Middle school can bring a lot of new challenges for students as they transition from elementary to high school level coursework. From managing a heavier workload to more rigorous academic expectations, the middle school years introduce students to higher standards across several core subject areas. This increased difficulty can leave many students struggling to keep up and complete all of their homework assignments each night.
For students feeling overwhelmed by piles of homework or who need additional help outside of the classroom, do my homework websites have emerged as a solution. These services allow students to submit homework tasks in various subjects for a third party to complete. While outsourcing homework seems like a quick fix, parents and students should carefully consider both the academic and ethical implications before utilizing do my homework websites.
How Do My Homework Websites Work
Most homework help sites operate on a relatively simple model. Students sign up for an account and are able to submit assignments or questions by subject area. They provide any relevant instructions, assignment prompts, materials, and deadlines for completion. Subject experts and tutors on the site then review submitted work and aim to complete and return assignments before the stated due dates.
Payment is typically required per completed assignment, with pricing varying depending on word count, number of questions, type of subject, and urgency of the deadline. Subject areas covered commonly include core classes like math, science, English/language arts, social studies/history as well as some electives and foreign languages. Once complete, assignments are returned to the requesting student who can then submit the work as their own to their teacher.
Some websites operate on a combination model, where partial or limited homework help is provided for free but a subscription or per-task fee is required for fully completed assignments. Others utilize online tutoring or homework help services in addition to or instead of outsourced homework completion. In these cases, experts are available to answer questions, provide guidance, and check work, rather than finishing assignments from start to finish.
Potential Benefits of Homework Help Websites
At first glance, the convenience and promise of completed homework with minimal effort seems highly appealing for busy middle school students. Both educators and experts argue that there are better ways for students to get the help they need rather than outsourcing entire assignments. Still, some potential benefits of homework help websites include:
Subject tutoring and homework assistance: Even if assignments are not outright completed by a third party, question-specific help from an expert can aid understanding and assure students are on the right track. This targeted guidance and checking of work may reinforce lessons without replacing a student’s own efforts.
Additional learning resources: Many sites have educational materials like step-by-step video explanations, practice problems and quizzes, flashcards, and other study tools that could benefit students independent of outsourced homework.
Meeting tight deadlines: In some time-crunch situations or extenuating circumstances, outsourced homework may prevent a zero for late work and buy students a chance to catch up. This should not be relied upon and is not a replacement for good time management.
Alleviating homework-related stress: For students struggling with high volumes of homework or personal issues interfering with studies, outsourced assignments could offer temporary relief from stressors, rather than being a long-term solution.
Potential Drawbacks and Ethical Issues
While homework outsourcing seems to promise easy answers, there are serious drawbacks and ethical issues to consider:
Lack of learning: By not completing homework independently through problem-solving, making mistakes, and self-correcting, students miss out on reinforcing concepts introduced in class. Simply turning in finished work does nothing to test or further a student’s understanding.
Dependence and over-reliance: Temporary or one-time use of homework services could evolve into ongoing dependence, stunting students’ own problem-solving abilities and time management skills over the long run. Higher-level assignments may not always be doable by third parties.
Plagiarism and academic integrity issues: Most middle schools have clear policies against copying or submitting others’ work as your own. Using outsourced homework can constitute plagiarism depending on how closely the work mimics original wording and responses. This violates principles of academic honesty.
Potential quality and accuracy issues: While some homework assistance sites employ credentialed tutors and educators, it is difficult to verify the background or teaching abilities of all individuals completing client assignments. Mistakes or misinterpretations may occur.
Lack of feedback from teachers: Teachers assign homework not just to practice skills but to diagnose gaps and misconceptions for reteaching purposes. Outsourced homework means students miss valuable feedback opportunities to ask questions and improve.
Expense adds up over time: While individual assignments may have moderate costs, frequent use of homework services across all subjects can become quite pricey each year, especially for families with multiple students. This money could be better spent on tutoring or educational resources instead.
Alternative Options for Homework Help
Rather than outsourcing entire assignments, middle school students struggling with homework have many better options at their disposal:
Asking the teacher for guidance during office hours. Most want students to succeed and will provide direct answers to questions rather than completing assignments outright.
Forming or joining study groups with classmates. Working through problems together is beneficial to all and promotes collaboration over isolation.
Utilizing free online tutoring resources from services like Khan Academy rather than paid websites completing work.
Speaking to the school counselor about scheduling or academic support options if homework volume seems unreasonable or excessive.
Seeking additional targeted help from private tutors, rather than relying on questionable homework services. Many experienced tutors charge comparable hourly rates without ethical concerns.
Good time management, such as dedicating focused blocks to homework rather than procrastinating or cramming. Starting early prevents last-minute stress.
Taking study breaks and ensuring adequate sleep/nutrition. Short breaks improve focus over long periods better than burning out alone with an assignment.
Communicating with teachers if specific concepts need reteaching or if workloads seem too demanding for a child’s needs. Most want students to succeed.
While homework outsourcing may seem convenient in the short-term, it lacks educational value and can foster problematic dependence over the middle school years. With discipline and the right type of assistance, students are fully capable of success through their own genuine efforts rather than having others secretly do the work. Taking personal responsibility encourages lifelong skills that will last far beyond any one homework grade.
Andrew Stroud