Does Housework Help Improve Academic Performance? - An Empirical Analysis on the Influence of Participation in Housework on Academic Performance of Primary and Middle School Students

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Bulrr

Current emphasis on cultivating a hard-working spirit in China’s practical education has not been matched by sufficient opportunities for many children to do housework, leaving the evidence on its effects incomplete. Using Jiangsu Province’s 2020 Monitoring of Students’ Academic Quality in Basic Education, the study estimates how students’ housework participation relates to academic performance via OLS regression and Coarsened Exact Matching. Participation frequency shows a positive academic association, stronger in primary than junior high, alongside policy implications.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages19

Reading Time48 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Background: Housework Education and Policy Support

Research Problem and Study Approach

Does Housework Help Improve Academic Performance? An Empirical Analysis on the Influence of Participation in Housework on Academic Performance of Primary and Middle School Students Xuechun Wang, 1 Jijun Yao, 1 Shike Zhou2 1. Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing 210004, China 2. Jiangsu Academy of Educational Sciences, Nanjing 210024, China Abstract. At present, even if the education on hard-working spirit has been emphasized increasingly as an important part of practical education in China’s education policy, the reality is still far from satisfactory, because many parents do not provide their children with sufficient opportunities to do housework. Previous studies have indicated that the empirical analysis remains to be improved in terms of the relationship between housework and the development of primary and junior high school students. Based on data from the 2020 Monitoring of Students ' Academic Quality in Basic Education in Jiangsu Province Study, this study investigates the influence of primary and secondary school students’ participation in housework on academic performance by using OLS regression and Coarsened Exact Matching (CEM). The results show that the current proportion of primary and junior highschool students involved in housework is not high; however, participating in housework frequently will positively affect the academic performance ofprimary and junior high school students. Participation in housework in primary school has a greater positive impact on academic performance than that in junior high school. In addition, since excessive academic burden is the main factor hindering primary and junior highschool students from being involved in housework, it is necessary to strengthen the publicity of education on hard-working spirit to help people know its importance. Also, we suggest the burden on schoolwork should be reduced to in order to promote more diversified housework related educational opportunities for students. Best Evidence in Chinese Education 2022; 10(1):1283-1301. | Doi: 10.15354/bece.22.or009. | | --- | | How to Cite: Wang, X., Yao, J., & Zhou, S. (2022). Does housework help improve academic performance? An empirical analysis on the influence ofparticipation in housework on academic performance ofprimary and middle school students. Best Evidence in Chinese Education, 10(1):1283-1301. | Keywords: Participation in Housework, Education on Hard-Working Spirit, Student Academic Achievement, Coarsened Exact Matching, Reducing Burden and Increasing Efficiency About Authors: Xuechun Wang, School of Educational Science, Nanjing Normal University, 122 Ninghai Road, Nanjing 210024, China, [E-mail:](E-mail: wxc3a@qq.com)[ ](E-mail: wxc3a@qq.com)[wxc3a@qq.com](E-mail: wxc3a@qq.com) Shike Zhou, Educational Measurement and Evaluation, Jiangsu Academy of Educational sciences, China. E-mail: [j](jyszsk@163.com)[yszsk@163.com](jyszsk@163.com) Correspondence to: Jijun Yao, School of Educational Science, Nanjing Normal University, 122 Ninghai Road, Nanjing 210024, China, [E-mail:](E-mail: yaojijun_njnu@163.com)[ y](E-mail: yaojijun_njnu@163.com)[aojijun_njnu@163.com](E-mail: yaojijun_njnu@163.com) Funding: Jiangsu University Advantage Discipline Construction Project Funding Project (PAPD) Conflict of Interests: None. © 2022 Insights Publisher. All rights reserved. Creative Commons Non Commercial CC BY-NC: This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 License ([http://www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/](http://www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/)) which permits non-commercial use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed by the Insights Publisher. Introduction ENCOURAGING students to perform housework fits well with the goals of Chi na’s education. But does time spent on housework limit students’ study time, thus being harmful to academic a

FAQs

What research question does the study address about housework?

It examines whether students’ participation in housework helps improve academic performance, and whether the time spent on housework could instead limit study time.

Which data and methods are used in the empirical analysis?

The study uses data from Jiangsu Province’s 2020 Monitoring of Students’ Academic Quality in Basic Education and applies OLS regression and Coarsened Exact Matching (CEM).

What key findings are reported regarding housework participation and academic performance?

Housework participation frequency is associated with better academic performance, with a stronger positive effect for primary school students than for junior high students.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Bulrr