The benefits （好处） of homework have been discussed by teachers and parents for years as the very word brings a feeling of very negative meaning to every one involved （有关的）， students， parents and teachers. Although many people think of homework as doing more harm than good by causing much unnecessary stress to everyone， others believe that it has great advantages for children by encouraging them to think more independently outside the classroom.
　　The benefits
　　The first benefit of homework is that it allows students and teachers to work more closely together. They can discuss their problems that they are having with parts of their textbooks， before or after classes.
　　The second benefit is that it can bring families closer together as students may ask their parents， brothers or sisters for help on their homework. Not only will this help the students get a better understanding of their work， it will also allow parents to get more involved in their child’s educational life.
　　Thirdly， doing homework will prepare students for the big end tests. If a child does poorly on homework， then he or she will learn what is necessary to do well on the next test without being punished. It also provides students with the chance to practice at what it takes to be successful in school. As they say， practice makes perfect.
　　Doing homework is also a great way to develop responsibilities （责任心）. By being assigned （布置） work one day and knowing that it has to be done by the next day， they will develop a sense of not being late by turning their work in on time.
　　And finally it allows parents to see how their children are being educated and they can develop a better idea of how they can help their child. However， some parents， students and even some teachers feel that after 7-8 hours of lessons in school， it is unfair to expect students to come home and work for another three hours.
　　The potential （潜在的） harm
　　The first reason that children should not be given homework is that they need time to relax and take their minds off work. The pressure of having to finish homework every night makes most children feel quite nervous and less confident and they need time to make their minds and bodies feel less tired.
　　Secondly， it reduces （减少） the amount of time that children could be spending with their families. Family time is especially important to a growing child.
　　Thirdly， homework can cause conflict （冲突） between children and parents when the parent wants the child to do their homework but meets dislikes from him to do a hard task.
　　Too much homework can encourage cheating because children end up copying off one another in an attempt to finish all their homework. They then end up being rewarded for cheating which doesn’t benefit them at all.
　　And finally， a lot of teachers don’t often have the time to grade papers properly as they are too busy with designing lesson plans and searching for teaching information in order to just manage lessons. So by the time students are getting their papers back， the class has moved on to a new topic.
　　（Do you like or dislike homework？ Why？）