Improving homework accuracy: Interdependent group contingencies and randomized components

Homework is an often employed teaching strategy that has strong positive effects on academic achievement across grade levels, content areas, and student ability levels. To maximize academic learning, accuracy of homework should be addressed. The present investigation employed a multiple‐baseline design across academic behaviors to examine the efficacy of randomization of the interdependent group contingency on the homework accuracy of six fourth‐grade students enrolled in a general education class. Results demonstrated that the interdependent group contingency coupled with randomly selected components improved accuracy of homework performance. Specifically, participants demonstrated gains in all three subject areas. Limitations and future research are also addressed. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

The effects of daily homework assignments on the acquisition of basic skills by students with learning disabilities

Examined in this two-study investigation was the effectiveness of supplemental homework assignments on the acquisition of basic skills by students with diagnosed learning disabilities (LD). In Experiment 1, an adapted alternating treatments design was used to investigate the efficacy of unstructured homework assignments with 6 elementary school-aged students having basic math problems. Although the impact of the homework assignments differed across students, three factors maximized the effectiveness of the homework assignments: rate of homework completion, percentage correct on the homework assignments, and the rate of acquisition of the content being presented. Experiment 2, designed to formally test the effectiveness of homework assignments structured specifically to address these identified factors, confirmed that homework can be employed to increase the effectiveness of direct instruction sequences with students diagnosed as LD.     

Newcomer Immigrant Students’ Perspectives on What Affects Their Homework Experiences

ABSTRACT

The author examined how characteristics related to individual, family, and school environments contribute to immigrant students’ homework completion. Participants were 192 newcomers in an urban high school designed to serve English language learners. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses were conducted with data compiled from a larger project on role of homework in immigrant adolescents’ academic lives. The author found that students’ homework completion is shaped by (a) gender, engagement in school, homework environment and learning styles; (b) parental homework support and family conflict; and (c) perceived school violence and school homework supports. The effect of perceived school violence on homework completion differed for boys and girls. Boys’ homework completion was more adversely affected by higher perceptions of violence at school than that of girls.     

“Did you do your homework?” Mathematics teachers’ homework follow‐up practices at middle school level

Teachers’ homework follow‐up practices, the in‐class strategies teachers use to monitor their students’ homework assignments, have an impact on their students’ homework behaviors and academic achievement. The current study explored the perspectives of middle school mathematics teachers on the three domains of homework follow‐up: the practices used in class, the purposes of each practice, and the aspects that may influence this process. Data were collected from two data sources (i.e., focus groups and classroom observations) and were analyzed using thematic analysis. The findings showed that teachers monitored homework either using a single strategy or a combination of strategies (e.g., checking homework completion and providing individual feedback) linked to a specific purpose (e.g., promote students’ involvement). The teachers also reported that they were under certain constraints when they delivered homework follow‐up practices (e.g., pressure to follow the curriculum), so their practices’ effectiveness sometimes can be compromised. Implications for practice are discussed.     

Effects of Instruction in an Assignment Completion Strategy on the Homework Performance of Students with Learning Disabilities in General Education Classes

Homework is an important activity in the lives of school‐aged children, including students with learning disabilities (LD). Characteristics often associated with LD (e.g., poor organizational skills) may adversely impact the rate and quality of homework completion. In this study, a multiple‐probe across‐students design (Horner & Baer, 1978) was used to evaluate the effects of instruction in a comprehensive, independent assignment completion strategy with regard to homework completion rates and the quality of products completed in response to assignments given in general education classrooms. Eight of nine students mastered use of the strategy, and their homework completion rates and the quality of their homework products improved. Associated with these improvements were increases in quarterly grades and teacher ratings of the quality of the assignments. Thus, direct instruction in a comprehensive strategy comprised of organizational behaviors can result in independent completion of more homework by students with LD. Nevertheless, instruction in organizational skills alone appears insufficient to produce a 100 percent submission rate: student motivation to complete assignments and mastery of the skills required, as well as the appropriateness of assignments for students, need to be addressed.     

The effects of faculty behaviors on the academic achievement of first-year Cambodian urban university students

Research on the faculty impact on students’ academic achievement has been disproportionately confined to the context of countries with developed higher education systems. Few studies have been undertaken in the developing world like Cambodia. This study employed hierarchical linear modeling to examine the relationships between faculty behaviors and the academic achievement of university students in Cambodia, using the data of 923 first-year students from nine universities in Phnom Penh City. Results indicated that faculty behavior, namely their support and feedback to students, was a unique factor that had a strong and positive influence on students’ academic achievement. Its effect was the same for all students regardless of their pre-university academic experience and geographical origin and partially moderated by student engagement in time spent on course-related tasks outside the classroom, assigned homework/tasks, class participation, and class preparation. Contrary to existing findings from faculty impact studies, no relation was found for faculty’s instructional organization and clarity or classroom practices that challenge students on academic achievement. Practical implications for assessment policies and instructional practices are discussed.     

THE EFFECTS OF GROUP COACHING ON THE HOMEWORK PROBLEMS EXPERIENCED BY SECONDARY STUDENTS WITH AND WITHOUT DISABILITIES

Research on the effectiveness of homework provides ample evidence that homework has a positive effect on learning, particularly for secondary students. Unfortunately, the rate of consistent homework completion for students, with and without disabilities, is low. This study used a between‐groups design to examine the differential effectiveness of coaching, a self‐management intervention, compared with the local treatment‐as‐usual (homework center) on improving the homework completion of 50 middle school students (Grades 6 to 8) with and without disabilities who were having substantial difficulty with homework. Results indicated that both group coaching and homework center (treatment‐as‐usual) were effective in significantly decreasing homework problems, with no clear indication that one intervention was, overall, superior to the other. However, preliminary analyses suggest that these interventions might be differentially effective as a function of disability status.     

College students’ homework and academic achievement: The mediating role of self-regulatory beliefs

The influence of homework experiences on students’ academic grades was studied with 223 college students. Students’ self-efficacy for learning and perceived responsibility beliefs were included as mediating variables in this research. The students’ homework influenced their achievement indirectly via these two self-regulatory beliefs as well as directly. Self-efficacy for learning, although moderately correlated with perceptions of responsibility, predicted course grades more strongly than the latter variable. No gender differences were found for any of the variables, a finding that extends prior research based on high school girls. Educational implications about the importance of students’ homework completion and its relationship to college students’ development of self-regulation and positive self-efficacy beliefs is discussed from a social cognitive perspective.     

Preferred Homework Style and Homework Environment in High- Versus Low-achieving Chinese Students

The study compared preferred homework styles of Chinese students-who were characterized by (a) high vs low self-perceived homework achievement and attitude; (b) high vs low teacher-rated homework completion and quality; and (c) high vs low academic achievement in mathematics-and examined gender differences of homework styles in these students. The participants were 329 5th graders (172 boys and 157 girls) and 244 7th graders (130 boys and 114 girls). More distinguishing homework style elements were found with the self-perceived homework achievement and attitude levels than in the teacher-rated achievement levels. Neither gender differences nor gender-achievement interaction effects were indicated. As expected, the motivational elements distinguished the high/low levels of all types of achievement and attitude towards homework. While high teacher-rated achievement was more closely associated with high scores of the teacher-motivated element, the self-perception of work accomplishment at home was more positive in those students who were highly motivated by parents as well as teachers. A number of environmental and organisational elements also distinguished the high from low achievers. The importance of the teacher and parent role in student achievement was discussed.     

Emotion regulation,homework completion,and math achievement: Testing models of reciprocal effects

The current investigation employs models of reciprocal effects among emotion management, cognitive reappraisal, homework completion, and achievement, based on two measurement points from 1450 Chinese 8th graders. Results revealed that emotion management and math achievement were reciprocally related. Furthermore, higher prior achievement led to higher subsequent cognitive reappraisal and homework completion. Additionally, significant interactions were found between emotion management and cognitive reappraisal in the prediction of subsequent emotion management, cognitive reappraisal, and homework completion. Specifically, these findings indicated that emotion management had a more positive influence on subsequent emotion management, cognitive reappraisal, and homework completion when prior cognitive reappraisal was low (compensatory effect by decreasing the gap between students with prior high and low cognitive reappraisal).     

Students With Learning Disabilities: Homework Problems and Promising Practices

Students with learning disabilities are more likely than other students to have problems doing homework. In this article, we describe how deficits in language, attention, memory, and organizational skills as well as in reading, writing, and math affect homework performance. We describe family and school factors that may exacerbate-or ameliorate-their problems as well as the intervention research that has included students with learning disabilities. At this point, there appears to be a huge gap between the strategies successfully applied in intervention studies and teachers' preferences for interventions, a serious issue that spills over and has a negative influence on family life. Nonetheless, an emerging area of intervention research suggests that effective efforts to improve homework completion, accuracy, and test performance may require parental involvement, peer cooperation, self-monitoring and graphing, "real-life" assignments, teachercollaborative problem solving, or all.     

Homework involvement among Hong Kong primary school students

One component of the curriculum reform in Hong Kong focuses on the use of homework in consolidating learning, deepening understanding and constructing knowledge. This study examines the profile of Hong Kong primary school students' homework involvement, and investigates the relationships between time involvement and academic attributes, namely interest in homework, interest in academic subjects, academic efficacy, and efficacy for self-regulated learning. The sample comprised 2,361 primary school students representing all six grade levels in Hong Kong. Data was collected using questionnaires and homework diaries. Results showed heavy homework involvement among primary school students in Hong Kong, especially at the senior primary level. Differential patterns across levels were observed for the relationship between homework involvement and academic attributes. Specifically, junior primary students' study-related interests and efficacies were found to decline with increasing time involvement, whereas inverted U-shape relationships were observed among senior primary students. There was concern for students with high time involvement as they received more homework and they worked slower. They were less likely to perceive the positive functions of homework, and showed poorer study-related interests and efficacy beliefs. The findings of this study provide crucial information for school personnel and educators in Hong Kong in developing homework strategies and policies that enhance teaching and learning.     

Early Identification of Student Performance and Effort Using an Online Homework System: A Pilot Study

Two distinct student groups, in terms of academic performance, were identified early in the semester as either being under-performing students or over-performing students using an online homework system. The students who are identified as under-performing received, on average, lower grades than their fellow students but spent more time completing the homework assignments. These students are great candidates for targeted advertisement of student resources such as tutoring services. The students who are identified in the over-performing student population received higher grades than their fellow students, but spent less time completing the homework assignments. These students are great candidates for honors programs, independent research projects, and peer-tutoring programs. Incorporating these evaluation criteria to online homework systems will allow instructors to quickly identify students in these academic student populations.     

The relationship between homework and the academic progress of children in Spain during compulsory elementary education: A twin fixed-effects approach

Homework has traditionally been considered positive for students’ academic achievement, to the extent that it makes children more responsible while learning. Nevertheless, making students do a large amount of homework has been one of the most criticised practices in recent years. Parental associations have long held the view that Spanish elementary school pupils spend too much time on homework. This situation is so alarming that it has recently caused a ‘homework strike’, which has been supported by many children's parents. Furthermore, being assigned an excessive amount of homework is a serious problem which extends well beyond Spain. In light of this context, this article aims to provide new evidence on the relationship between homework and academic performance. To carry out this research, rich longitudinal census data, together with a twin fixed-effects approach and value-added models, have been used. In this way, we can control for variables that are the same within twins, allowing us to generate a better understanding of the association between homework time and primary children's academic achievement. Our main finding is that homework is not associated with young people's academic achievement (at least within this specific country context).     

Students with reading and spelling disabilities: peer groups and educational attainment in secondary education

The present study investigated whether the members of adolescents' peer groups are similar in reading and spelling disabilities and whether this similarity contributes to subsequent school achievement and educational attainment. The sample consisted of 375 Finnish adolescents whose reading and spelling disabilities were assessed at age 16 with the Finnish dyslexia screening test. The students also completed a sociometric nomination measure that was used to identify their peer groups. Register information on participants' school grades also was available, and educational attainment in secondary education was recorded 5 years after completion of the 9 years of basic education. The results revealed that the members of adolescent peer groups resembled each other in reading disabilities but not in those of spelling. Reading disabilities and academic achievement shared within the peer group also contributed to educational attainment in secondary education. Finally, reading disabilities played a larger role in educational attainment among males than among females.     

Gender and homework management reported by African American students

The present study linked gender and grade level to homework management strategies and homework completion behaviours. The participants were 685 African American students in the south‐eastern USA, including 370 eighth graders and 315 eleventh graders. Gender appeared related to the majority of homework measures examined in the present study. Specifically, compared with boys, girls reported more frequently working to manage their workspace, monitor motivation and control negative emotion. In addition, girls reported that they were more likely to complete their assigned homework and were less likely to come to class without their homework. On the other hand, grade level (eighth graders vs. 11th graders) did not relate to homework management strategies and homework completion behaviours.     

The Effects of Interactive Reading Homework and Parent Involvement on Children's Inference Responses

This study examined the effects of (a) interactive reading homework, and (b) parent involvement with children during homework on students' responses to inference questions. Interactive reading homework refers to homework designed to involve both parents and children and to facilitate student reasoning. The participants were 84 parents and 84 second grade students from three Alabama elementary schools. Data were gathered using pre- and post student inference tests, parent behavior checklists, and parent homework questionnaires. The results indicated that interactive reading homework increased both parental involvement during the completion of reading homework assignments and students' ability to draw inferences.