In years past, many high school students and their parents followed a similar script as they planned for college: take the most challenging classes in high school to boost their GPA, be in as many extra-curricular activities as possible, earn the highest ACT or SAT score possible, apply to a college with said score, and get "in" based on the institution's formulaic criteria for admission. While this approach worked for many students to gain admission to colleges and universities in the past, the landscape of college admissions has changed significantly in the last few years. 

Homework.

Those assignments, questions, problems, projects, papers that teachers give to students to complete outside of regular classroom time.

It seems to be part and parcel of the formal schooling experience. Students have homework. That's just the way school "works." 

Yet, in spite of its seeming simplicity and central place within education, homework is quite a controversial issue. It has strong proponents and fierce opponents among administrators, teachers, parents, and students at all levels of education. 

Even at an early age, students begin to ask the legitimate question, “Why are we learning this?” By the time a student reaches high school, they have likely perfected asking this question.