Investigating Factors That Influence Math Homework Purposes: A Multilevel Analysis

Abstract

The present study used a multilevel approach to investigate the influence of four clusters of variables (i.e., demographic, homework, teacher, and parent) on three types of math homework purposes (i.e., academic, self-regulatory, or approval-seeking) perceived by 3,018 8th graders in China. Results revealed that each of the three math homework purposes was significantly related to at least one variable from three or more clusters at the student level (e.g., homework interest, teacher feedback quality, and parent content support). In addition, each purpose was significantly related to at least one variable from either homework or teacher clusters at the class level (e.g., homework quality and teacher autonomy support), thereby providing empirical support to the multilevel nature of math homework purposes. Third, compared with the “quantity” variables, the “quality” variables at the student and class levels played a more influential role in all three homework purposes, particularly relating to homework variables (quality/interest/favorability vs. time/frequency) and parent variables (content support vs. help quantity). Finally, although the present study did not directly compare students’ perspectives from different cultural backgrounds, the findings alluded to the role of cultural specificity in all three math homework purposes.