East Tennessee State University Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University Electronic Theses and Dissertations Student Works 5-2018 Parent and Teacher Perceptions of Elementary School Homework Jimmy Marcum East Tennessee State University Follow this and additional works at: https://dc.edu/etd Part of the Early Childhood Education Commons, Educational Leadership Commons, Elementary and Middle and Secondary Education Administration Commons, and the Elementary Education Commons Recommended Citation Marcum, Jimmy, "Parent and Teacher Perceptions of Elementary School Homework" (2018). Electronic Theses and Dissertations.edu/etd/3377 This Dissertation - Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the Student Works at Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University. For more information, please contact digilib@etsu.
Parent and Teacher Perceptions of Elementary School Homework _____________________ A dissertation presented to the faculty of the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis East Tennessee State University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership _____________________ by Jimmy Marcum May 2018 _____________________ Dr. Pamela Scott, Chair Dr. William Flora Dr. Virginia Foley Dr.
Stephanie Tweed Keywords: Homework, Parental Involvement, Stress ABSTRACT Parent and Teacher Perceptions of Elementary School Homework by Jimmy Marcum The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the perceptions of parents and teachers of elementary school students regarding homework. Specifically, the researcher examined parent and teacher perceptions, perceptions of teachers in kindergarten through fifth grades, and parents of elementary students in kindergarten through fifth grades. In this qualitative study, the researcher analyzed feedback obtained from two focus groups: a group of three parents and a group of three teachers. One-on-one in-depth interviews of seven parents or guardians and seven elementary school teachers were utilized.
These interviews were conducted in settings chosen by the participants. All participants worked in, or had children enrolled in, one school division in Southwest, Virginia. All interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim, and examined by the participants to validate accuracy before coding began. Coded analysis of interview data revealed emergent themes based on frequency of occurrence.
Additionally, noteworthy data discussed by participants were documented. The findings of the study indicate that homework for elementary school students can be both beneficial and detrimental for elementary school students. The following themes emerged from analysis of participant interviews: homework can lead to stress; homework should be differentiated; homework should be brief; failing to complete homework results in school consequences; homework reveals student successes and areas of concern; homework amounts do not increase with grade level progression; nightly reading homework is acceptable; teachers have 2 a misconception between what they believe they are assigning and what is actually occurring; and homework must have a purpose. Moreover, noteworthy ideas were: teachers will make changes to homework based on parent feedback; homework impacts sleep; homework reduction can be beneficial; parents enjoy having homework options; parents appreciate information about homework; and teachers do not like assigning homework.
3 DEDICATION This study is dedicated to my Lord, Jesus Christ, who has always been so wonderful to me and has lovingly guided me through this entire process. He has constantly made a way for me to be successful. I am forever grateful for His love and mercy. I also dedicate this study to my amazing wife, Jessica.
I would have never been able to make it through this process without you. Your love, encouragement, and wisdom have always helped me to be successful. Even when I was tired and doubted if I would survive this process, your confidence in me never wavered. Thank you for your understanding all of those nights I sat typing away on my laptop only hearing you when I made a consorted effort to pull myself out of the world of schoolwork.
We have accomplished so much together and we are just getting started. My love for you grows with each passing day. Thank you for loving me. Finally, I dedicate this study to my children: Slade, Shandi, and Kinley.
We have had so many wonderful times together, but I know that some great memories were lost due to the late nights and weekends I spent working. My sacrifices were made to provide more for each of you. Without a doubt, your mother and I know that the three of you can accomplish anything you set your minds to. Work hard, do not settle for anything less than your best, and know that we love you with all of our hearts.
I look forward to spending more quality time with you. 4 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank my dissertation committee: Dr. Pamela Scott, Chair, Dr. William Flora, Dr.
Virginia Foley, and Dr.Scott, I truly appreciate all of the times you answered my questions and provided reassurance. Your kindness, patience, and knowledge have been instrumental in the completion of my dissertation. I was blessed to have you as the chair of my committee. A special thank you is extended to the parents and teachers who participated in this study.
Your zeal and candor made the interviewing process enjoyable. Finally, I would like to thank Dr. Doug Arnold for his wisdom and encouragement through this and every notable academic accomplishment I have realized since showing a desire to earn a master’s degree. Thank you for inspiring me to go as far as I possibly can to help students.
5 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT. 9 Statement of the Problem. 11 Significance of the Study. 11 Definition of Terms.
14 Current Views of Homework. 19 Amounts of Homework. 21 Educators’ Views of Homework. 23 Impacting Students and Families.
29 Parent-Teacher Relationships. 32 6 Summary of the Literature. METHODS AND PROCEDURES. 35 Role of the Researcher.
35 Trustworthiness of the Study. 43 Selection of Participants. SUMMARY, CONCLUSION, AND RECOMMENDATIONS. 66 Discussions and Conclusions.
67 Recommendations for Practice. 72 Recommendations for Future Research. 75 APPENDIX: INTERVIEW QUESTIONS. 98 8 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION When author Bunmi Laditan and her behavior therapist husband told their 10 year old daughter’s school that she would no longer be completing any homework, her daughter instantly felt a great deal of stress leave her body and the family started enjoying more quality time together (Dowd, 2017).
When Laditan posted the response to her Facebook page, she received many positive responses, more than 64,000 likes, and garnered attention from the media (Dowd, 2017). The homework topic brings about strong viewpoints both in support for and against. Stress is a term that is often associated with nightly student homework. The single greatest predictor of stress in elementary to middle school aged children from ages 9-13 was the amount of time spent on homework (Brown, Nobiling, Teufel, & Birch, 2011).
Homework is the term generally used to describe schoolwork given to students with the intent that completion will occur after the conclusion of the school day (Cooper, 2007). Homework has been a staple in the lives of American students for at least thirty years. Students at the elementary school level have not received immunity from increased loads of homework. In fact, they may have been the primary target of the homework agenda.
“It’s with younger children, where the benefits are most questionable (if not absent), that there has been the greatest increase in the quantity of homework” (Kohn, 2006, p. This increase has been confirmed in recent publications (Loveless, 2014; Moyer, 2017; Wilde, 2016). Learners need not only teacher support but also ongoing parental support to ensure homework completion is obtained and such support assists with increasing understanding (Knapp, Jefferson, & Landers, 2013; Margolis, 2005). Increasing parental involvement in 9 schools is necessary for educators because parental support is positively correlated with increasing student achievement (LaRocque, Kleiman, & Darling, 2011).
Likewise, involving parents in their child’s education ensures that a child will perform at optimal levels (Hoerr, 2017). Statement of the Problem School divisions understand the importance of strengthening bonds with parents and incorporating them in the decision-making process. Requiring students to complete homework may have a negative impact on the relationship between teachers and parents of elementary school students. First, homework at home creates multiple problems between parents and their children that may even lead parents to complete their child’s homework (Shumaker, 2016).
Additionally, assigning homework is often felt by parents to be an attack on their parenting skills and greatly decreases quality family time that children need (Kohn, 2007; Kralovec & Buell, 2000; Vatterott, 2009). A disconnect often exists between the homework philosophies and viewpoints of teachers and parents. Understandably, parents desire to understand the purpose behind their child’s homework. Many teachers believe assigning homework teaches responsibility, but homework has never been proven to increase self-discipline or responsibility (Kohn, 2006).
Both parents and teachers understand the importance of exercise and sleep, but nightly homework can infringe on these opportunities which may have health and emotional consequences. Behavior problems in students can be minimized by providing children opportunities to be physically active (Bennett & Kalish, 2006). Finally, the intended purpose, increasing academic performance, of homework is questionable. Cooper (2007) determined homework less effective for elementary 10 school students because they are distracted at home, have not developed adequate study habits, are not likely to use self-testing strategies, and elementary students take longer to complete homework.
Research Question This qualitative research study revolves around one overarching question: “What are the perceptions of elementary school parents and teachers in regard to the purpose of homework?” Significance of the Study The results of this study may add to existing research on homework’s influence on parent-teacher relationships. Administrators, superintendents, parents, and teachers may use the findings in a collaborative effort to improve or make changes to their existing homework policies and procedures. Assigning nightly homework to elementary school students must be examined to determine if assigning nightly homework to elementary students will influence parent-teacher relationships. Determining homework’s influence is important because positive parent-teacher relationships equate to high-levels of academic achievement.
The significance of this study focuses on the perceptions of parents and teachers of elementary school students to determine homework’s influence on parent-teacher relationships. Data provided by participants through interviews allowed for an analysis to determine if either group credits nightly homework as an attributing factor in strengthening or weakening parent- teacher relationships. Parents or guardians of ten elementary school students in kindergarten through fifth grades and teachers of students in kindergarten through fifth grades participated in the study. 11 Definition of Terms Busywork – “Both students and parents tend to view tasks that don't appear to require thinking as busywork.
Projects that require nonacademic skills (such as cutting, gluing, or drawing) are often inefficient” (Vatterott, p. Parental Involvement – “Parental participation in the educational processes and experiences of their children” (Jeynes, p. Stress – “The physiological response to the perception of loss of control resulting from an adverse situation or person” (Jensen, 2009, p. Student Engagement – “Students’ involvement with activities and conditions likely to generate high-quality learning” (Coates, 2008, p.
Practice Assignments – “Meant to reinforce the learning of material already presented in class and to help the student master specific skills” (Cooper, 2007, p. Student Voice – “The right-now expression of feelings, opinions, and narratives” (Jensen, 2016, p. Limitations A qualitative study emphasizing participant interviews was chosen for this study. The utilization of qualitative methods provides the researcher with highly-detailed information (Patton, 2002).
Purposeful sampling was utilized to collect data from the parent(s) or guardian(s) of seven elementary students and seven elementary school educators. Seven teachers from the elementary school setting participated in the study. Both groups of participants represent grades 12 kindergarten through fifth grades. Subsequently, both participant groups represent three elementary schools.
Due to the limited number of participants, the results are not representative of the perceptions of all parents or teachers from elementary school settings across the United States.