The Role of Caregivers in Supporting Conceptually Challenging Mathematics Learning

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The Role of Caregivers in Supporting
Conceptually Challenging Mathematics Learning
MetroMath Research Symposium, June 6, 2006

• Rutgers Team Penn Team
• Yakov Epstein Janine Remillard
• Lynda Ginsburg Traci English-Clarke
• Roberta Schorr Wendy Green
• Frank Lai Kara Jackson
• Hanin Rashid

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The Research Program

• Literature review of parent involvement with
  mathematics (completed)
• Analysis of homework component of reform math
  curricula (completed)
• Family and Adult Mathematics Education (FAME)
  research project (ongoing)
• Mathematics Homework Connections (Math HC)
• (Sept 06-Aug 07)
• Interviews with administrators, teachers, and
  parents about math homework practices
• Observations of parents working with their
  children on math homework

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Research Questions

• In what ways are the roles that
  parents/caregivers enact aligned with implicit
  and explicit expectations from the HomeLinks
  (Everyday Mathematics homework book) curriculum
  materials, with teachers expectations and
  perceptions, and with the parents own vision and
  expectations?
• How do parents perceive and negotiate the reform
  curriculum as exemplified in childrens homework?
  Who is learning and what is being learned?
• What sorts of practices do parents and children
  enact when working on mathematics homework?
• What cognitive and affective issues arise for
  children regarding mathematics homework as they
  move between school and home?
• What information, delivery mechanisms and other
  supports would help parents work with their
  children on homework and otherwise support their
  childrens mathematics education?

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Conceptual Framework

• Framing and understanding parent involvement
• (Hoover-Dempsey colleagues Calabrese-Barton
  colleagues)
• Parent involvement mathematics
• (Civil Peressini Remillard Jackson Shumow)
• Ecological framing of the child and parent
  (Brofenfrenner, Calabrese-Barton colleagues)
• Homework as a boundary object (Wenger, 1998)

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Homework as a Boundary Object
SCHOOL
HOME
HOMEWORK AS BOUNDARY OBJECT
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Research Strategy

• 2 K-8 schools each in Newark (overlap with 1
  school used in affect group research) and in
  Philadelphia

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Research Timeline

• PHASE 1 Sept 06-Oct 06
• Establishing trust, learning about the context,
  and identifying teachers and parents who are
  willing to participate in the study
• PHASE 2 Nov 06-June 07
• Formal data collection
• PHASE 3 Jan 07-Aug 07
• Data analysis

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Teacher Interviews

• Semi-structured interview including questions
  about
• Homework policies and expectations
• Role and centrality of homework in classroom
  instruction
• Opinions of the HomeLinks materials and their use
  of them for homework purposes
• Expectations of parents roles
• Assessment of homework that is returned and any
  use they make of it for instruction

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Parent Interviews

• Semi-structured interview including questions
  about
• Opinions about the usefulness of math homework
• Practices with regard to homework in general and
  specifically math homework
• Comfort with the HomeLinks materials that are
  sent home
• What parents do when they are unsure of how to
  help with the math homework
• Supports they would like to have available to
  help them help their children

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Observations of Parent-Child Dyads

• Video-taping of hour-long sessions where we
  observe the following
• (1) the child works on his/her mathematics
  homework and the parent provides support as
  he/she sees fit
• (2) the parent-child dyad works together on
  particular homework exercises taken from the
  Everyday Mathematics curriculum

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Future Plans

• Based on this study, we intend to
• develop an intervention to support parents
  working with their children's math homework
• pursue external funding to support research on
  impact of interventions

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Parental Roles Afforded by HomeLinks Materials

• Instructor
• Monitor
• Game Player
• Engaged Audience Member
• Material Resource Provider