Education has been crucial in the formation of our society, as has homework. Homework has been around since public school was invented and, therefore, it is a practice rarely questioned. However, homework has been the subject of extreme controversy in recent years, with some speaking out about the extreme stress caused by homework and the countless negative aspects, while others responded by primarily responding to the supposed benefits of homework. Do the pros of homework outweigh the cons? Simply put, no. Homework should be banned due to the extreme stress it causes, the little benefit it provides, and the excessive amount of homework assigned. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay A common use of homework is to try to improve students' grades. But does the amount of homework a student does each evening really affect academic performance? A study was conducted by Adam Maltese (assistant professor of science education at Indiana University), Robert H. Tai (associate professor of science education at the University of Virginia Curry School of Education), and Xitao Fan (dean of Education at the University of Macau ), and “found no substantial difference in grades between students who completed homework and those who did not” (“Homework Does Not”). This proves that homework is a waste of time, as it provides no academic benefit. Nothing should be done without purpose, yet students still average 3.5 hours of homework a night. This needs to stop, as homework is causing extreme stress for no benefit. The opposition might try to argue that even if it doesn't affect grades, it still helps students develop strong study habits and discipline. However, they fail to realize that homework has never been proven to do any of these things. If homework doesn't help students academically, doesn't help them develop study habits, and doesn't help them develop discipline, why is homework still done? A common complaint you'll hear from students is the overwhelming amount of homework they receive, and for good reason. According to Karin Klein of the Los Angeles Times, "Students receive about 3.5 hours of homework per evening" ("Klein"). The average school day is about 6.5 hours ("Average Number"), so students work longer on homework than the average American worker (7.8 hours a day for adults compared to 10 hours a day day for teenagers). This demonstrates the overabundance of tasks assigned. , and how it has little effectiveness in terms of teaching our young people. Putting such a large amount of unnecessary stress on students at such a young age is unnecessary and cruel. Giving students less homework, or even no homework at all, can eliminate all these problems we have. Why should students be given so much homework if it doesn't even help them? With so many tasks assigned, homework can cause serious damage, both mentally and physically. The damage can include sleep deprivation, isolation from friends, and refraining from hobbies. Not engaging in hobbies can be detrimental to a teenager's social development. Homework needs to be done in much smaller quantities than the average 3.5 hours, or not at all. Critics may claim that it is worth it because it will improve the student's grades, however they fail to realize that no study has ever proven that claim. Stress is not worth it, 104(5), 297-311.