Salem Schools Bringing Homework Back After COVID-19 Reprieve

SALEM, MA — While it has taken longer to reinstitute some traditional school routines than others following two years of COVID-19 disruptions, one routine that students might rather have had disappeared forever is coming back to Salem Public Schools.

Superintendent Steve Zrike said that the practice of assigning homework — which has been limited, sporadic or put on hold since the start of the COVID-19 health crisis and remote learning in 2020 — will be making a return beginning when students return to school in two weeks.

"We think homework should be assigned across grade levels in schools," Zrike said during his Facebook Live session with families on Thursday. "The research suggests that there is a 10-minute-per-grade recommendation and that's what we're trying to follow as a school district."

He said that would mean 15 to 30 minutes of homework for students in grades 1 through 3, 30 to 45 minutes in grades 4 and 5, 60 to 75 minutes in grades 6 through 8, and 75 to 90 minutes in high school per school day.

"We don't expect it to be new material," Zrike said. "We don't want it to be frustrating for students. We think students need to have a healthy and balanced lifestyle that includes academic and non-academic time on structured play, sports, activities, other extracurriculars.

"But we also think that part of that balance is having time to practice, prioritizing, organizing yourself to have homework every evening and to make that part of the routine. Not that it overwhelms but it gives students an opportunity to practice what they have learned during the school day."

Zrike allowed that the research on the efficacy of homework is "mixed" and that the subject is "worth a continued discussion and conversation as a community."

"What I have read is that as long as it's about practice and not overwhelming for young people that it is an important skill as young people learn to manage their time effectively and balance as they move through high school and college," he said. "I am not looking to overwhelm and stress our young people out. But I think it's part of making sure that there is a cadence around academic preparation for young people.

"I do think that having an uneven experience with homework across schools is not beneficial to kids and that some semblance of time focused on their academics is important outside of the school day."

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. X/Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)