Commentary: Should holiday homework be banned?
The June school holidays have started, but many students and families are experiencing a familiar mix of anticipation and dread, says Dr Eugenia Koh-Chua, a former lecturer and mother of two.

This audio is generated by an AI tool.
MELBOURNE: The June school holidays have started for primary and secondary schools as well as junior colleges. With school out, the fun should begin - but does it really?
While many look forward to a respite from the daily grind of school, the burden of holiday homework hangs over them.
For many parents and tutors, the mid-year break is also the perfect time for an extra academic boost. Let’s not forget June holiday boot camps and intensive revision programmes arranged by teachers and enterprising tuition centres for Primary 6 students taking their Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) this year.
The term “holiday homework” itself is contradictory, prompting the question: Should school breaks be a protected sanctuary from homework, or is the expectation of holiday assignments an unavoidable reality?
A BAN ON HOMEWORK?
The debate surrounding holiday homework extends beyond the borders of Singapore.
In the Philippines, legislative attempts to enforce a weekend homework ban have been ongoing since 2016. In 2021, the Chinese government enacted the Double Reduction Policy, which includes a limit on homework and a ban on private tutoring classes.
Meanwhile, in Poland, a ban on graded homework for students in lower primary took effect in April. Homework for children in upper primary levels is optional and does not count towards a grade.
These efforts share a common goal: To alleviate the burden of excessive homework and promote greater student well-being. However, the effectiveness of these measures remains questionable.
In China, the mandate has driven the industry underground and led to exorbitant rates, exacerbating educational inequity. The Chinese experience suggests the potential pitfalls of using a simplistic solution like a hard legislative ban to address a complex social issue.
Drawing lessons from these global examples, I wonder: Should the focus shift from eliminating homework to understanding why parents and schools perceive it as necessary?
IS HOMEWORK BENEFICIAL?
While the debate on homework rages on, educational research has acknowledged the many potential benefits it serves.
Homework helps to reinforce academic concepts at home, develops time management skills, and encourages independent learning in children.
Learning at home can offer a more adaptable environment that caters to individual student’s learning pace and needs, particularly benefiting those who thrive with additional support. Moreover, homework functions as a crucial link between school and home, allowing parents to stay informed of their children’s academic progress.
At the same time, however, an Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) survey published in 2017 showed that 66.7 per cent of parents with primary school children agreed or strongly agreed that they were stressed over assisting with homework and ferrying them to and from school, and tuition or enrichment classes.
Additionally, nearly 94 per cent of parents in the study expressed a need for the primary school curriculum to be more manageable, reflecting the struggle many parents face in grasping the modern curriculum while balancing work demands in typical dual-income Singaporean households.
In my doctoral study on Singaporean parents’ tensions within education reform, one parent candidly remarked on this struggle: “I don’t think I can impart the (knowledge) skills to them. And I don’t want my children to lose out."
Consequently, many parents delegate homework guidance to educational experts - tuition teachers.
Families spent an estimated S$1.4 billion (US$1 billion) on tuition in 2018, based on data from the last Household Expenditure Survey in 2017 and 2018, up from S$1.1 billion in 2012 and 2013.
These insights highlight parents’ challenges in supporting their children’s learning at home due to a lack of knowledge, skills, time, and energy. Consequently, schools must consider these factors when designing and assigning homework.
Daily Cuts:
PERCEIVED BENEFITS OF AFTER-SCHOOL LEARNING
Research consistently emphasises the importance of play in nurturing the holistic development of children. What then motivates parents to enrol their children in tuition classes during school holidays?
Many parents I’ve spoken say they feel like they have “no choice” as they mitigate the pressures of a high-stakes education system.
They question how much play alone can contribute to children’s social-emotional well-being if they fail to perform academically. One parent stated, “I don’t need (my child) to be at the top, but I don’t want him to be at the bottom either”.
Parental guilt also motivates many to enrol their children in out-of-school classes. As one parent explained: “If my kids are idle or roaming around at home, I will feel bad as a parent … because it feels like my child is wasting his life away”.
Teachers participating in my doctoral study also reluctantly acknowledge the value of tuition classes for “weaker students”. Unfortunately, in a class size of 40, teachers lack the time and staffing to cater to each child’s learning needs while covering the school curriculum.
They also cited pressure from school leaders and managing familial expectations to assign homework as an indicator of a “good teacher”.

FIND HARMONY, NOT BALANCE
Amid the ongoing discussion on finding the right balance between work and play for students, the term “balance” implies a rigid 50-50 split between “work versus play”, overlooking the unique needs and strengths of each child, family, and school.
Rather than fixating on achieving a static “balance”, might it be better to consider striving for a harmonious blend between work and play? This approach encourages families and schools to identify the optimal mix that suits their specific contexts, fostering an environment where children can thrive in both learning and well-being.
The ideal combination of work and play will naturally vary in each family, classroom, and school, based on their diverse values, cultures, and aspirations. Nonetheless, this optimal mix should be viewed as fluid and dynamic, constantly adapting to suit the evolving needs of children.
Student agency is an essential ingredient in this optimal blend. Schools should actively seek student input on their homework experiences and understand their preferences for how it is assigned and evaluated.
This not only empowers students but also ensures that homework policies are responsive to their needs and interests.
Schools could consider moving away from compulsory holiday homework towards recommended assignments. Allow parents to determine and decide the homework load that best suits their child based on their family values and aspirations.
Many teachers are already offering non-mandatory assignments in the Student Learning Space online portal during mid-year and end-of-year school holidays. However, it is crucial to complement these assignments with online explanatory videos that provide solutions.
This approach is essential to support struggling students and enhance their self-efficacy by ensuring they understand how to approach and solve the questions independently at home.
Ideally, homework tasks should prioritise inquiry-based learning, embracing a play-based approach that fosters engagement and creativity.
Given the absence of time constraints in the classroom, these tasks can encourage students to explore core learning concepts with scaffolding prompts, developing learner autonomy, and stimulating greater engagement and creativity.
Through collaborative efforts, schools and families can create a supportive environment that fosters student success and well-being.
In an ideal scenario, if schools and families can embrace a unified approach to revamping homework practices and reimagining the objectives of holiday assignments, we may just be able to find that sweet spot between work and play during the June holidays.
Dr Eugenia Koh-Chua is a sessional lecturer and educational researcher at Swinburne University of Technology (Melbourne). She is a mother of two and a former lecturer in Singapore.