Family Involvement with Children's Homework: An Intervention in the Middle Grades

This study investigated a middle-grades mathematics homework intervention designed to increase family involvement in homework. The participants were 74 sixth-grade students and their families from a midwestern school. The students were enrolled in one of three mathematics classes taught by the same instructor. In one class there were no homework involvement prompts, in the second class students were prompted to involve family members, and in a third class students were prompted to involve family members and family participation was requested directly. Findings indicate that, compared to families that were not prompted, families in the two classes receiving prompts were significantly more involved in mathematics homework activities. However, level of family involvement did not predict student achievement. Implications for practice and directions for research are discussed.