Next directions in measurement of the home mathematics environment: An international and interdisciplinary perspective

Abstract

This article synthesizes findings from an international virtual conference, funded by the United States National Science Foundation, focused on the home mathematics environment (HME). In light of inconsistencies and gaps in research investigating relations between the HME and children’s outcomes, the purpose of the conference was to discuss actionable steps and considerations for future work. The conference was composed of international researchers with a wide range of expertise and backgrounds. Presentations and discussions during the conference centered broadly on the need to better operationalize and measure the HME as a construct—focusing on issues related to child, family, and community factors, country and cultural factors, and the cognitive and affective characteristics of caregivers and children. Results of the conference and a subsequent writing workshop include a synthesis of core questions and key considerations for the field of research on the HME. Findings highlight the need for the field at large to use multi-method measurement approaches to capture nuances in the HME, and to do so with increased international and interdisciplinary collaboration, open science practices, and communication among scholars.

Relations between Subdomains of Home Math Activities and Corresponding Math Skills in 4-Year-Old Children

“…To date, research on the relations between home math activities and children's math skills has yielded mixed evidence, with some studies finding positive associations, while others find null or negative associations [2,3]. Our findings might explain, at least in part, this mixed evidence.…”

“…Instead, parents seemed to engage in home activities supporting certain math skills over others. Possible explanations for these findings could be that home math activities are driven by parents' beliefs about how children develop math skills during preschool, their view about the role they play in their children's learning, and their own math experiences and abilities (for a review see [3]). Alternatively, children's abilities and interests may influence what math activities parents and children engage in.…”

“…One of the factors that have been proposed to influence such skills are the experiences of the children with math-related activities at home [2]. Despite the widespread notion that home math activities are beneficial for children's early math development, empirical studies on the relations between home math activities and children's math skills reveal mixed results [3]. Many studies find positive relations [4][5][6][7][8]; however, some others find no associations [9][10][11][12] or even negative associations [13,14].…”

Parental (STEM) Occupations, the Home Numeracy Environment, and Kindergarten Children’s Numerical Competencies

“…Early numeracy development and child and family characteristics that are associated with this development are intensively discussed in current research to understand how we can support children to improve their skills and abilities [62][63][64]. However, still, not much is known about the specific associations of parents' learned and current STEM or non-STEM occupations with children's numerical competencies and families' HNE at an early age [17,18].…”

“…Consequently, it can be assumed that parental learned occupations (but not their current occupations) are connected to parents' beliefs and attitudes and, in turn, are associated with parent-child interactions at home, which were not assessed within our HNE measurements. Here, clearly, more research is needed that focusses on the association of specific aspects of parental occupations, beliefs, and attitudes with specific aspects of the HNE [63].…”