Modeling students' time management in math homework

•We examined multilevel models of students' time management (TM) in math homework.•The participants were 1799 high school students from 46 classes.•TM was positively related to parent education at the class level.•TM was positively related to monitoring motivation at the student level.•TM was positively related to arranging the environment at the student level.

This study examines empirical models of variables posited to predict time management in math homework for high school students, based on the data from 1799 students from 46 classes in China. The findings from multilevel analyses revealed that, at the class level, time management was positively related to time spent on homework, but negatively related to grade level. At the student level, time management was positively associated with monitoring motivation, arranging the study environment, peer- and learning-oriented reasons for doing homework, and family homework help. In addition, males (compared with females) were less likely to take initiatives to manage homework time. Possible explanations for and implications of these findings were discussed, and directions for future research were offered.