Changes are coming to how much time Arlington County Public Schools students could spend doing nightly homework.
The school board voted unanimously to pass its consent agenda, which included the revisions to the district’s homework policy, during Thursday night’s meeting.
The new policy also received a green light from the county superintendent.
What’s new in the approved homework policy revisions and procedures?
Homework assignments in the school system will be designed to take less time to complete, in order to avoid intrusion on a student’s and family’s time outside of school.
For homework time commitments, the most notable changes are in grades 6 through 12.
At the middle school level, for students in grades 6 through 8, the suggested maximum time for homework is down to 45 minutes a week per course, plus 30 minutes of nightly independent reading time.
For those at the high school level, in grades grades 9 through 12, the maximum time spent on homework is suggested at an hour each week — per course — plus 30 minutes of independent reading.
For a couple of lower grades, the amount of time suggested for nightly homework was boosted between 15 to 30 minutes for literacy and math-related assignments.
Homework will no longer assigned as punishment for undesirable behavior. The policy also notes that a student’s academic grades should no longer be a reflection of their behavior.
