Multiple Goals and Homework Involvement in Elementary School Students

This work arises from the need to investigate the role of motivational variables in homework involvement and academic achievement of elementary school students. The aims of this study are twofold: identifying the different combinations of student academic goals and analyzing the differences in homework involvement and academic achievement. The sample was composed of 535 fourth-, fifth- and sixth-grade elementary school students, between the ages of 9 and 13 years old. Findings showed three groups with different motivational profiles: a group of students with high multiple goals, another group with a learning goal orientation and a third group defined by a low multiple goals profile. Focusing on the differences between groups, it was observed that the amount of time doing homework was not associated with any motivational profile. Nevertheless, the differences were statistically significant between the motivational groups in the amount of homework (F(2, 530) = 42.59; p < .001; ηp2 = .138), in the management of time spent on homework (F(2, 530) = 33.08; p < .001; ηp2 = .111), and in academic achievement (F(2, 530) = 33.99; p < .001; ηp2 = .114). The effect size was large for the amount of homework performed and was also relatively large in the case of management of time and academic achievement.