Texas teacher goes viral on TikTok for never assigning homework

Courtney White, a Texas high school English teacher, doesn’t believe in homework.

“I have never assigned homework during my teaching career,” she told TODAY Parents.

When White, who is in her fourth year of teaching in Alvarado, Texas, posted a video to her Tik Tok account sharing her philosophy on the subject, she didn’t think twice. In the now-viral video, White is seen extending a handshake with the caption “You must be that teacher that doesn’t assign homework.”

“I honestly never thought my video would blow up,” the 27-year-old teacher said. “No-homework policies aren't new, they just aren't talked about as much. I am in no way the first teacher to implement this in my classroom so when I made the video I just thought it would be a silly video.”

White’s "silly video" racked up more than a million views and sparked heated debate in the comment section, prompting the educator to record a response video, in which she defended her stance, talking directly to the camera with just one of the critical responses overlaid in the corner:

“There’s no proof that homework is going to make them better students in my class. I respect their time outside of class. They work hard for me all day. They don’t need to go home and do more homework. If they do it at home, it does not show me mastery; it’s extra practice, sure. But it's not practice if they’re doing it wrong. It’s not good practice if they’re cheating. It’s not good practice if they’re having someone else do it," she said. "Most of my students are high schoolers. They have jobs, they have FFA, they have sports, they’re in practice, they’re in band. They have other responsibilities outside of school. Some of them are going home and taking care of their younger siblings, because their parents are at work. Some of them just need to go home and sleep. Some of them have to go home and worry about how they’re going to eat, because there’s no food at their house. So if I also give them hours of homework, when do they have time to be kids? When do they have time to relax?”

The second video, which has garnered more than four million views, has received comments that range from “TEACHER OF THE YEAR”, to “Or is it because when you give them homework it means more work for you too to grade it.”

I have received some backlash from people who claim that I am coddling my students or not preparing them for college,” White said. “My response to that is simple, homework does not have true benefits if it is not being done properly. I have students that need additional support at home and if they don't get their accommodations then the homework will not be beneficial for them. Teaching isn't one size fits all so my method works for my kids.”

White has taken her viral moment in stride.

“This whole experience has been crazy, but the outpouring of love and respect that I have been getting is amazing,” she shared, adding that the large majority of the reactions have been positive and from students. “I haven't really heard from a lot of parents, but the ones that have reached out have been positive. Some are even grateful that their kids are getting a small break from their crazy workloads that have been coming home.”

Dr. Shannon Curry, clinical psychologist and director of the Curry Psychology Group in Orange County, California, shared that with more parents working from home, adults are likely bearing witness to the academic pressures kids face.

“It’s an easily identifiable concern, because it’s unsettlingly familiar to all of us adults who are scrambling around trying to find a moment of solace in our own lives— we know how it feels to give so much of our time and attention to obligations that we have little left for much else,” Curry said.

She added that when a child’s entire day is dedicated to academics, they miss out on other activities that are crucial for their overall development and well-being.

“Studies have linked longer amounts of time spent on homework to inadequate social and emotional development, maturity, sense of identity and self-esteem, and a higher risk of mental and physical health issues,” Curry explained.

Despite the mixed reaction to her social media videos, White stands behind everything she has posted... and still won’t be assigning any homework.

“There will always be negative people trying to bring you down, but you have to focus on the positive,” she shared. “I love teaching and I will always show up for my students, despite what anyone has to say about my teaching methods. Teachers are heroes and I respect each and every one of them.”

Homework isn’t just additional learning content but an effective strategy to test students’ comprehension of taught concepts. Since its introduction in the 16th century, homework has elicited various reactions with some advocating for it while others condemning it. Here, I will be highlighting the top 10 benefits of homework to convince you that homework has its place in education.

The top 10 benefits of homework:

1. Students learn about time management
2. Homework provides a measurement of students’ learning for teachers
3. Trains students to solve problems
4. Gives students another opportunity to review class material
5. Parents get to see the content being taught in school
6. Students learn to take responsibility for their part in the educational process
7. Students learn to do things even if they don’t want to
8. Trains students to work independently
9. Students learn to stay organized, act and plan
10. Deepens students’ understanding of a subject matter

Homework is an effective tool when teaching your child about time management. This means that time management should extend beyond the classroom and into your home. Whether your child needs to play or complete some light chores, it’s in your best interest to provide your child with ample time to complete their homework. Homework demands a fresh mind and complete concentration. So, you should make it your mission to ensure that your child is well fed and refreshed before beginning any assignment.

When you supervise your child to complete their homework, you subconsciously instill a sense of responsibility and prioritization in them. Your child should be in a unique position to prioritize on tasks with your guidance. This strategy makes it much easier to complete multiple tasks within a specific duration with ease.

Have you ever wondered whether your students have understood your content? Then consider giving them homework. Based on the responses obtained from the assignment, you will be able to tell how well your students learned the content. If the responses are unsatisfactory, then be prepared to revisit the chapter and break it down to simpler subtopics that can be understood with relative ease.

Chances are your students might not have understood complex terminologies that proved frustrating to recall when completing their homework. More importantly, encourage your students to follow up with questions on concepts that are ambiguous to understand and explain.

Also, feel free to introduce various types of learning styles to ensure that the specific content is understood. For instance, musical lessons are best taught with the aid of musical instruments. On the other hand, visual lessons are best taught with the aid of sample objects.

Problem solving is a critical aspect of the learning process and it evaluates your child’s capacity to reason and make informed decisions. When in a classroom setting, your child is given the unique advantage of problem-solving various questions with the assistance of their teacher. But when at home, they must rely on recalled information to execute ideal solutions to the problems at hand.

Implementing this strategy is no easy task. It demands concentration and the ability to seek immediate clarification on solutions that are difficult to understand. If your child can successfully learn how to solve questions in class, they are in ideal position to replicate this strategy at home with the proficiency it deserves.

As a parent, it’s imperative to instill confidence in your child from an early age. Confidence is crucial in building up self-esteem and helping them raise questions without experiencing doubt and scrutiny from their classmates.

If you thought that learning ends in school, then you are sadly mistaken. Learning extends to the home environment for any serious students. When your child completes homework regularly, they are given a unique opportunity to review class material. This constant revision not only builds on their knowledge but also expounds on their ability to recall information fast and identify alternative solutions to the same problem.

When your child does their homework, the learnt information is ingrained in their mind based on multiple revision exercises. The more exercises that they complete, the easier it is to approach such questions in future.

Homework isn’t just beneficial to the student. It is equally useful to the parent, especially when they are interested in their child’s progress and performance in various subjects. A brief 10- or 20-minutes skim of your child’s homework brings you up to speed on the specific content taught in school.

From your evaluation, you can assist your child in identifying alternative solutions to specific sets of questions. However, it’s advisable to encourage your child to identify solutions by themselves in preparation for examinations that are tested on individual comprehension.

Homework is widely considered to be an ideal way to instill responsibility in students. By enforcing homework regularly, students are subconsciously informed on the need to take education seriously. Each assignment completed brings your child a step closer to achieving their educational goals and taking responsibility for their life decisions.

In short, homework prepares your child to take responsibility for much bigger tasks later in life that are more challenging and demanding than school content. This perspective equips your child with a growth mindset that is crucial in overcoming setbacks and realizing their set goals and objectives.

It’s a fact that most students don’t like homework especially when they must forego their favorite hobbies at home. But enforcing homework on your child is advantageous in teaching them that they must do things even when they don’t want to. Your child should be prepared to do such things that will become prevalent in adulthood.

It revolves around embracing sacrifice and foregoing instant gratification for delayed gratification. Being prepared to make sacrifices that will yield remarkable results isn’t reserved only for parents but for their children as well.

By embracing sacrifices, your child is in an elevated position to weed out distractions and focus on the task at hand. It isn’t easy but turning off the TV and cellphone is a great way to test their concentration and threshold for sacrifice.

If you’ve ever wondered how you can test your child’s independence to complete assignments, then setting homework questions is a great strategy to begin with. As a parent, it’s imperative to give your child ample time to do their homework before rushing in to assist them. This allocated time is crucial in recalling learnt information and identifying effective alternatives to various questions.

Providing your child with ample time to do their homework speaks volumes about your level of trust in them. This level of independence and trust assist your child in making informed decisions on what makes sense in their future career aspirations.

Completing homework effectively is a systematic process that entails following the assignment’s instructions, doing research from various sources and taking notes from various publications. Such guidelines can only be completed when your child practices organization, takes notes and plans their work. It is important early enough to ensure that the task is completed within the set time.

Failing to plan accordingly puts the quality of the assignment at risk by affecting its relevance and length. Such issues can be avoided by taking the time to organize, research and complete their assignment to ensure that relevant information is obtained.

Understanding concepts from a classroom setting is admirable but taking the time to complete assignments speaks volumes about your capacity to go the extra mile in deepening your understanding. Often, homework breaks down complex terminologies and concepts to make the learning process effective. Based on proven research, students that cherished doing homework exhibited advanced understanding of various topics compared to those that shunned assignments.

Regardless of what naysayers might say, homework has transformed the learning process in multiple ways. Apart from simplifying the learning process, school assignments have also improved students’ problem-solving skills beyond the arithmetic requirements. Thus, homework has its place in the education process.