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Sources · Primary homework

This house would scrap homework in primary schools.

Fact bank v1 · 12 cards

  1. HWK-01Mixed

    “Research shows homework does next to nothing for primary school children's results.”

    Partly right. Reviews that compare how much homework children do with how well they do find almost no link in primary school, and a stronger one for older pupils. But experiments that gave some primary pupils homework and others none found the homework groups did better, mostly in maths (see HWK-02).

    The 'almost zero' finding comes from reviews by Harris Cooper and colleagues, and other researchers describe the link in primary school the same way. In 2018 the Department for Education said the Education Endowment Foundation had found bigger gains from homework at secondary school, but still a modest, positive effect at primary. Studies that only compare children can't prove cause and effect: keen pupils may do more homework and also get better marks, while pupils who are struggling may put in more time to catch up.

    “stronger in post-compulsory secondary education than in compulsory education and almost zero in primary education”
    Frontiers in Psychology (open-access article on PubMed Central)·Students' Achievement and Homework Assignment Strategies (Frontiers in Psychology)Government / parliament · 7 Mar 2017 ↗

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  2. HWK-02Mostly true

    “Studies show children who get homework do better than children who don't, especially in maths.”

    Mostly right, but the evidence is old. A 2024 review of experiments, mainly with primary pupils, found children who were set homework did better than those set none, especially at working out sums and solving maths problems. There was no gain in understanding maths ideas.

    Apart from one 2021 study from Romania, the experiments were all done between 1939 and 1995. The two randomised trials were judged at high risk of bias, and none of the other nine studies was at low risk. Most of the pupils studied were of primary age, and the authors say the results should be read with caution and may not apply to other ages. The review could not work out how much homework is best. Even so, the authors recommend homework as an extra for primary pupils.

    “Homework could be used as a supplement to enhance the academic performance of primary school students.”
    Campbell Systematic Reviews (open-access article on PubMed Central)·The relationship between homework time and academic performance among K-12: A systematic review (Campbell Systematic Reviews)Government / parliament · 18 Sept 2024 ↗
  3. HWK-03Mixed

    “Children who do more homework get better marks.”

    It depends what 'more' means. In a study of 535 Spanish pupils aged 9 to 13, those who finished more of the homework they were set had better marks, but the time they spent on it made no difference. Reviews of older research found almost no link between amount of homework and results in primary school (see HWK-01).

    The Spanish study took a snapshot at one point in time, so it can't show that the homework caused the better marks. Pupils who are keener or more able may simply finish more of their homework. For teenagers the link is clearer: across OECD countries in 2012, 15-year-olds who spent more time on homework tended to score higher. The OECD adds that evidence from its 2009 survey suggested extra homework made little difference beyond about four hours a week.

    “our findings showed that students' academic achievement in the last years of elementary education is closely related to the amount of homework done”
    Frontiers in Psychology (open-access article on PubMed Central)·Academic Goals, Student Homework Engagement, and Academic Achievement in Elementary School (Frontiers in Psychology)Government / parliament · 31 Mar 2016 ↗

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  4. HWK-04Mostly true

    “Countries that set more homework don't get better results.”

    Mostly right, for teenagers. The OECD found that how much homework a country's pupils do tends to be unrelated to how well its school system does overall. But within most countries, 15-year-olds who did more homework, and schools that set more, tended to score higher.

    In the OECD's 2012 PISA survey, 15-year-olds in Finland and Korea reported less than three hours of homework a week, while those in Shanghai-China reported 14 hours. The OECD says things like the quality of teaching and how schools are organised matter more for a whole country's results. An earlier study of the 2003 PISA survey found that pupils in countries with higher maths scores tended to spend fewer hours on homework. These figures are about 15-year-olds, not primary pupils.

    “average number of hours that students spend on homework or other study set by teachers tends to be unrelated to the school system's overall performance”
    OECD·Does homework perpetuate inequities in education? (PISA in Focus No. 46)Intergovernmental body · 1 Dec 2014 ↗

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  5. HWK-05False

    “Finland, one of the best school systems in the world, doesn't give children homework.”

    Not true. In the OECD's 2012 PISA survey, homework was set in every country and economy taking part, Finland included. Finnish 15-year-olds did report some of the least homework, under three hours a week, against an OECD average of almost five.

    These figures are for 15-year-olds, not primary pupils. Finnish students' homework time fell by 0.9 hours a week between 2003 and 2012. Korea was also under three hours a week, while students in Shanghai-China reported 14. So Finland sets little homework, but it has not done away with it.

    “Homework is assigned in every country and economy that participated in PISA in 2012.”
    OECD·Does homework perpetuate inequities in education? (PISA in Focus No. 46)Intergovernmental body · 1 Dec 2014 ↗
  6. HWK-06Mixed

    “Homework widens the gap between rich and poor children.”

    Possibly, but the evidence is about teenagers. Across OECD countries in 2012, better-off 15-year-olds spent more time on homework than poorer ones (5.7 against 4.1 hours a week), and more homework went with higher scores, so the OECD warned homework may reinforce gaps. This evidence doesn't cover primary pupils.

    The OECD says poorer pupils may not have a quiet place to study or as much time, and their parents may feel less able to help. The gap in homework time varied a lot between countries, which the OECD says shows it can be narrowed, for example by schools giving pupils a quiet place to do homework. A 2017 study of 26,543 Spanish teenagers (average age 14) found that the more homework a school set, the bigger the differences in how long its pupils spent on it, and its authors warned that large amounts of homework increase inequality between pupils for small gains. In England, most primary parents say an adult can help with homework (see HWK-08), but many primary children lack a suitable device for online homework (see HWK-07).

    “Socio-economically advantaged students and students who attend socio-economically advantaged schools tend to spend more time doing homework.”
    OECD·Does Homework Perpetuate Inequities in Education? (PISA in Focus)Intergovernmental body · 1 Dec 2014 ↗

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  7. HWK-07Mostly true

    “Lots of primary school children don't have a proper device at home to do online homework.”

    Mostly right. In 2024, 39% of UK parents of primary-age children said their child didn't always have a suitable device at home for online schoolwork, compared with 18% of secondary parents. Most of these families got by, mainly by sharing devices.

    Of the parents who reported the problem, 61% said their child shared a device with others at home, 21% did a different learning activity, 12% used a less suitable device and 7% borrowed one. 13% said schoolwork was put off until a device was free, which Ofcom says is just over 4% of all parents of school-age children, and a further 14% said the work wasn't done. The year before, the figure for primary parents was 44%. The government says schools should offer other homework options for pupils without good device access. This only affects homework that is set online.

    “In 2024, four in ten (39%) parents with primary school-aged children said their child did not have continuous online access for learning”
    Ofcom·Children and Parents: Media Use and Attitudes Report 2025Government / parliament · 7 May 2025 ↗

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  8. HWK-08Mostly false

    “Most parents of primary school children don't have the time or confidence to help with homework.”

    Not according to a 2025 government survey in England. 64% of primary parents said they or another adult were available to help with homework all the time, and 24% most of the time. Of the parents who help, 91% felt very or fairly confident doing so.

    Time is still a problem for some families. Asked about the hardest barriers to supporting learning at home, 23% of primary parents named a lack of time because of their own responsibilities, 30% named distractions from others in the house and 11% said there was no quiet space for their child to work. The survey is of parents picked at random from school records who agreed to take part, in England only.

    “majority of primary parents (64%) and a minority of secondary parents (43%) and special school parents (47%) said that they or another adult were available”
    GOV.UK (Department for Education)·Parent, pupil and learner voice: October 2025Government / parliament · 26 Feb 2026 ↗
  9. HWK-09Mostly false

    “When parents help with homework, children do better at school.”

    Not in general. A 2024 review of 28 studies with more than 378,000 participants found a weak negative link overall between parents' involvement in homework and how well pupils did. Only one kind of help, backing children to work things out for themselves, was linked to better results.

    Other kinds of involvement, like helping with the content, controlling how homework is done or simply helping often, were largely unrelated to results, and the link varied with pupils' age. These studies show links, not causes: parents may step in more when a child is already struggling. A 2023 review of maths homework found supportive help went with slightly better maths results, while controlling or interfering help went with worse ones.

    “Our meta-analysis revealed an overall weak negative relationship between parental homework involvement and students’ achievement”
    Psicothema (PubMed record)·Parental Homework Involvement and Students' Achievement: A Three-Level Meta-Analysis (Psicothema)Government / parliament · 1 Jan 2024 ↗

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  10. HWK-10Mixed

    “Homework is ruining children's sleep and mental health.”

    Only when there is a lot of it. In a study of 68,891 pupils in Shenzhen, China, more homework went with less sleep and poorer mental health once it passed about one hour a day for primary pupils. Below that, homework showed no harm, and sometimes went with better sleep and wellbeing.

    The study surveyed pupils once, in 2021, in a single city, so it shows links, not cause and effect, and the authors warn it may not apply to the whole of China. Less sleep explained part of the link between heavy homework and poorer mental health. A 2024 study of 62,395 Chinese children and teenagers also found that longer homework time went with poorer mental health.

    “durations exceeding these thresholds were generally associated with less sleep and poorer mental health outcomes, while durations below thresholds showed neutral or even positive associations”
    Journal of Affective Disorders (PubMed record)·How much homework is too much? Identifying thresholds for adolescent sleep and mental health by school stage (Journal of Affective Disorders)Government / parliament · 10 Jun 2025 ↗

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  11. HWK-11Mostly true

    “China has banned homework for its youngest primary school children.”

    Mostly right. Since 2021, China's 'double reduction' policy has banned written homework for pupils in the first two years of primary school and set time limits on homework for older pupils.

    The ban is on written homework. For older pupils there are time limits, for example lower secondary pupils should average no more than 90 minutes of homework a day. The same policy also cracked down on paid tutoring in school subjects. A study of 28,398 pupils in grades 5 to 8 (about 11 to 14 years old) in Guangdong surveyed them in spring 2021, before the policy, and again in December 2021. The share with signs of depression fell slightly, from 9.9% to 9.4%, and pupils who said their homework had been cut were less likely to develop problems. But the fall was very small, many pupils dropped out of the study, and because every pupil was covered by the policy, the study can't separate the homework rules from the tutoring ban.

    “prohibiting written homework for lower primary students and setting clear time limits for other grades”
    Behavioral Sciences (open-access article on PubMed Central)·The Mental Health Costs of Shadow Education: The Duration of Shadow Education and Its Depressive Effects on Chinese Adolescents (Behavioral Sciences)Government / parliament · 28 Jun 2025 ↗

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  12. HWK-12True

    “Primary schools in England already get to decide whether to set homework at all.”

    Confirmed: there is no legal duty on schools in England to set homework. Schools decide how much to set and in what form, working with staff, pupils, parents and governors, and some set none.

    England used to have national homework guidance. In 2008 it suggested about an hour a week for children in years 1 and 2, rising to about 30 minutes a day in years 5 and 6, though even then homework was not compulsory. That guidance was later dropped: by 2015 the government said it does not dictate how much homework children should do at any age, and that it expects schools to take pupils' health and wellbeing into account. In 2018 the then Education Secretary said schools are not obliged to set homework and some don't, but that when homework is set, children do need to do it.

    “Schools determine homework volume and format in collaboration with staff, pupils, parents, and governors.”
    UK Parliament (written answer from the Department for Education)·Written question UIN 80624: Special Educational Needs: Internet (answered 24 November 2025)Government / parliament · 24 Nov 2025 ↗

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