In this episode I’m talking to Dr Jo Castelino. Jo is is a curriculum leader for Science at a school in the UK and author of The Homework Conundrum, a guide for how a successful homework culture can be built in a school and within the classroom.

I was so keen to speak with Jo after reading this brilliant book and as a result of always feeling a little insecure about the quality and quantity of homework I set with my own classes.

We discuss:

1. How to broach the purpose of homework with a class at the beginning of the year

2. When, if ever, is asking students to read chapters of a class reader or fiction book appropriate?

3. What many teachers do not understand about students' home life that might impede them benefitting from the homework

4. How schools could communicate with parents to maintain a consistent message about homework

5. Practical ways in which teachers can react to homework that has been done but with a number of significant gaps in students knowledge

6. And finally, how to make it explicit that what has been done for homework is actively related or aiding what happens in the classroom during lessons

Thanks again to Jo for taking her time to speak to me today as well as writing what might be the most succinct, well-researched and practical guide to approaching homework for school’s all around the world.

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Links:

Dr Castelino’s book