Child and Parent Perceptions of Parental Homework Involvement

Helping with homework is one of the most typical ways in which parents become involved in their children's schooling. Previous research has mainly focused on the child's perception of parental homework involvement. The present study examined whether parents and their children perceive parental homework involvement differently. We analysed data from 881 children, their mothers, and their fathers in the German-speaking part of Belgium. We found small to moderate associations (r r = .23 to r = .60) between child and parent perceptions, the highest association being for the quantity of parental involvement. Moreover, both mothers and fathers perceived their own involvement more positively than did their children. Further differences were found concerning the gender of parent and child.