Homework systems often include the necessary digital or print textbooks, and digital platforms offer students supplemental materials such as practice questions, quizzes, and videos. And they come with a price tag: a average $90 per course, according to survey results.
“If you’re taking five courses and they all require access codes, that’s an extra $450 for that semester that you have to pay just to do your homework,” Clinton-Lisell said. “It creates a financial barrier to what used to be free resources.”
Access codes to homework platforms, created by educational publishers, are assigned individually, are not reusable by others, and expire after a certain period of time. For many students, their grades may depend on whether they complete assignments within the system.
The survey conducted by Clinton-Lisell and Kelly received responses from 966 students on campuses across the county.
Some students noted in the survey that they like the immediate feedback they receive from assignment systems and that it encourages interaction with their courses. But others complained about the costs and worried that the questions in the assignment systems might be different from those presented in class.
In the survey, Black students said homework systems were more helpful compared to other students. Latino students were more likely to say their grades dropped because they couldn’t afford access codes. Additionally, more first-generation students reported avoiding certain courses that require online assignment systems compared to continuing-generation students, according to the survey.
“We are always sensitive and aware of the challenges that students face in the context of the environment these days and the costs that they have to face and juggle, and that is one of the motivations and drivers for us when it comes to classifying create digital products that are affordable, high quality and improve student outcomes,” said Kate Edwards, senior vice president of effectiveness and research at Pearson, one of the largest publishers of educational materials in the country.
Students consider the price of doing homework “unreasonable”
Features of an online assignment platform often include quizzes, interactive problems, videos, and other visual elements that can help students learn course concepts.
In the Clinton-Lisell survey, students described the costs of online assignment systems as “somewhat unreasonable.” In comparison, the price students considered fair for these features was one-third of the actual figure.
Jake Twomey, a student at the University of California, Santa Barbara and member of the Student Public Interest Research Group (PIRG), is horrified by the idea of paying for homework.
“(Students) are not the most well-off people,” Twomey said. “I know students who sometimes, unfortunately, have to make the decision between purchasing access codes for a class or having dinner tomorrow. “These are very real decisions for students.”
The students surveyed also questioned the fluidity of the systems. Clinton-Lisell said many students feel that because publishers are the ones creating the exercises, teachers end up not knowing the problems their students are working on or being unable to help fix technical problems that may arise.
“(Teachers) are not involved in the selection or development of the assignment, or at least as much,” Clinton-Lissel said, citing a misalignment at times between the assignment and class content.
Edwards said Pearson’s online assignment platforms, such as MyLab, provide a selection of assessments of the core content of a course and an instructor can have “the flexibility to select the questions they think are most appropriate for their own classroom context.” “. Edwards adds that there are many opportunities for an instructor to personalize and make sure their classes and assignments are aligned.
What historically underrepresented students say about homework platforms
First-generation college students spend more per semester on online materials compared to their continuing-generation peers. according to the survey. At the same time, 11% of first-generation students reported failing a class because they could not afford access codes compared to 2.9% of continuing-generation students. And 35.8% of first-generation students said they got worse grades compared to 25.6% of continuing-generation students because of the costs of online assignment systems.
“We have students who are already marginalized by systemic barriers and now they are given another one,” Clinton-Lisell said.
Latino students reported high levels of stress about the cost of online homework systems and were more likely to not purchase textbooks and their grades suffered as a result. Black students said they paid more for access codes than any other group of students, but had the lowest levels of stress related to the cost.
The benefits of online task systems
Despite the fees, some students who took part in the Clinton-Lisell survey reported benefits. Black students in particular said they were helpful and reported greater engagement with course content compared to other students.
Clinton-Lisell said that in the survey, students praised the idea of homework itself rather than the platforms where they complete work.
“They want to be able to practice, they don’t want to wait until the test to find out if they know it, and it’s a way to support their grades,” he said.
For students who are more visually inclined or need to understand dense material, online exercises are especially useful for visualizing certain concepts. Online systems often include videos and other visuals to explain complex ideas.
But Clinton-Lisell said those benefits should be weighed against the impact of costs on students.
Kyle Goodin, an accounting professor at Missouri State University, uses an online assignment system from McGraw Hill, where he also consults. He said the platform, called Connect, has increased student engagement and improved “dropout, fail and withdrawal” rates in some classes.
“I think the value that students get for what they pay for it is astronomical,” Goodin said.
At Goodin’s In the financial accounting course, for example, students pay $152 for a digital workbook, an assignment manager, a proctoring service, and additional resources per quarter. Goodin said that thanks to the assignment platform, students can immerse themselves in data analysis and visualizations, which is increasingly important in the accounting field.
“I remember paying a lot more than this, for a lot less, when I was a student,” Goodin said.
Moving towards open educational resources
In 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic forced campuses to close, big publishers made online assignment platforms free. Many professors incorporated them into their courses and continued to use them even after fees were reinstated.
But Clinton-Lisell said her survey results show that teachers could do more research into open education resources — course materials available under the public domain or open license that are free or accessible for a nominal fee.
Dan Xie, political director of PIRG Campus Action, said that in a world where knowledge and information are everywhere, students should not have to pay exorbitant amounts to learn course material and do their assignments.
“We have open textbooks… that are very high-quality, peer-reviewed, that teachers can and do choose from,” Xie said.
But professors like Goodin are skeptical about the widespread use of open educational resources.
“These textbook companies like Wiley, McGraw Hill and Pearson have authors who are vetted experts in their subject matter,” he said. Goodin said he doesn’t believe, at this time, that open source textbooks can provide as much value compared to what publishers’ course materials provide.
Still, there is a movement to try to incentivize teachers (through grants and stipends) to create their own textbooks and open course materials.
