Learning the wrong helps make it right

Think about our planet for a second. Earth has an elliptical — oval-shaped — orbit. That means we’re closer to the sun for one part of the year and farther away another part of the year.

Does that fact explain why it’s hotter in the summer and colder in the winter?

Lots of kids think it does. Lots of adults think so, too. And they’re wrong.

Source: The Importance Of Getting Things Wrong

The article deals with the mental baggage of having to change your beliefs when confronted when new information, something that humans are pretty terrible about. This has been an issue with the no homework idea, that students who practice or complete homework incorrectly will have a harder time learning how to do it correctly.

Giving practice problems to students who lack understanding can have any of several effects:

*  It may get them accustomed to doing things the wrong way, because what’s really “reinforced” are mistaken assumptions.