Homework Challenges for Students With Reading and Writing Problems: Suggestions for Effective Practice

Abstract

Educational consultants are often asked to help teachers and parents develop strategies that address the homework problems of students with reading and writing disabilities. Frequently, these students resist completing homework, which can cause considerable family strife and negatively affect school-family relationships. Thus, consultants must know how to structure homework for these students and how to work with their teachers and parents to enhance students' motivation to complete homework. In this article we (a) examine the value of homework for students with reading and writing problems; (b) provide guidelines and suggest practical solutions to their homework problems from the perspective of curiosity theory, learned helplessness, behaviorism, and anxiety reduction; and (c) describe the consultant's role in ameliorating homework problems.