87% of Teachers Say Parents Should Spend More Time With Children on Homework

America Online, Inc.:

   Teachers and Parents Alike Give Internet Learning Services High Marks                  in New AP-AOL Learning Services Poll          AOL Introduces New Learning Services to Bridge the Gap                       From the Classroom to Home 

According to a new Associated Press-AOL Learning Services Poll, most teachers feel that parents should spend more time helping their children with homework. When it comes to homework help resources, 81% of teachers and 83% of parents agree that the Internet and online sources are helpful. Responding to teachers’ and parents’ concerns over children’s homework help and learning needs, AOL has launched a new suite of Internet learning tools called AOL(R) Learning Services that bridges the gap between the classroom and home learning.

Available to all Internet users at AOL.com/learning, AOL takes a unique approach to online educational products, offering simple solutions to help children at all ages and stages of their schooling, and also providing rich tools that engage parents in their kids’ learning progress. AOL Learning Services addresses the educational needs of early childhood learners to high school students with a portfolio of services ranging from cognitive games and homework help to reading, writing and math assistance.

The AOL Learning Services product suite currently includes AOL(R) Learning Games, AOL(R) Ready Set Read, AOL(R) Step by Step Math and AOL(R) Writing Wizard. Each product is available at $4.95 per month, plus parents can sign up for a 30 day free trial. Each service is Web-based, which means they can be accessed from anywhere, and do not require a CD-ROM or software download.

“Based on extensive teacher, parent and student input, we’ve created online learning tools that deliver a superior educational experience for students and that empower parents to track and shape their children’s learning progress,” said Edmund Fish, Senior Vice President & General Manager of AOL Premium and Subscription Services. “Unlike other one-size-fits-all tutorial products, each AOL Learning Services tool offers customized instruction according to a child’s age or skill sets in order to best fit his or her individual needs.”

AP/AOL Learning Services Poll Results

The AP/AOL Learning Services poll conducted by Knowledge Networks between January 13-23, 2006, surveyed teachers and parents of children in kindergarten through 12th grade. The topics ranged from homework and Internet resources to standardized testing and problems facing schools today.

Homework and Parental Help

Teachers and parents agree when it comes to the amount of assigned homework, with 63% of teachers and 57% of parents saying that homework levels are about right. Overall, students spend an average of 90 minutes on homework every night, though high school students average a higher 105 minutes. When asked what subject poses the most homework challenges, 67% of teachers and 40% of parents cited mathematics.

Higher grades impact how much time kids spend on homework and how much parental help is required. Mostly A students spend an average of 93 minutes on homework and only receive 35 minutes of help from parents. Mostly C and D students spend a slightly higher average of 96 minutes on homework and receive an average of 56 minutes of homework help. As the child’s school level increases, homework help becomes more challenging: 16% of parents of elementary schoolers, 34% of parents of middle schoolers and 43% of parents of high schoolers report they often have difficulties helping their kids with homework.

When examining socioeconomic factors, parents in households with higher incomes of more than $75K spend less time (33 minutes) helping with homework than households with incomes under $25K that spend 46 minutes. Also, parents with college bachelor’s degrees or higher report spending the least amount of time (33 minutes) on homework help, while parents who did not complete high school spend the most amount of time (53 minutes) on their children’s homework. However, 46% of parents with less than a high school education report having a harder time helping with homework because the subject matter is challenging, whereas only 13% of parents with bachelor’s degrees or higher have difficulty.

The survey also found that women spend more time (46 minutes) helping with homework than men do (35 minutes.) In addition, African-American families report spending more time (58 minutes) on homework help than Hispanics (47 minutes) and Caucasians (36 minutes.)

The Internet: Online Homework Resources

The Internet is growing more popular for finding help on homework. According to teachers, 44% of students turn to the Internet as a homework resource at least somewhat often, and parents report 30% of children logging online as well. When asked who is more knowledgeable about the learning resources available on the Internet, 73% of teachers and 57% of parents report that they know more than their students/children.

Children whose parents are better educated or have higher incomes are more likely to turn to the Internet for homework help. Specifically, 32% of children whose parents have a bachelor’s degree or higher turn to the Internet, compared to 16% of children whose parents did not complete high school. Also, 33% of children from households earning $75K and over turn to the Internet for help on homework, versus the 23% of children from households earning less than $25K.

Curriculum and Standardized Testing

When asked what subject students should spend more time studying in school, teachers most often cited English (33%) while parents most often said mathematics (39%.)

While teachers oppose standardized testing, parents have mixed views. Seventy-two percent of teachers say there is too much emphasis on standardized testing at their schools, compared to less than half (48%) of parents.

Biggest Problems Facing Schools

Among the serious problems facing schools today, finding and keeping good teachers was most often identified as a pressing concern across all school levels by both teachers (66%) and parents (57%.) Teachers were more likely than parents to say that lack of student discipline was another serious problem, particularly within public schools.

Methodology

The Associated Press/AOL Learning Services Poll was conducted online by Knowledge Networks. Between January 13-23, 2006, Knowledge Networks interviewed a representative sample of 1,085 parents who have children in kindergarten through grade 12, as well as a sample of 810 of kindergarten through 12th grade teachers. Members of the Knowledge Networks Internet panel are recruited by telephone polling methods, and panelists who are not online are provided with Internet access. Please see AOL.com/learning for information on poll methodology used. The margin of error for parents is +/- 3 percentage points, and the margin of error for teachers is +/- 3.5 percentage points. Margin of error for subgroups may be higher.

About The Associated Press

The Associated Press is the world’s oldest and largest newsgathering organization, providing content to more than 15,000 news outlets with a daily reach of 1 billion people around the world. Its multimedia services are distributed by satellite and the Internet to more than 120 nations. For more information, visit www.ap.org.

About America Online, Inc.

America Online, Inc. and its subsidiaries operate a leading network of Web brands and the largest Internet access subscription service in the United States. Brands include the AOL(R) service, the AOL.com(R) website, and the AIM(R), MapQuest(R), Moviefone(R), Netscape(R), CompuServe(R) and ICQ(R) services. America Online offers a range of digital services including the TotalTalk(TM) voice service. The company also has operations in Canada and Europe. America Online, Inc. is based in Dulles, Virginia, and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Time Warner Inc.