26-30, M
@MethDozer Like, should it be 50 problems a night, or 15, or what?
MethDozer · M
@33person 15 sounds more reasonable.

 
Post Comment