definition of homework help

Tutoring vs. homework help: Which is right for your students?

Schools, families, and students have long turned to tutors when learners fall behind or need to get ahead. Now that tutoring is being hailed as a way to address unfinished learning caused by the pandemic, however, it’s starting to make headlines as a promising—and realistic—solution for schools and districts.

With this new attention, administrators may be considering an array of tutoring interventions for their students to help with learning recovery. But while it’s great to have options, it’s also important to recognize that not every type of tutoring meets the same need, and not every tutoring model yields the same results . 

Learn more about the single most effective learning recovery intervention in our guide to high-dosage tutoring .

Programs that purport to provide tutoring often do little more than offer homework help. To be clear, homework help can be a valuable service. It can’t, however, provide the combination of remediation, new learning, and personalized attention that students get from ongoing tutoring with a qualified, dedicated tutor. In this blog, we’ll dive into the differences between them.

What is homework help? 

Homework help is exactly that: help with homework. With homework help, an experienced individual provides support to a student so they can complete a specific assignment or review a specific concept.

Students may look for homework help themselves or be encouraged to seek it out by a teacher or family member. Homework help is often fairly casual; it can be provided by a teacher, a family member, a peer or older student, a community volunteer, or a professional tutor. 

Online tutoring platforms also frequently provide homework help. This type of support is usually offered as an on-demand service, where learners can find a one-time tutor to help them as needed.

Who benefits from homework help?

Homework help is for students struggling with a concept or skill they’re working on in class, often as part of a specific assignment. These one-off sessions provide help when students are stuck, so they can move forward in the school year with the background they need. 

For example, a student who isn’t sure how to start an essay about a novel might seek out homework help to discuss their topic idea, work on a thesis statement, or review their introduction paragraph. They could return as they progress through the essay, or they might be comfortable enough to proceed on their own. 

This student probably already has a grasp on fundamental reading and writing skills, including how to write an essay. Homework help might help them make more complex arguments or deepen their analysis, but the student doesn’t need ongoing support in order to progress in class.

Why is homework help important? 

Struggling with a specific concept or task is normal, and it’s important for students to get help when they need it. Even if they’re generally doing fine in a class, moving forward without addressing these issues can contribute to learning gaps that become blockers to future learning.

What is tutoring? 

Tutoring is academic support that occurs regularly over time , and it’s designed to address past learning gaps as well as current concepts from class. While this often includes help with specific assignments, tutoring goes beyond homework help in some important ways.

Tutoring provides a deeper and more involved level of academic support so students can learn or relearn fundamental concepts and skills that they might be missing. By focusing on addressing learning gaps, not just completing specific tasks and assignments, students can make sure they stay on track for grade-level learning.

The other major distinction between tutoring and homework help is consistency . The most effective tutoring interventions match a student with a dedicated tutor who works with them regularly over a longer period of time, like an academic term or a year. Along with subject-matter expertise, these tutors also have specific training or experience with pedagogy, or how to teach the material effectively.

Who does tutoring benefit?

Tutoring is for students who might be constantly struggling with a subject, failing a class, or otherwise demonstrating that they aren’t meeting grade-level standards. 

While homework help can support a student who isn’t sure how to start their essay, tutoring is for a student who can’t analyze a text to identify its theme, or who doesn’t understand the components of an academic essay.

In this case, a tutor might work with the student over the course of a semester on skills like identifying thematic elements in a text and outlining effective paragraphs, while also helping them apply these concepts to writing an essay due for class. The tutor might also focus on building understanding in other relevant areas, like analyzing for tone and mood, as well as overall study skills, like using highlighters and taking notes while reading. 

Why is tutoring important?

Tutoring fosters an ongoing learning relationship that helps students address learning gaps involving fundamental skills and concepts—a function essential to supporting pandemic learning recovery and for learning that goes beyond finishing an assignment or passing a test.  

If your school or district is exploring tutoring interventions for unfinished learning, consider whether your students need homework help to stay on top of their classwork, or if they need tutoring to close learning gaps and build the skills required for grade-level learning.

Remind Tutoring for Schools and Districts provides high-dosage tutoring for your entire community by matching students with an experienced tutor for virtual one-on-one sessions. Contact us to learn more about offering Remind Tutoring to your community .

What’s the point of homework?

Deputy Dean, School of Education, Western Sydney University

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Katina Zammit does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

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Homework hasn’t changed much in the past few decades. Most children are still sent home with about an hour’s worth of homework each day, mostly practising what they were taught in class.

If we look internationally, homework is assigned in every country that participated in the OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) in 2012.

Across the participating countries, 15-year-old students reported spending almost five hours per week doing homework in 2012. Australian students spent six hours per week on average on homework. Students in Singapore spent seven hours on homework, and in Shanghai, China they did homework for about 14 hours per week on average.

Read more: Aussie students are a year behind students 10 years ago in science, maths and reading

Shanghai and Singapore routinely score higher than Australia in the PISA maths, science and reading tests. But homework could just be one of the factors leading to higher results. In Finland, which also scores higher than Australia, students spent less than three hours on homework per week.

So, what’s the purpose of homework and what does the evidence say about whether it fulfils its purpose?

Why do teachers set homework?

Each school in Australia has its own homework policy developed in consultation with teachers and parents or caregivers, under the guiding principles of state or regional education departments.

For instance, according to the New South Wales homework policy “… tasks should be assigned by teachers with a specific, explicit learning purpose”.

Homework in NSW should also be “purposeful and designed to meet specific learning goals”, and “built on knowledge, skills and understanding developed in class”. But there is limited, if any, guidance on how often homework should be set.

Research based on teacher interviews shows they set homework for a range of reasons. These include to:

establish and improve communication between parents and children about learning

help children be more responsible, confident and disciplined

practise or review material from class

determine children’s understanding of the lesson and/or skills

introduce new material to be presented in class

provide students with opportunities to apply and integrate skills to new situations or interest areas

get students to use their own skills to create work.

So, does homework achieve what teachers intend it to?

Do we know if it ‘works’?

Studies on homework are frequently quite general, and don’t consider specific types of homework tasks. So it isn’t easy to measure how effective homework could be, or to compare studies.

But there are several things we can say.

First, it’s better if every student gets the kind of homework task that benefits them personally, such as one that helps them answer questions they had, or understand a problem they couldn’t quite grasp in class. This promotes students’ confidence and control of their own learning.

Read more: Learning from home is testing students' online search skills. Here are 3 ways to improve them

Giving students repetitive tasks may not have much value . For instance, calculating the answer to 120 similar algorithms, such as adding two different numbers 120 times may make the student think maths is irrelevant and boring. In this case, children are not being encouraged to find solutions but simply applying a formula they learnt in school.

In primary schools, homework that aims to improve children’s confidence and learning discipline can be beneficial. For example, children can be asked to practise giving a presentation on a topic of their interest. This could help build their competence in speaking in front of a class.

Homework can also highlight equity issues. It can be particularly burdensome for socioeconomically disadvantaged students who may not have a space, the resources or as much time due to family and work commitments. Their parents may also not feel capable of supporting them or have their own work commitments.

According to the PISA studies mentioned earlier, socioeconomically disadvantaged 15 year olds spend nearly three hours less on homework each week than their advantaged peers.

Read more: 'I was astonished at how quickly they made gains': online tutoring helps struggling students catch up

What kind of homework is best?

Homework can be engaging and contribute to learning if it is more than just a sheet of maths or list of spelling words not linked to class learning. From summarising various studies’ findings, “good” homework should be:

personalised to each child rather than the same for all students in the class. This is more likely to make a difference to a child’s learning and performance

achievable, so the child can complete it independently, building skills in managing their time and behaviour

aligned to the learning in the classroom.

If you aren’t happy with the homework your child is given then approach the school. If your child is having difficulty with doing the homework, the teacher needs to know. It shouldn’t be burdensome for you or your children.

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[ hohm -wurk ]

• schoolwork assigned to be done outside the classroom ( distinguished from classwork ).
• a single assignment of such schoolwork: Homeworks are due at the beginning of class.
• paid work done at home , as piecework.

to do one's homework for the next committee meeting.

/ ˈhəʊmˌwɜːk /

• school work done out of lessons, esp at home
• any preparatory study
• work done at home for pay

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Word history and origins.

Origin of homework 1

Idioms and Phrases

Example sentences.

Now, they log on to Zoom from their bedrooms, surrounded by unfinished homework assignments and tattered stuffed animals, waiting to be assigned calls, texts and emails by the trained therapists who oversee the program.

Yow started her homework and saw Frese had gone 35-22 with two winning seasons at Ball State, which hadn’t had a winning record in its previous nine seasons.

Do some homework before investing in a diamond, and that lifelong commitment.

Another poster included an image of their losses over what appeared to be online math homework.

As we countdown to Inauguration Day, I've been doing my homework—and looking to the past for inspiration.

“I can help my children with their homework and sometimes we text in English at my job,” Santos says.

Scheunemann, meanwhile, had no idea who Spencer was, and did some homework.

She jumped at the chance to watch RT, or jumped at the chance to skip calculus homework.

And we encourage parent-student “contracts,” for class attendance, homework submission and even extra-curriculum activities.

Adicéam did his homework, spending 50 days collecting pieces, many with unexpected stories behind them.

Much of this homework is done by a very bad light and the boy's eyes suffer much.

For homework we have prepared alphabets where the letters are printed in type-writing order.

His parents were always getting angry with him for losing his clothes, or his toys, or his homework.

Only at the time when he was going to Beauregard School, with his homework.

And once a week or twice a week she was sending her homework or something to him.

Related Words

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• construction
• establishment
• preparedness
• qualification

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

What Is Homework?

Homework is work that teachers give students to complete outside of the school day. Homework is meant to provide students with practice for what was learned in school or an extension of what was done in class. Students are expected to complete the homework and return to school with the completed homework assignment.

Why Do Teachers Give Homework?

Most teachers give students homework so that they can practice something that was taught to them during class.

For example, if a teacher is teaching students how to add decimal numbers then the homework assignment would be for students to try adding decimals at home independently.

In my science class I never give my students homework that isn’t meaningful or practice towards a learning standard.

Gone are the days of giving homework that is “busy work”.

Also, when students return the following day their homework assignment is incorporated into the lesson so they quickly figure out that completing homework is necessary.

Some teachers, myself included, will use homework as a formative assessment.

If you are unsure what formative assessments are then you need to check out this article I wrote recently.

What Does Homework Look Like?

Homework can be almost anything.

Some examples of homework may include a simple worksheet to complete, a long term project, research, reading, a journal entry, completing something online, a drawing, or the continuation of something started in school, and just about anything else.

Homework isn’t limited to one specific thing.

With my eight grade students I have assigned videos for them to watch, creating a slideshow, completing a CER (more about the CER here) , conduct a survey for data collection, and more.

I have even had them collect leaves to identify the following day in our science class!

If you are a teacher reading this make sure to make your homework assignments interesting and worthwhile, don’t just assign homework as busy work.

Do Teachers Have To Give Homework?

No, teachers don’t have to give homework.

Usually teachers have discretion whether or not they are going to assign homework.

Personally, the principal or school district I work for has no idea how often I assign homework or what I assign for homework.

This decision to give or not give homework solely comes down to the classroom teacher.

The Importance Of Homework

The importance of homework is a heavily debated topic these days.

On one hand you have teachers that will say it is necessary that students continue learning outside the classroom in order to be more successful inside the classroom.

On the other hand some teachers will say that homework isn’t necessary as long as students are working hard during the school day.

Another reason homework is seen as not necessary is because students these days are so busy out of school that they don’t have time to complete homework.

Who is right?

I’d say it’s probably somewhere in the middle.

There is nothing wrong with a little homework for students but it shouldn’t be assigned every night.

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I (Allen) am currently teaching at a public school in a western suburb of Chicago. My teaching career started in 2004. Some of my interests outside of teaching is being with my family, biking, playing video games, travelling, and making the Teacher Adviser website.

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Meaning of homework in English

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• The kids are busy with their homework.
• My science teacher always sets a lot of homework.
• "Have you got any homework tonight ?" "No."
• I got A minus for my English homework.
• For homework I want you to write a paper on an endangered species .
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• foundation course
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• on a course
• open admissions
• the national curriculum
• work placement

homework | Intermediate English

Homework | business english, examples of homework, translations of homework.

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balancing act

a difficult situation in which someone has to try to give equal amounts of importance, time, attention, etc. to two or more different things at the same time

Binding, nailing, and gluing: talking about fastening things together

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Definition of help

 (Entry 1 of 2)

transitive verb

intransitive verb

see also helping hand , helping verb

Definition of help  (Entry 2 of 2)

• helping hand

improve , better , help , ameliorate mean to make more acceptable or to bring nearer a standard.

improve and better are general and interchangeable and apply to what can be made better whether it is good or bad.

help implies a bettering that still leaves room for improvement.

ameliorate implies making more tolerable or acceptable conditions that are hard to endure.

Examples of help in a Sentence

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'help.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Verb and Noun

Middle English, from Old English helpan ; akin to Old High German helfan to help, and perhaps to Lithuanian šelpti

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing help

• beyond help
• cannot help but
• God / Lord / heaven help (someone)
• cannot help oneself
• help matters
• help off / on
• help wanted
• help screen
• help oneself
• self - help
• no help for it
• cannot help

Articles Related to help

'Muskrat,' 'Helpmate,' and 6 More Folk...

'Muskrat,' 'Helpmate,' and 6 More Folk Etymologies

When logic meets language

Dictionary Entries Near help

Cite this entry.

“Help.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary , Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/help. Accessed 17 Apr. 2024.

Kids Definition

Kids definition of help.

Kids Definition of help  (Entry 2 of 2)

More from Merriam-Webster on help

Nglish: Translation of help for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of help for Arabic Speakers

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Definition of help verb from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

make easier/better

• What can I do to help?
• I was only trying to help !
• help with something He always helps with the housework.
• help somebody They are trying their best to do a good job and help others.
• help somebody with something Jo will help us with some of the organization.
• help in doing something Following these steps will help in protecting our environment.
• help somebody (to) do something Come and help me lift this box.
• This charity aims to help people to help themselves.
• The college's aim is to help students achieve their aspirations.
• help (to) do something She helped organize the party.
• Some history may help to explain why this is.
• Could you possibly help me?
• I wonder if you could give me a hand?
• Would you mind opening the door for me?
• I wonder if you'd mind taking a picture of us?
• Could I ask you to keep an eye on my luggage for a moment?
• Yes, of course.
• I'm sorry, I'm in a hurry.
• Would you like me to help you with that?
• Can I give you a hand?
• Can I help you with that?
• Shall I carry that for you?
• Would it help if I spoke to Julie before you call her?
• Let me take your bag.
• If there's anything I can do (to help), let me know.
• That's very kind of you. Thank you.
• Thank you. It's very nice of you to offer.
• It's all right, thank you. I can manage.
• Thanks. That would be very helpful.
• I'm afraid I can't help you.
• My mother helps me a lot.
• Talking to a counsellor helped her enormously.
• The minimum wage is designed to help people in low-pay service industries.
• Can you help me with my homework?
• Many people inadvertently help thieves by leaving keys in full view.
• He had actively helped many prisoners to escape.
• Lavender oil supposedly helps you sleep.
• The exhibition helped her establish herself as an artist.
• Therapy helped her overcome her fear.
• We were given clues to help us solve the puzzle.
• I need contacts that could help in finding a job.
• We must all try and help each other.
• Many people are willing to give their own time to help the community.
• The students helped to raise £750 for the national appeal.
• We're helping to create a healthier, better future for everyone.
• be unable to
• help somebody to their feet
• a way of helping

Join our community to access the latest language learning and assessment tips from Oxford University Press!

• The support of our families has helped enormously .
• it helps (doing something) It helped being able to talk about it.
• it helps that… It certainly helped that her father is a duke!
• help towards something The money raised will help towards (= partly pay for) the cost of organizing the championships.
• help something It doesn't really help matters knowing that everyone is talking about us.
• help (to) do something This should help to reduce the pain.
• We need new measures to help fight terrorism.
• His statement hardly helped his case.
• The music really helps the scene work.
• I thought a walk would help somehow.
• Intense guilt won't necessarily help here.
• The whole process was greatly helped by the widespread availability of computers.
• Correct breathing helps to clear the mind and reduce tension.
• The new service helped boost pre-tax profits by 10%.
• The study of the present also helps to illuminate the past.
• Think of some questions that will help focus the discussion.
• Iron helps in the formation of red blood cells.
• It helps immensely that he has cast good actors.
• efforts to help bridge the gap between those who have access to the internet and those who don't
• considerably
• dramatically
• be designed to

somebody to move

• She helped him to his feet.
• We were helped ashore by local people.
• He gently helped her back into the chair.
• She helped the man out of the car.
• I helped her across the road.

give food/drink

• help yourself If you want another drink, just help yourself.
• help yourself/somebody to something Can I help you to some more salad?
• He'd been helping himself to the money in the cash register.
• I can't help thinking he knows more than he has told us.
• He can’t help being ugly.
• She couldn't help but wonder what he was thinking.
• It couldn't be helped (= there was no way of avoiding it and we must accept it) .
• He never does more work than he can help (= he does as little as possible) .
• I always end up having an argument with her, I don't know why, I just can't help it .
• I couldn't help it if the bus was late (= it wasn't my fault) .
• She burst out laughing—she couldn't help herself (= couldn't stop herself) .
• She won’t be invited again, not if I can help it (= if I can do anything to prevent it) .
• God help us if this doesn't work.
• used to swear that what you are saying is true, especially in a court of law

Other results

• Help the Aged
• domestic help
• help out | help somebody out
• help somebody off with something
• help somebody on with something
• so help me (God)
• God/Heaven help somebody
• there is no help for it

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home•work

An assignment is a task that someone is given to do, usually as part of their job.

An assignment is also a piece of academic work given to students.

In American English, an assignment is also a piece of work given to students to do at home.

Work given to schoolchildren to do at home is also called homework .

Be Careful! Homework is an uncountable noun. You do not talk about 'homeworks' or 'a homework'. Note that you do not say ' I have made my homework '. You say 'I have done my homework'.

Homework is work that school pupils are given to do at home. You say that pupils do homework. Don't say that they ' make homework '.

Housework is work such as cleaning or washing that is done in a house.

Be Careful! Both homework and housework are uncountable nouns. Don't talk about ' a homework ' or ' houseworks '.

• assignability
• best of all
• brain-teaser
• change magnitude
• concentrate
• homeshoring
• homesickness
• Home-speaking
• Homestead Act
• homestead exemption
• homestead law
• homesteader
• homesteading
• homestretch
• Homeward bound
• homeward(s)
• homeward-bound
• homework problem
• homeworking
• homewrecker
• homichlophobia
• homicide bomber
• Homicide by misadventure
• homicidomania
• homiletical
• homing adaptor
• homing device
• homing guidance
• hometraining
• Hometronic Internet Module
• HomeVestors of America, Inc.
• Homeward Bound
• Homeward Bound (disambiguation)
• Homeward Bound Animal Rescue Inc.
• Homeward Bound Greyhound Association
• Homeward Bound Theatre Company
• Homeward Trail Bible Camp
• homeward-boundly
• Homewood City Schools
• Homewood Institutional Review Board
• Homewood Maitland Safety Association
• Homewood Musical Instrument Co.
• Homewood-Flossmoor Swim Club, Inc.
• Homework Access Line
• Homework assignment
• Homework Assistance Hotline
• Homework Center
• Homework Diary
• Homework help
• Homework hotline
• Homeworkers
• Homeworkers Organized for More Employment
• Homeworkers' Union and Small Business Association
• Homeworking
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