Parents' conceptions of their homework involvement in elementary school

Abstract

Background: Homework is a universal practice used in schools, and is commonly related to academic achievement. According to literature, parental homework involvement has positive and negative aspects, depending on parents' behaviors. Method: Assuming a phenomenographic perspective, this study examined 4th graders' parents' conceptions of their involvement in homework. With the purpose of mapping the parents' various conceptions of homework involvement, 32 semi-structured interviews were conducted and analyzed. Results: The results show that parents' conceptions of homework involvement have a positive meaning, and focus primarily on the role played in the promotion of academic learning by (a) fostering their children's autonomy, (b) exerting control over their learning, and (c) providing them with emotional encouragement (when children struggle with difficulties). Conclusions: Given that parents perceive their involvement in their children's homework as important, it is necessary to promote parent-teacher collaboration and parent-training workshops to improve the quality of parental homework involvement.