Boosting Homework: A Video Tape Link Between Families and Schools

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Abstract
This study examined effects of a self-administered video tape intervention designed to improve students' homework quality, promote parental involvement and support for children's homework efforts, and enhance communications between families and schools. A total of 49 junior-high students and their parents participated in the study. Students were identified by teachers as experiencing academic problems. Random assignment by classroom to experimental or control conditions was employed to test the intervention. The intervention materials advised students to engage in specific daily home study routines, parents to monitor and reinforce these efforts, and teachers to provide daily report cards. Results supported the utility of the intervention materials, which were well-received by both parents and students. Compared to controls, experimental parents reported increased knowledge of their children's homework activities and experimental students reported significant improvement in homework quality over control students. Despite some limitations in the study, the program offers a low cost technique to inform families and coordinate home/school efforts.