Mothers’ Worries About Children’s Schooling, Mother’s Homework Assistance, and Children’s Skills

Author(s):

Gintautas Silinskas(presenting / submitting)Marja-Kristiina Lerkkanen Jari-Erik Nurmi

Conference:

ECER 2011

Network:

14. Communities, Families and Schooling in Educational Research

Format:

Poster

Session Information

14 SES 9.5 PE/PS, Poster Exhibition / Poster Session

Time:

2011-09-15

12:00-13:30

Room:

Seminarzentrum - Posters

Chair:

Contribution

The following research questions were examined:

(1) The main aim of our study was to examine in what way mothers’ worries about their children’s schooling would relate (a) to mothers’ autonomy granting, (b) to mothers’ intrusive control and (c) to their children’s reading and math skills. Previous research has shown that parents’ worries may play a role in children’s achievement through the development of skills and motivation (Pomerantz, Moorman, & Litwack, 2007). However, the research in the area has focused on the role of parents’ worries on children’s motivation rather than achievement (Pomerantz et al., 2007). Consequently, we aimed at examining to what extent maternal worries about their children’s schooling trigger mothers’ behavior (i.e., intrusive control and autonomy granting) in terms of homework assistance. Also, we aimed at investigating in what way mothers’ worries are related to the development of children’s reading and math skills.

(2) Our second research question was what is the relationship between mothers’ involvement with homework (i.e., intrusive control and autonomy granting) and children’s reading and math skills? (a) Do children’s reading and math skills predict the amount of intrusive control and autonomy granting, and/or (b) Does intrusive control and autonomy granting predict subsequent development of children’s reading and math skills. Previous research has shown that besides teachers, parents may also play a role in their children’s learning to read (Hood, Conlon, & Andrews, 2008; Sénéchal & LeFevre, 2002) and count (Blevins-Knabe, & Musun-Miller, 1996; Huntsinger, Jose, Larson, & Krieg, 2000). Other studies have shown that parents’ involvement does not contribute to the development of children’s literacy and math skills (Cooper, Lindsay, & Nye, 2000; Silinskas, Leppänen, Aunola, Parrila, & Nurmi, 2010). Some other studies provided evidence that children’s skill level is a powerful predictor of parents’ engagement (Silinskas et al., 2010).

Method

Data were gathered from 1460 mother-child dyads. The reading and math skills of 7- to 8-year-olds were measured two times: at the end of Grade 1 and at the end of at Grade 2. Progress in word reading and math skills was tested in a group situation at Grade 1 Spring and Grade 2 Spring. In the word reading test, children were asked to select the correct word from four phonologically similar alternatives and link this to a picture by drawing a line between the two. In the math skill test, children were asked to complete as many tasks of addition and subtraction as possible in 3 min time. Mothers filled in questionnaires in the middle of Grade 2. Mothers were asked to report the extent to which they are worried about their children’s schooling (1 item), and the amount of the intrusive control and autonomy granting they provide to their children in assisting with homework assignments.

Expected Outcomes

First, the results showed that the more mothers worried about their children’s schooling, the more they used intrusive control with their children. By contrast, the more mothers worried about their children’s schooling, the less autonomy they provided. Also, the worse children’s reading and math skills were in Grade 1, the more mothers worried about their children’s schooling. Second, children’s math skills were weakly negatively related to intrusive control of their mothers. Also, reading and math skills at the end of Grade 1 were weakly positively related mothers’ autonomy granting in Grade 2. Moreover, neither intrusive control nor autonomy granting was found to benefit the subsequent development of children’s reading skills (except one weak positive association between autonomy granting and math skills). Therefore, it is possible that mothers’ worries and the type of mothers’ homework assistance may be primarily related to other spheres of children’s academic development, such as motivation.

References

Blevins-Knabe, B., & Musun-Miller, L. (1996). Number use at home by children and their parents and its relationship to early mathematical performance. Early Development and Parenting, 5, 35-45. Cooper, H., Lindsay, J. J., & Nye, B. (2000). Homework in the home: How student, family, and parenting-style differences relate to the homework process. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 25, 464-487. Hood, M., Conlon, E., & Andrews, G. (2008). Preschool home literacy practices and children’s literacy development: A longitudinal analysis. Journal of Educational Psychology, 100, 252-271. Huntsinger, C. S., Jose, P. E., Larson, S. L., & Krieg, D. B. (2000). Mathematics, vocabulary, and reading development in Chinese American and European American children over the primary school years. Journal of Educational Psychology, 92, 745-760. Pomerantz, E. M., Moorman, E. A., & Litwack, S. D. (2007). The how, whom, and why of parents’ involvement in children’s academic lives: More is not always better. Review of Educational Research, 77, 373-410. Sénéchal, M., & LeFevre, J.-A. (2002). Parental involvement in the development of children’s reading skills: A five-year longitudinal study. Child Development, 73, 445-460. Silinskas, G., Leppänen, U., Aunola, K., Parrila, R., & Nurmi, J.-E. (2010). Predictors of mothers’ and fathers’ teaching of reading and mathematics in kindergarten and Grade 1. Learning and Instruction. 20, 61-71.

Author Information

Gintautas Silinskas (presenting / submitting)

University of Jyväskylä

Department of Psychology

Jyväskylä

Marja-Kristiina Lerkkanen

University of Jyväskylä, Finland

Jari-Erik Nurmi