Examining the Likelihood of Parents' Homework Involvement With Elementary-Aged Students With Individualized Education Plans

Elementary-aged students with individualized education programs (IEPs) tend to experience more challenges and demonstrate lower homework completion as compared with peers without IEPs. Parent involvement in homework can significantly improve a child's homework achievement, but little research has examined the factors associated with higher levels of homework involvement for parents of children with IEPs. Using the 2016 Parent and Family Involvement survey, weighted hierarchical ordinal logistic regression analysis was implemented to determine how a child's IEP status, parents' demographic characteristics, school-level variables, and parents' expectations predicted parents' odds of helping their child with homework. Results indicated parents' race and income, along with school communication, parent satisfaction, and the interaction between a child's IEP status with parents' expectations predicted parents' likelihood of involvement in their child's homework. The implications of these findings and future directions are discussed.