Should we Help our Children with Homework? A Meta-Analysis Using PISA Data.

BACKGROUND: The role of homework in students' academic performance is a widely debated topic about which there is no definitive answer. The objective of this study was to analyse the importance of parental help with homework in academic achievement, testing its cultural invariance (by country), academic invariance (by subject), and the stability of its effects over time. METHOD: A meta-analysis was performed using the results of PISA evaluations from 2009, 2012, 2015, and 2018 from countries which applied the family PISA questionnaire. We analysed 180 effects and confirmed the fit of the model and the heterogeneity of the effects, performing an analysis of moderators and multimodal inference. RESULTS: Students who had more help with homework had lower academic achievement, with an overall effect (d) = 0.23, 95% CI [0.21, 0.25]. The effects were greater in Europe than in Asia. We did not find differences by subject type, and the results were stable over time. CONCLUSIONS: Family help with homework does not ensure students' academic success, and it is more important how that help is given than how much. This conclusion is valid for different types of subjects and is stable over time, with some variation between cultures.

Análisis de Redes: una Alternativa a los Enfoques Clásicos de Evaluación de los Sistemas Educativos / Network analysis: An alternative to classic approaches for education systems evaluation

Las abundantes investigaciones sobre los sistemas educativos han permitido identificar los factores fundamentales que determinan el éxito educativo del alumnado. Sin embargo, estas investigaciones no han sido muy eficientes a la hora de transferir los resultados a los contextos aplicados en los que se mueven los profesionales y directivos que toman las decisiones sobre los sistemas educativos. La razón principal de este fracaso proviene de la poca familiarización de los profesionales de la educación con la sofisticada metodología estadística y psicométrica utilizada por la mayoría de los investigadores. El objetivo del presente trabajo es analizar los sistemas educativos mediante la metodología de análisis de redes, la cual es muy asequible, clara e intuitiva para profesionales y directivos educativos sin una gran sofisticación metodológica. Se utilizó una muestra de 7,882 estudiantes de segundo curso de la Enseñanza Secundaria Obligatoria. Se evaluó su competencia matemática y se obtuvieron datos relativos al contexto educativo. Se utilizó para los análisis el análisis de redes, calculando indicadores de centralidad, así como de precisión y estabilidad de la red. Los resultados indican que el autoconcepto y las expectativas académicas tienen un importante efecto sobre los resultados en matemáticas. Los hallazgos convergen con los obtenidos previamente con otros enfoques. El acercamiento de análisis de redes ofrece una combinación idónea entre rigor analítico y sencillez interpretativa, lo que le confiere gran potencial para ser empleado en contextos educativos aplicados para la toma de decisiones basadas en datos.

Widespread research on educational systems has made it possible to identify the main factors that define students’ educational success. Nevertheless, these studies have not been very efficient when it comes to transferring their conclusions to the applied contexts where those who teach or make decisions about educational systems move. The main reason for this failure lies on the unfamiliarity of education professionals with the sophisticated statistical and psychometric methodology used by most researchers. The goal of this paper is to analyze educational systems using the Network Analysis methodology, which is very affordable, clear, and intuitive for teachers and educational leaders without a great methodological sophistication. A sample of 7,882 eighth-graders was used. Students’ mathematical skills were evaluated and data were obtained from their educational context. Network Analysis was used calculating indicators of centrality, as well as precision and stability of the network. The results indicate that academic self-concept and academic expectations have an important effect on performance in mathematics. The findings match with those previously obtained with other approaches. The Network Analysis methodology offers an ideal combination of analytical rigor and interpretative simplicity, that provides a great potential to be used in applied educational contexts for evidence-based decision making.

Should we Help our Children with Homework? A Meta-Analysis Using PISA Data / ¿Debemos Ayudar a Nuestros Hijos con los Deberes? un Meta-Análisis con Datos PISA

Background: The role of homework in students’ academic performance is a widely debated topic about which there is no definitive answer. The objective of this study was to analyse the importance of parental help with homework in academic achievement, testing its cultural invariance (by country), academic invariance (by subject), and the stability of its effects over time. Method: A meta-analysis was performed using the results of PISA evaluations from 2009, 2012, 2015, and 2018 from countries which applied the family PISA questionnaire. We analysed 180 effects and confirmed the fit of the model and the heterogeneity of the effects, performing an analysis of moderators and multimodal inference. Results: Students who had more help with homework had lower academic achievement, with an overall effect (d) = 0.23, 95% CI [0.21, 0.25]. The effects were greater in Europe than in Asia. We did not find differences by subject type, and the results were stable over time. Conclusions: Family help with homework does not ensure students’ academic success, and it is more important how that help is given than how much. This conclusion is valid for different types of subjects and is stable over time, with some variation between cultures.

Antecedentes: el papel de los deberes escolares en el rendimiento académico es un tema ampliamente debatido, no existiendo una respuesta definitiva. El presente trabajo analiza el efecto de la ayuda parental con los deberes sobre los resultados educativos, comprobando la invarianza cultural (por países) y académica (por asignaturas), así como la estabilidad temporal de los efectos. Método: se realizó un meta-análisis con los resultados PISA de los años 2009, 2012, 2015 y 2018, incluyendo los países que aplicaron el cuestionario PISA para las familias. Se analizaron 180 efectos, comprobando el ajuste del modelo y la heterogeneidad de los efectos, y realizando análisis de moderadores y análisis de inferencia con modelos múltiples. Resultados: los estudiantes que reciben más ayuda con los deberes obtienen resultados más bajos: d = 0.23, IC 95% [0.21, 0.25]. Los efectos son mayores en Europa que en Asia. No se encontraron diferencias en función de la asignatura, y los resultados son estables a lo largo del tiempo. Conclusiones: la ayuda familiar con los deberes no garantiza el éxito académico, siendo más importante cómo se hace que el cuánto. Esta conclusión es válida en todas las asignaturas y se muestra estable en el tiempo, observándose variaciones interculturales.

Resiliencia académica: la influencia del esfuerzo, las expectativas y el autoconcepto académico / Academic resilience: The influence of academic effort, expectations, and self-concept

Resumen Introducción: La resiliencia académica consiste en obtener altas calificaciones a pesar de hallarse en una desventaja socioeconómica. En el presente estudio se observó si el esfuerzo, las expectativas y el autoconcepto académicos forman parte de la resiliencia académica o estarían explicando un buen rendimiento académico en general. Método: Los participantes, una población de 7479 adolescentes españoles (M = 13.87; DT = 0.82), fueron divididos en cuatro grupos según el rendimiento académico (Bueno-Malo) y el nivel socioeconómico (Clase alta-Clase baja). Se realizaron análisis de diferencias y regresiones logísticas binarias para detectar cuál de las variables empleadas explicaba el rendimiento académico en los grupos de igual nivel socioeconómico. También se estudió si el sexo influía en la pertenencia a los grupos de buen rendimiento. Resultados: Se observaron diferencias en el esfuerzo, las expectativas y el autoconcepto académicos en función de los cuatro grupos creados; los grupos de buen rendimiento académico obtuvieron puntuaciones más altas independientemente del nivel socioeconómico. Se observó que las expectativas y el autoconcepto académicos explicaban gran parte del rendimiento académico. Se detectó una tasa de mujeres significativamente más alta con relación a la de hombres en los grupos de mayor rendimiento. Conclusiones: Muchas variables, que se han considerado propias de los alumnos académicamente resilientes, explican un buen rendimiento académico, en general, independientemente del nivel socioeconómico.

Abstract Introduction: Academic resilience is defined as getting high marks despite being at a socioeconomic disadvantage. In the present study, it was observed whether Academic Effort, Expectations and Self-Concept are part of academic resilience or would be explaining a good academic performance in general. Method: The participants, a population of 7479 Spanish adolescents (M = 13.87; SD = 0.82), were divided into four groups according to academic performance (Good-Bad) and socioeconomic level (Upper class-Lower class). Analysis of differences and binary logistic regressions were performed to detect which of the variables used explained the academic performance in the groups of the same socioeconomic level. It was also studied whether sex influenced membership in the good performance groups. Results: Differences in Academic Effort, Expectations and Self-concept were found according to the four groups created; the groups with good academic performance obtained higher scores regardless of socioeconomic level. Expectations and academic self-concept were found to explain much of academic performance. A significantly higher rate of women than men was found in higher performance groups. Conclusions: Many variables that have been considered typical of academically resilient students explain good academic performance in general, regardless of socioeconomic status.

Homework and Academic Achievement in Latin America: A Multilevel Approach.

The relationship between homework and academic results has been widely researched. Most of that research has used English-speaking, European or Asian samples, and to date there have been no detailed studies into that relationship in Latin America and the Caribbean. The aim of this study is to examine the effect of quantitative homework characteristics on achievement in science. The sample comprised 61,938 students at 2,955 schools in the 15 Latin American countries (plus the Mexican state of New Leon) which participated in the Third Regional Comparative and Explanatory Study (TERCE), carried out by the Latin American Laboratory for Educational Quality (LLECE) in 2013. The mean age was 12.42 years old (±0.94). Within each country, three hierarchical-linear models were applied at two levels: student and school. The individual level considered time spent doing homework and the school level considered the amount and frequency of homework assignment. In addition, ten control variables were included in order to control the net effect of the characteristics of the homework on the result. The results confirmed that homework is widely assigned in the Latin American region. At the individual level, time spent on homework had little effect on academic performance, while in the quantitative homework characteristics it was the frequency of homework assignment which demonstrated a clearer effect rather than the amount of homework assigned.

Parental involvement and academic performance: Less control and more communication / Implicación familiar y rendimiento académico: menos control y más comunicación

Background: Parental involvement in the educational process is desirable, although more involvement does not guarantee better results. The aim of this research is to explore the relationship between styles of parental involvement at home and academic performance. Method: A random sample of 26,543 Spanish students was used, with a mean age of 14.4 (SD = 0.75). Two thirds (66.2%) attended a publicly funded school; 49.7% were girls; 87.8% had Spanish nationality; and 73.5% were in the school year corresponding to their age. Different three-level hierarchical-linear models were fitted: student, school, and region (autonomous community). Results: Students whose parents exhibited a more distal or indirect profile of family involvement tended to demonstrate better results than those from homes with a more controlling style. Parental involvement styles have an effect on achievement at an individual and school level, even after accounting for the effect of context or background variables. Conclusions: Given the importance of parental involvement in academic performance, schools should consider it in their family information and training policies. Schools which have more communicative family profiles tend to demonstrate lower levels of intra-school differences in students’ academic performance (AU)

Antecedentes: la implicación familiar en el proceso educativo es un hecho deseable, aunque una mayor implicación no garantiza mejores resultados. El objetivo de esta investigación es explorar la relación entre los estilos de implicación familiar en el hogar y los resultados escolares. Método: se utilizó una muestra de 26.543 estudiantes españoles con una medida de edad de 14,4 años (DT = 0,75). El 66,2% asiste a un centro público; el 49,7% son mujeres; el 87,8% es español; y el 73,5% está escolarizado en el curso correspondiente a su edad. Se ajustaron diferentes modelos jerárquico-lineales de tres niveles: alumnado, centro y región. Resultados: los estudiantes cuyos progenitores presentan un perfil de implicación familiar más distal o indirecto tienden a presentar mejores resultados que los que provienen de hogares con un estilo más controlador. Los estilos familiares tienen efecto sobre los resultados individuales y de centro, incluso después de descontar el impacto de las variables de contexto. Conclusiones: dada la importancia de la implicación familiar en el rendimiento, los centros deben de tenerla muy en cuenta en su política de información y formación familiar. Los centros que tienen perfiles familiares más comunicativos tienden a presentar menores diferencias intra-centro en los resultados individuales (AU)

Parental involvement and academic performance: Less control and more communication.

BACKGROUND: Parental involvement in the educational process is desirable, although more involvement does not guarantee better results. The aim of this research is to explore the relationship between styles of parental involvement at home and academic performance. METHOD: A random sample of 26,543 Spanish students was used, with a mean age of 14.4 (SD = 0.75). Two thirds (66.2%) attended a publicly funded school; 49.7% were girls; 87.8% had Spanish nationality; and 73.5% were in the school year corresponding to their age. Different three-level hierarchical-linear models were fitted: student, school, and region (autonomous community). RESULTS: Students whose parents exhibited a more distal or indirect profile of family involvement tended to demonstrate better results than those from homes with a more controlling style. Parental involvement styles have an effect on achievement at an individual and school level, even after accounting for the effect of context or background variables. CONCLUSIONS: Given the importance of parental involvement in academic performance, schools should consider it in their family information and training policies. Schools which have more communicative family profiles tend to demonstrate lower levels of intra-school differences in students’ academic performance.

Students' Achievement and Homework Assignment Strategies.

The optimum time students should spend on homework has been widely researched although the results are far from unanimous. The main objective of this research is to analyze how homework assignment strategies in schools affect students' academic performance and the differences in students' time spent on homework. Participants were a representative sample of Spanish adolescents (N = 26,543) with a mean age of 14.4 (±0.75), 49.7% girls. A test battery was used to measure academic performance in four subjects: Spanish, Mathematics, Science, and Citizenship. A questionnaire allowed the measurement of the indicators used for the description of homework and control variables. Two three-level hierarchical-linear models (student, school, autonomous community) were produced for each subject being evaluated. The relationship between academic results and homework time is negative at the individual level but positive at school level. An increase in the amount of homework a school assigns is associated with an increase in the differences in student time spent on homework. An optimum amount of homework is proposed which schools should assign to maximize gains in achievement for students overall.