AI'm not doing the homework
In the age of AI permeating everything, is homework, as we know it, dead?
This week, I was talking to my colleague about how we used to turn to books if we had a question. If I wanted to know more about pangaea or the story of the Romanovs or how the heart works, I would turn to my trusty encyclopaedia and devour its pages for hours. My friend still has one of her old Science encyclopaedias, which she says is so outdated now, it is hilarious to read.
Another (much younger) colleague told us, much to our old-aged shock and disdain, that if she has a question, she turns to TikTok to find answers.
My own kids will shout: ‘Alexa, what’s the time in India?’ instead of knowing that it should be 4.5 hours ahead and working it out.
But they are not alone. We all do it. I have found that if I learnt something more recently, I tend to use Google to answer questions about it rather than think through an answer based on my prior knowledge. This is because I am not as confident on these topics than I am on topics I have learnt, practised, and revisited over a number of years.
Our students are so used to finding things out quickly. Some people say this is a good thing because they’ve got knowledge at their fingertips. This is incorrect. They have information at their fingertips. Information can be discrete, random, nebulous, untethered bits of facts. It is like gathering a lot of data that doesn’t make much sense until you sit down and analyse it properly.
But therein lies the problem. While many of our students are continually exposed to a mountain of information, they cannot sift through and analyse it properly because in order to do so, they need robust knowledge in the relevant domains.
If I know little about structure and bonding, I won’t be able to explain why different substances have different properties.
So, without robust foundational knowledge, students will find it difficult to fully comprehend a concept.
In his excellent post on AI and cognition, David Didau writes:
When students are supported to think first - stumble, try, fail, revise - AI becomes a tool of amplification, not substitution. But if it’s used to bypass uncertainty, it becomes a hollowing mechanism that simulates success without the underlying substance.
Our aim, therefore, is to show students that the struggle and thinking that takes place initially is a valuable aspect of learning.
In the classroom, we have more control and can actively counteract the effects of AI on learning. However, when it comes to homework, managing these challenges becomes much more complex and less straightforward.
I was speaking with a couple of students a while back and they told me about an app they use to help them with their Maths homework. They scan the question and the app generates a full step-by-step response to the question. The student then simply copies the answer and they’ve completed their homework with no thinking involved! When asked if they read through the explanation at all, they shook their heads with a bemused expression. One of them told me they get so many questions that even if they wanted to review the worked steps, they simply wouldn’t have the time, and it was this lack of time that drove them to use the app.
I know a few teachers who say that written homework (compared to online) is better so students cannot simply copy-paste answers. But we still have the issue of students writing down the steps from the AI-tool without the struggle of working it out themselves.
Students have always looked for ways to take shortcuts or avoid the hard work when it comes to homework. Students have always tried to copy from a classmate, use their notes, or find answers in a textbook. Then it changed to finding answers on Wikipedia and Google. Now AI makes it even simpler to bypass the effort, but the challenge of encouraging genuine learning remains the same.
When homework feels like a box-ticking exercise, students will naturally look for the quickest way to get it done.
This is why we need to pause and think carefully about what homework is really for.
Work that is supposed to be creative may simply be done for them. Pre-learning tasks risk becoming superficial, as students might copy AI-generated summaries without genuine understanding, embedding misconceptions rather than addressing them. Even practice activities, of which I am an advocate, can lead to the illusion of competence without the necessary thinking and struggle that builds real expertise.
The brilliant Craig Barton has a possible solution to this homework problem in Maths:
So, a teacher can set a homework on a topic students have just been taught, and then give them an in-class paper-based quiz on that topic in the next lesson, where the teacher can be sure AI is not being used. If students do not perform well on that quiz, it is taken as a signal that they have not put adequate effort into their homework and are held accountable for that. So long as all students can access help if they are stuck on their homework - either a video, AI tutor, or dedicated time when they can ask the teacher - the quiz is carefully designed to assess the appropriate knowledge, and the incentives are strong enough, then students should see the purpose of putting the kind of effort into their homework that helps them learn.
Craig acknowledges two barriers to this solution: teacher workload and curriculum time. But there is another barrier, particularly if applying this solution to other subjects. Even if students have access to support, we cannot assume a poor quiz score in lessons equates a lack of effort with homework.
Memory can work in mysterious ways (beyond knowing about cognitive load, etc). I remember having to learn our school prayer as a child. I said it everyday with my class at the start of the day. One day, my teacher decided he would ask a student to lead the prayer. He chose me, asked me to stand in front of the class and recite the prayer. As I started saying the prayer, I forgot the words that came next. My teacher was not pleased and had to take over and I walked back to join the class, confused about why I couldn’t remember a prayer I had been saying daily for months. Maybe it was about performance, in this case. But I have definitely seen a similar issue when I am writing. Some days, I can recall things very easily and, on others, it takes an effort and I get things wrong.
If the stakes of getting the quiz right in lesson are high ( = if you get the questions wrong, you’ve not done your homework properly), then I can imagine some students may struggle to perform well, even if they have done their homework. In fact, if they completed their homework a few days before the quiz, they might struggle even more.
Well. Given all these issues with homework in the age is AI, it is understandable that teachers feel frustrated about how easily homework can be undermined.
Well-designed homework that requires genuine thought is valuable in helping students develop independent study skills and deepen their understanding.
I have written a lot about this in my book, The Homework Conundrum.
We must protect the integrity of independent learning and help students engage meaningfully with their work.
Below is what I propose we do to ensure homework still has purpose. It assumes that:
the point of homework is clear and has been shared with students
students have access and resources to complete the homework successfully (both mentally and physically)
students have time and space to complete their homework independently
the homework is being regularly set with sufficient time given for them to complete it successfully
Similar questions
One strategy that works really well is to ask the same or similar question from a piece of homework in the lesson. This is similar to the quiz mentioned in Craig’s post and is based on an idea that Adam Boxer has spoken about before. I tend to ask these questions in my Do Now or when quizzing using mini-whiteboards so I can see all responses.
For example, let’s say students answer a question to list the adaptations of exchange surfaces for homework. In lesson, I could pose either the exact same question or ask students to elaborate on why one particular adaptation is useful. Doing the former, is a quick check of whether students did their homework. Doing the latter takes it further and gets students thinking about the concept more as a whole rather than just as a list of facts that they need to know.
When students get these questions right in class, praising them and attributing their success to the homework is more powerful than berating the ones who cannot answer the question because they didn’t do their homework (see nudging norms by Peps Mccrea).
Narrate their thinking
We know there are tools that provide the thinking and solutions to questions within seconds. So simply expecting students to write down their thinking will not help. Asking students to articulate a clarification, detail or their thought-process on a question is more powerful, especially if the homework is linked to classroom learning. This serves two purposes: one, students practice talking about their thinking- a valuable skill in learning; and two, homework is not a separate entity. It is simply a continuation of classroom learning.
For example, for their homework, students answer a question about the effect of temperature on enzyme action. In lesson, asking them to then provide detail about how temperature affects enzyme action, drawing the graph that accompanies the explanation, defining the term ‘denature’ on mini-whiteboards will give students a chance to narrate their thinking behind their homework response, retreive in lesson and if done regularly, could take a few minutes out of lesson time. This would work better if students are learning about a concept that links with this prior knowledge, such as homeostasis, and is not completely different such as velocity-time graphs.
A culture where homework is valuable
This is harder to achieve and is certainly not a quick win. But how everyone speaks about homework matters. The best way for students to see that the homework matters is for that homework to not just be a list of facts to be learnt or a set of questions to practice.
It should be clearly connected to what happens in the classroom, revisited, and valued. When teachers take the time to discuss homework thoughtfully, check understanding, and show how it feeds into bigger ideas, students are much more likely to see it as worthwhile. Building this culture takes consistency, clear purpose, and a shared commitment across the school.
This may sound vague so here is an example:
First piece of homework
Today, I will be setting you your first piece of Science homework.
Each homework will build on the last and will help me know how to support and guide you in lessons.
When I set homework, it’s not just an extra task. It’s there to help you practise, think through tricky ideas, and be ready for what comes next. If you skip it or just copy answers, you’ll find the next part much harder.
I’m going to show you how this week’s homework links to our lessons, and we’ll go over it together when it’s due.
When the first homework is due
Before we start today’s lesson, we’re going to spend a few minutes checking in on the homework you did online.
You were asked to revise the flashcards on cell structure and then complete the quiz to see how much you remembered.
This step is really important because if you’re not clear on the parts of the cell, especially the chloroplasts, it’ll be much harder to understand how photosynthesis works.
On your mini-whoteboards, ‘what is the main function of the chloroplast?’
[Pause to check boards.]
Great, most of you have got that it’s where photosynthesis happens. Those of you who completed the homework well will have found this easy!
I’ll ask a couple more questions to spot any areas we’re unsure about. Remember, this is about making sure you have a solid foundation before we move on.
This is why that homework really matters. It sets you up to understand what comes next.
When planning a future lesson
Students struggled on the concept of surface-area to volume ratio (SA:V), so I will set them a couple of questions on this before I revisit it in lesson in two weeks. They also got the heart structure wrong in a recent assessment so I will add a couple of questions on that too.
In lesson
Year 10, I have set you a few questions on SA:V. You last learnt about this in Year 9 so you may have forgotten it. We need to look at it again soon so make sure you revise the flashcards well and practice until you feel you can recall SA:V! I have also set you some questions on the heart because that is something many of you didn’t get right in your recent assessment.
How the headteacher could talk about homework
Thank you, everyone. I want to take a moment to talk about homework and how it fits into our drive for progress.
When homework is clear, regular, purposeful, and linked to what happens in the classroom, it becomes a vital part of learning. It allows students to practise and revisit key ideas, building both understanding and confidence.
I also understand that setting and following up on homework takes time and thought. But it is one of the ways we help students make consistent progress and feel they have ownership of their learning.
If we stay consistent in explaining why homework matters and how it connects to lessons, we will help our students value it as part of their success, not just as a task to complete.
Thank you for everything you do to make this happen.
How a Head of Year could talk about homework to a parent
…I know we’ve been talking about how your child’s confidence has been up and down lately. One thing that really helps is staying on top of homework. It actually makes lessons stick better and helps them feel more prepared. That kind of progress can really boost how they feel about school.
We may still have some students who turn to AI straightaway despite everything we do, but I know the vast majority will view homework more constructively when everyone talks about homework in the same positive way.
Homework can feel challenging and sometimes frustrating, especially as AI is readily accessible to students. AI can have its place. It can help us refine language, rewrite something if needed. But it should not be doing the thinking for us.
It is important we persevere with homework, think about how we connect it to learning, and support our students. As David said in his post, we need to educate our students on using AI effectively.
Over time, this persistence helps build a culture where homework truly matters and students see its real value in their progress and confidence.
I wonder whether prelearning/pre reading could be made into successfull homework as it would make the students feel successfull from the get go.
This is great, Jo. I’ll include it in the next 3 Read Friday. I like the reframing of celebrating good test performance. Ollie Lovell also suggested that poor test performance might be a case of ineffective study techniques - partly addressing the memory issues you talk about - which the teacher could support students with. I’ll get him to write up what he does soon! Thanks again, great piece!