Homework at St. Francis Xavier School is used to extend, retrieve, embed, challenge, and prepare for learning that takes place in the classroom. Homework here is purposeful.

‘The evidence shows that the impact of homework, on average, is five months’ additional progress.’ The Education Endowment Foundation, 2016

For all subjects, homework is an integral part of the learning process.

• Homework is set on average once per week for all subjects. For practical subjects this frequency may vary.
• Pupils in Years 7, 8, and 9 should look to spend between 1 and 2 hours on homework each day. Pupils in Years 10 and 11 should spend between 2 and 3 hours on homework/revision each day.
• Teachers will suggest a recommended time period to be spent on each homework task and pupils record this in their planner.
• Expectations, outcomes, and methods of revision-based homework will be specified, with the use of effective study skills promoted.
• Meaningful and timely feedback will be given to the pupil following a homework task. This also applies to creative and project-based work, as well as research and revision tasks.
• All KS3 pupils are expected to read for 10-20 minutes per day as part of our Accelerated Reader programme.

Our homework policy is grounded in academic research and has been designed to ensure no child is disadvantaged in their opportunity to learn away from the classroom. At St. Francis Xavier School we offer quiet working spaces for students to complete homework at lunchtime and afterschool. When developing the policy, we took research findings from the following studies; EEF (2016), Vattercott 2010, and Hattie 2014. Cathy Vattercott’s 2010 study found that 5 key characteristics to setting good homework were a clear purpose, a clear efficiency, that it allowed students to take ownership of their work, that it was pitched to the right competence level of the students, and that it gave a positive impact on student motivation. Research from John Hattie (2014), found that homework should be based around the consolidation of learning, and not present the student with new information, effectively extending the school curriculum beyond the classroom. This allows our students to gain fluidity in their learning and give them the confidence to complete their work independently.

Both the level of challenge and the feedback ensure that homework promotes a greater love of school and interest in learning.