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Starr A, Oginni O, von Stumm S. Do Children Cause the Cognitive Stimulation they Receive? Modelling the Direction of Causality. Behav Genet 2024:10.1007/s10519-024-10195-w. [PMID: 39251457 DOI: 10.1007/s10519-024-10195-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2023] [Accepted: 08/06/2024] [Indexed: 09/11/2024]
Abstract
We tested the directionality of associations between children's early-life cognitive development and the cognitive stimulation that they received from their parents. Our sample included up to 15,314 children from the Twins Early Development Study (TEDS), who were born between 1994 and 1996 in England and Wales and assessed at ages 3 and 4 years on cognitive development and cognitive stimulation, including singing rhymes, reading books, and playing games. Using genetically informative cross-lagged models, we found consistent, bidirectional effects from cognitive development at age 3 to cognitive stimulation at age 4, and from cognitive stimulation at age 3 to cognitive development at age 4. These cross-lagged longitudinal effects were largely explained by underlying common genetic and shared environmental factors, rather than reflecting causal mechanisms. Our findings emphasize the active role that children play in constructing their own learning experiences.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Olakunle Oginni
- King's College London, London, UK
- Wolfson Centre for Young People's Mental Health, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
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2
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Langensee L, Rumetshofer T, Mårtensson J. Interplay of socioeconomic status, cognition, and school performance in the ABCD sample. NPJ SCIENCE OF LEARNING 2024; 9:17. [PMID: 38467686 PMCID: PMC10928106 DOI: 10.1038/s41539-024-00233-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2023] [Accepted: 02/29/2024] [Indexed: 03/13/2024]
Abstract
Coming from a disadvantaged background can have negative impact on an individual's educational trajectory. Some people however seem unaffected and cope well with the demands and challenges posed by school education, despite growing up in adverse conditions, a phenomenon termed academic resilience. While it is uncertain which underlying factors make some people more likely to circumvent unfavorable odds than others, both socioeconomic status (SES) and cognitive ability have robustly been linked to school performance. The objective of the present work is to investigate if individual cognitive abilities and SES interact in their effect on grades. For this purpose, we analyzed SES, cognitive, and school performance data from 5001 participants from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study. Ordinal logistic regression models suggest similar patterns of associations between three SES measures (parental education, income-to-needs ratio, and neighborhood deprivation) and grades at two timepoints, with no evidence for interaction effects between SES and time. Parental education and income-to-needs ratio were associated with grades at both timepoints, irrespective of whether cognitive abilities were modeled or not. Neighborhood deprivation, in contrast, was only a statistically significant predictor of reported grades when cognitive abilities were not factored in. Cognitive abilities interacted with parental education level, meaning that they could be a safeguard against effects of SES on school performance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lara Langensee
- Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Division of Logopedics, Phoniatrics and Audiology, Lund University, Scania, Sweden.
| | - Theodor Rumetshofer
- Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Division of Logopedics, Phoniatrics and Audiology, Lund University, Scania, Sweden
| | - Johan Mårtensson
- Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Division of Logopedics, Phoniatrics and Audiology, Lund University, Scania, Sweden
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3
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Carolus AE, McLaughlin KA, Lengua LJ, Rowe ML, Sheridan MA, Zalewski M, Moran L, Romeo RR. Conversation disruptions in early childhood predict executive functioning development: A longitudinal study. Dev Sci 2024; 27:e13414. [PMID: 37226555 PMCID: PMC10667565 DOI: 10.1111/desc.13414] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2022] [Revised: 05/08/2023] [Accepted: 05/09/2023] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
Conversational turn-taking is a complex communicative skill that requires both linguistic and executive functioning (EF) skills, including processing input while simultaneously forming and inhibiting responses until one's turn. Adult-child turn-taking predicts children's linguistic, cognitive, and socioemotional development. However, little is understood about how disruptions to temporal contingency in turn-taking, such as interruptions and overlapping speech, relate to cognitive outcomes, and how these relationships may vary across developmental contexts. In a longitudinal sample of 275 socioeconomically diverse mother-child dyads (children 50% male, 65% White), we conducted pre-registered examinations of whether the frequency of dyads' conversational disruption during free play when children were 3 years old related to children's executive functioning (EF; 9 months later), self-regulation skills (18 months later), and externalizing psychopathology in early adolescence (age 10-12 years). Contrary to hypotheses, more conversational disruptions significantly predicted higher inhibition skills, controlling for sex, age, income-to-needs (ITN), and language ability. Results were driven by maternal disruptions of the child's speech, and could not be explained by measures of overall talkativeness or interactiveness. Exploratory analyses revealed that ITN moderated these relationships, such that the positive effect of disruptions on inhibition was strongest for children from lower ITN backgrounds. We discuss how adult-driven "cooperative overlap" may serve as a form of engaged participation that supports cognition and behavior in certain cultural contexts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amy E. Carolus
- University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, Department of Psychology
- Harvard University, Department of Psychology
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Rachel R. Romeo
- Harvard University, Department of Psychology
- University of Maryland College Park, Department of Human Development and Quantitative Methodology
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4
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James‐Brabham E, Loveridge T, Sella F, Wakeling P, Carroll DJ, Blakey E. How do socioeconomic attainment gaps in early mathematical ability arise? Child Dev 2023; 94:1550-1565. [PMID: 37248732 PMCID: PMC10953023 DOI: 10.1111/cdev.13947] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2021] [Revised: 02/24/2023] [Accepted: 03/21/2023] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
Socioeconomic attainment gaps in mathematical ability are evident before children begin school, and widen over time. Little is known about why early attainment gaps emerge. Two cross-sectional correlational studies were conducted in 2018-2019 with socioeconomically diverse preschoolers, to explore four factors that might explain why attainment gaps arise: working memory, inhibitory control, verbal ability, and frequency of home mathematical activities (N = 304, 54% female; 84% White, 10% Asian, 1% black African, 1% Kurdish, 4% mixed ethnicity). Inhibitory control and verbal ability emerged as indirect factors in the relation between socioeconomic status and mathematical ability, but neither working memory nor home activities did. We discuss the implications this has for future research to understand, and work towards narrowing attainment gaps.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Toni Loveridge
- Department of PsychologyUniversity of SheffieldSheffieldUK
| | - Francesco Sella
- Centre for Mathematical Cognition and Centre for Early Mathematics Learning, Department of Mathematics EducationLoughborough UniversityLoughboroughUK
| | | | | | - Emma Blakey
- Department of PsychologyUniversity of SheffieldSheffieldUK
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5
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Yajie L, Liu H, Gaoming M. Widening Digital Divide: Family Investment, Digital Learning, and Educational Performance of Chinese High School Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic School Closures. APPLIED RESEARCH IN QUALITY OF LIFE 2023:1-17. [PMID: 37359219 PMCID: PMC10230458 DOI: 10.1007/s11482-023-10191-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2022] [Accepted: 05/28/2023] [Indexed: 06/28/2023]
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic and school closures highlighted the need for research examining the effects of socio-economic status and digital learning on educational performance. Based on a panel dataset from a Chinese high school during school closures in 2020, our study explored whether the digital divide widened during the pandemic. The results showed that digital learning significantly mediates the association of socio-economic status with educational performance. In contrast, the indirect effects of digital learning were not significant before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, these effects immediately became significant during school closures and remote education instruction during the pandemic. After the schools reopened, the indirect effects of digital learning declined or even disappeared. Our findings provide new evidence for a widening digital divide during the COVID-19 pandemic school closures. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11482-023-10191-y.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liu Yajie
- Dalian Maritime University, Dalian, China
| | - Hong Liu
- Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Ma Gaoming
- School of Public Affairs, Zijingang Campus, Zhejiang University, No. 866 Yuhangtang Road, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province China
- Research Center for Common Prosperity, Future Regional Development Laboratory, Innovation Center for Yangtze River Delta, Zhejiang University, Jiaxing, China
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6
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Asadi IA, Kasperski R, Sarid M. The cumulative effect of socioeconomic status and dyslexia on linguistic, cognitive and reading skills among Arabic-speaking children. DYSLEXIA (CHICHESTER, ENGLAND) 2023; 29:78-96. [PMID: 36883317 DOI: 10.1002/dys.1735] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2022] [Revised: 12/11/2022] [Accepted: 01/24/2023] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
Research has shown that children with dyslexia and children with a low socioeconomic status (SES) fall behind in terms of literacy acquisition, but a question remains regarding the cumulative effect of dyslexia and SES on linguistic, cognitive and reading skills. To examine the impact of cognition and environment on literacy development, we returned to the data set of 1,441 elementary school children (223 dyslexic readers and 1,241 typical readers) from low and medium-high SES backgrounds within Palestinian society in Israel who had participated in the development study of a comprehensive battery of tests in oral and written Arabic. The findings of this retrospective study reveal that, across grade levels, dyslexic readers from a low SES background showed similar performance to those from a medium-high SES background on most linguistic, cognitive and reading measures. As for typical readers, SES contributed to individual differences in all linguistic, cognitive and reading indices, with the exception of RAN. Finally, a cumulative effect of dyslexia and SES was found in relation to morphology, vocabulary, listening comprehension and text-reading accuracy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ibrahim A Asadi
- The Arab Academic College for Education, Department of special education and Learning Disabilities, Haifa, Israel
- The Unit for the Study of Arabic Language, Edmond J. Safra Brain Research Center for the Study of Learning Disabilities, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
| | - Ronen Kasperski
- Department of Special Education, Shaanan Academic Religious Teachers' College, Haifa, Israel
- Department of Special Education, Gordon College of Education, Haifa, Israel
| | - Miri Sarid
- Department of Learning Disabilities, Western Galilee College, Acco, Israel
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7
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Deoni SCL, Burton P, Beauchemin J, Cano-Lorente R, De Both MD, Johnson M, Ryan L, Huentelman MJ. Neuroimaging and verbal memory assessment in healthy aging adults using a portable low-field MRI scanner and a web-based platform: results from a proof-of-concept population-based cross-section study. Brain Struct Funct 2023; 228:493-509. [PMID: 36352153 PMCID: PMC9646260 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-022-02595-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2022] [Accepted: 11/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
Consumer wearables and health monitors, internet-based health and cognitive assessments, and at-home biosample (e.g., saliva and capillary blood) collection kits are increasingly used by public health researchers for large population-based studies without requiring intensive in-person visits. Alongside reduced participant time burden, remote and virtual data collection allows the participation of individuals who live long distances from hospital or university research centers, or who lack access to transportation. Unfortunately, studies that include magnetic resonance neuroimaging are challenging to perform remotely given the infrastructure requirements of MRI scanners, and, as a result, they often omit socially, economically, and educationally disadvantaged individuals. Lower field strength systems (< 100 mT) offer the potential to perform neuroimaging at a participant's home, enabling more accessible and equitable research. Here we report the first use of a low-field MRI "scan van" with an online assessment of paired-associate learning (PAL) to examine associations between brain morphometry and verbal memory performance. In a sample of 67 individuals, 18-93 years of age, imaged at or near their home, we show expected white and gray matter volume trends with age and find significant (p < 0.05 FWE) associations between PAL performance and hippocampus, amygdala, caudate, and thalamic volumes. High-quality data were acquired in 93% of individuals, and at-home scanning was preferred by all individuals with prior MRI at a hospital or research setting. Results demonstrate the feasibility of remote neuroimaging and cognitive data collection, with important implications for engaging traditionally under-represented communities in neuroimaging research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sean C L Deoni
- Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health Discovery & Tools, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, 500 5th Ave, Seattle, WA, 98109, USA.
| | - Phoebe Burton
- Advanced Baby Imaging Lab, Rhode Island Hospital, Providence, RI, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Warren Alpert Medical School at Brown University, Providence, RI, USA
| | - Jennifer Beauchemin
- Advanced Baby Imaging Lab, Rhode Island Hospital, Providence, RI, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Warren Alpert Medical School at Brown University, Providence, RI, USA
| | - Rosa Cano-Lorente
- Advanced Baby Imaging Lab, Rhode Island Hospital, Providence, RI, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Warren Alpert Medical School at Brown University, Providence, RI, USA
| | | | | | - Lee Ryan
- Department of Psychology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
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Nevo E. The Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Low SES Kindergarteners' Language Abilities. EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION JOURNAL 2023; 52:1-11. [PMID: 36777451 PMCID: PMC9897886 DOI: 10.1007/s10643-023-01444-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/06/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Young children's language skills have a significant positive impact on their academic success throughout school, especially on reading and writing performance. The spread of COVID-19, which has resulted in lockdowns, fewer learning hours in kindergarten, and distance learning, might have affected children's exposure to learning opportunities. The aim of the current study was to compare language abilities (vocabulary and morphological awareness) of two groups of low SES kindergarteners, 110 children who attended seven kindergartens before the COVID-19 pandemic, and 54 children who attended eight kindergartens during the COVID-19 pandemic. While both groups followed the same educational program with the same teachers, the pre-COVID-19 group studied in kindergarten before the first wave of COVID-19 restrictions, in 2018-2019, and the mid-COVID-19 group, during the pandemic, in 2020. The results showed that the mid-COVID-19 group of children achieved lower scores on morphological awareness (d = 0.46 to d = 1.19, p = .006 to p < .001), pointing to a negative developmental effect of COVID-19 on young children's language abilities. Educational implications of the results are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Einat Nevo
- Department of Education, Western Galilee College, P.O. Box 2125, 24121 Acco, Israel
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van der Kleij SW, Burgess AP, Ricketts J, Shapiro LR. Tracking vocabulary and reading growth in children from lower and higher socioeconomic backgrounds during the transition from primary to secondary education. Child Dev 2023; 94:e57-e66. [PMID: 36214376 PMCID: PMC10092318 DOI: 10.1111/cdev.13862] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
We examined the relation between socioeconomic status (SES), vocabulary, and reading in middle childhood, during the transition from primary (elementary) to secondary (high) school. Children (N = 279, 163 girls) completed assessments of everyday and curriculum-related vocabulary, (non)word reading, and reading comprehension at five timepoints from age 10 to 13. Piecewise linear mixed-effects models showed significant growth in everyday vocabulary and word reading between every time point. Curriculum vocabulary and reading comprehension showed significant growth during the school year, but not during the summer holidays. There were significant effects of SES on all measures except word reading; yet, SES differences did not widen over time. Our findings motivate targeted reading and vocabulary support for secondary school students from lower SES backgrounds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sanne W. van der Kleij
- School of PsychologyUniversity of BirminghamBirminghamUK
- School of Psychology, College of Health and Life Sciences, and Institute of Health and NeurodevelopmentAston UniversityBirminghamUK
| | - Adrian P. Burgess
- School of Psychology, College of Health and Life Sciences, and Institute of Health and NeurodevelopmentAston UniversityBirminghamUK
| | - Jessie Ricketts
- Department of Psychology, Royal HollowayUniversity of LondonEghamUK
| | - Laura R. Shapiro
- School of Psychology, College of Health and Life Sciences, and Institute of Health and NeurodevelopmentAston UniversityBirminghamUK
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10
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Sjoberg EA, Wilner RG, D'Souza A, Cole GG. The Stroop Task Sex Difference: Evolved Inhibition or Color Naming? ARCHIVES OF SEXUAL BEHAVIOR 2023; 52:315-323. [PMID: 36261735 PMCID: PMC9859918 DOI: 10.1007/s10508-022-02439-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2020] [Revised: 09/27/2022] [Accepted: 09/27/2022] [Indexed: 05/21/2023]
Abstract
Previous research shows that women outperform men in the classic Stroop task, but it is not known why this difference occurs. There are currently two main hypotheses: (1) women have enhanced verbal abilities, and (2) women show greater inhibition. In two Stroop experiments, we examined the Inhibition hypothesis by adopting a procedure, often used in visual cognition paradigms, that induces a particular inhibitory component. So-called Negative Priming occurs when a distracting non-target stimulus on one trial becomes the target on the following trial. Results from our experiments showed that the degree to which this type of inhibition occurs within the Stroop effect is no different for men and women. This was the case irrespective of whether participants made a vocal response (Experiment 1; n = 64, 32 men and 32 women) or a manual response (Experiment 2; n = 64, 32 men and 32 women). These results do not therefore support the Inhibition hypothesis. We additionally review findings from a range of paradigms that can be seen as indexing the different components required for the Stroop task (e.g., distractor suppression). This review suggests that the sex effect is due to superior color naming ability in women.
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Affiliation(s)
- Espen A Sjoberg
- School of Health Sciences, Kristiania University College, Prinsens gate 7-9, 0152, Oslo, Norway.
| | - Raquel G Wilner
- Department of Linguistic, Literary and Aesthetic Studies, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Antonia D'Souza
- Centre for Brain Science, University of Essex, Colchester, UK
| | - Geoff G Cole
- Centre for Brain Science, University of Essex, Colchester, UK
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11
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Demis LY, Kane JC, Greene MC. Associations of conflict and migration on childhood cognitive development in Ethiopia: Evidence from a longitudinal study. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 2022; 63:1279-1287. [PMID: 35076934 PMCID: PMC10279456 DOI: 10.1111/jcpp.13571] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/16/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Migration has substantial consequences on the wellness of affected households, thereby exposing children to circumstances that are detrimental for healthy cognitive development. This study evaluates the relationship between conflict and migration during conception or early childhood and childhood cognitive development outcomes among families in Ethiopia. We hypothesized that migration is associated with worse cognitive development outcomes among children and that this association is mediated by educational disparities and caregiver psychological distress. METHODS The study used longitudinal data of children enrolled in the Young Lives Study (YLS) conducted in Ethiopia during 2002 (age 1), 2006-2007 (age 5), and 2009-2010 (age 8). We used multivariate linear and logistic regression to analyze the association between migration on cognitive development during middle childhood. Household migration and caregiver psychological distress were measured during round 1, type of education was measured at round 2, and cognitive development was measured at round 3. RESULTS Results of the multivariate regression analysis showed that migrant children achieved lower scores on a test of verbal intelligence after controlling for sex, ethnicity, religion, and caregiver distress (β: -8.09; 95% CI: -15.33, -0.85). Results of the mediation analysis show that the type of schooling that children attended, but not caregiver psychological distress, mediated the association between migration and cognitive development. Migrant children were more likely to attend private schools, which buffered the association between migration and lower cognitive development. CONCLUSIONS This study suggests that migration is a key determinant of childhood cognitive development among migrated populations. More research is needed to build the evidence base to support interventions for this growing, underserved population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lina Y. Demis
- Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY, USA
- Department of Population and Family Health, Program on Forced Migration and Health, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY, USA
| | - Jeremy C. Kane
- Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY, USA
| | - Martha Claire Greene
- Department of Population and Family Health, Program on Forced Migration and Health, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY, USA
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12
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von Stumm S, O'Reilly J, d'Apice K. Predicting developmental outcomes in middle childhood from early life language and parenting experiences. BRITISH JOURNAL OF DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY 2022; 40:487-503. [PMID: 35882963 PMCID: PMC9796835 DOI: 10.1111/bjdp.12427] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2021] [Accepted: 06/22/2022] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Children's early life experiences of language and parenting are thought to have pervasive, long-term influence on their cognitive and behavioural development. However, studies are scarce that collected naturalistic observations to broadly assess children's early life experiences and test their associations with developmental outcomes in middle childhood. Here, we used digital audio-recorders to collect three full days of naturalistic observations from 107 British families with children (46 boys) aged 2-4 years, of whom 89 participated in a follow-up assessment four years later when the children were 5-8 years old. We found that children's early life experiences of language and parenting were not significantly associated with their later language ability, academic performance and behavioural outcomes. We explore differences in methodology, sample characteristics and the role of developmental periods as possible explanations for the discrepancy in findings between the current and previous studies.
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13
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von Stumm S, Cave SN, Wakeling P. Persistent association between family socioeconomic status and primary school performance in Britain over 95 years. NPJ SCIENCE OF LEARNING 2022; 7:4. [PMID: 35443764 PMCID: PMC9021311 DOI: 10.1038/s41539-022-00120-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2021] [Accepted: 01/24/2022] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
In Britain and elsewhere, the influence of family socioeconomic status (SES) on education is already evident in primary school, and it persists and increases throughout the school years, with children from impoverished families earning lower grades and obtaining fewer educational qualifications than children from more privileged backgrounds. Reducing the effect of family background on children's education is a pivotal aim of educators, policymakers, and researchers, but the success of their efforts is poorly evidenced to date. Here, we show for the first time that over 95 years in Britain the association between family SES and children's primary school performance has remained stable. Across 16 British population cohorts born between 1921 and 2011 (N = 91,935), we confirmed previous findings of a correlation between family SES and children's school performance of 0.28 [95% Confidence Interval 0.22-0.34], after adjusting for cohort-specific confounders. Contrary to the popular assumption that family background inequality has increased over time, we observed only minimal differences in the association between family SES and school performance across British cohorts. We argue that education policies must prioritize equity in learning outcomes over equality in learning opportunities, if they seek to disrupt the perpetuation of social and economic inequality across generations. We speculate that the influence of family SES on children's education will only noticeably weaken if primary education settings become better equipped to meet and remediate the children's differential learning needs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sophie von Stumm
- Department of Education, University of York, YO10 5DD, Heslington, York, UK.
| | - Sophie Nicole Cave
- Department of Education, University of York, YO10 5DD, Heslington, York, UK
| | - Paul Wakeling
- Department of Education, University of York, YO10 5DD, Heslington, York, UK
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14
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Denervaud S, Christensen AP, Kenett YN, Beaty RE. Education shapes the structure of semantic memory and impacts creative thinking. NPJ SCIENCE OF LEARNING 2021; 6:35. [PMID: 34887430 PMCID: PMC8660875 DOI: 10.1038/s41539-021-00113-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2021] [Accepted: 10/27/2021] [Indexed: 06/01/2023]
Abstract
Education is central to the acquisition of knowledge, such as when children learn new concepts. It is unknown, however, whether educational differences impact not only what concepts children learn, but how those concepts come to be represented in semantic memory-a system that supports higher cognitive functions, such as creative thinking. Here we leverage computational network science tools to study hidden knowledge structures of 67 Swiss schoolchildren from two distinct educational backgrounds-Montessori and traditional, matched on socioeconomic factors and nonverbal intelligence-to examine how educational experience shape semantic memory and creative thinking. We find that children experiencing Montessori education show a more flexible semantic network structure (high connectivity/short paths between concepts, less modularity) alongside higher scores on creative thinking tests. The findings indicate that education impacts how children represent concepts in semantic memory and suggest that different educational experiences can affect higher cognitive functions, including creative thinking.
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Affiliation(s)
- Solange Denervaud
- Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV), University of Lausanne (UNIL), Lausanne, Switzerland.
- Center for Biomedical Imaging (CIBM), Lausanne, Switzerland.
| | | | - Yoed N Kenett
- Faculty of Industrial Engineering and Management, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Roger E Beaty
- Department of Psychology, Pennsylvania State University, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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15
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Voltmer K, Hormann O, Pietsch M, Maehler C, von Salisch M. Teaching the Teachers About Language Support Strategies: Effects on Young Children's Language Development. Front Psychol 2021; 12:660750. [PMID: 34017290 PMCID: PMC8129529 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.660750] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2021] [Accepted: 04/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
The feeling thinking talking (FTT) intervention was designed because early childhood seems to be a prime time for fostering young children's language skills. This intervention involved teaching teachers from N = 28 kindergarten groups in N = 13 German kindergartens language support strategies (LSS) to be used in everyday conversations with the children in their care. The FTT intervention was evaluated in a business-as-usual control group design with N = 281 children (mean age = 49.82 months, range = 33-66 months at T1, mixed SES) who were individually tested using objective tests on grammar, vocabulary and working memory before (T1) and after the FTT intervention (T2), and in a follow-up about one year after T1 (T3). After propensity matching was applied, multilevel models demonstrated that the children taught by the intervention group teachers made faster progress in their understanding of sentences, their application of morphological rules, and their memory for sentences when numerous covariates (child age, gender, behavioral self-regulation, multilingual upbringing, and family SES) were controlled. Results suggest that complex language processing abilities in young children can be promoted by a teacher-led intervention in early childhood education. Improved language skills will further all children's academic and social success in school.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharina Voltmer
- Institute of Psychology, Leuphana University Lueneburg, Lueneburg, Germany
| | - Oliver Hormann
- Institute for Educational Sciences, Technical University Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Germany.,Center for Methods, Leuphana University Lueneburg, Lueneburg, Germany
| | - Marcus Pietsch
- Institute of Educational Science, Leuphana University Lueneburg, Lueneburg, Germany.,Institute of Education, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Claudia Maehler
- Institute of Psychology, University of Hildesheim, Hildesheim, Germany
| | - Maria von Salisch
- Institute of Psychology, Leuphana University Lueneburg, Lueneburg, Germany
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Childhood disadvantage, neurocognitive development and neuropsychiatric disorders: Evidence of mechanisms. Curr Opin Psychiatry 2021; 34:306-323. [PMID: 33587493 PMCID: PMC9458466 DOI: 10.1097/yco.0000000000000701] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW Children living in socioeconomically disadvantaged households have excess risks of neurodevelopmental and neuropsychiatric problems. The purpose of this review is to synthesize evidence for mechanisms that may contribute to these excess risks. RECENT FINDINGS The majority of the 60 studies included in our review focused on children's neurocognitive development and behavioural problems. About half conducted mediation analyses of factors in the family and neighbourhood environments, including access to resources (e.g. cognitive inputs within the home environment) and exposure to stressors (e.g. negative parenting practices), as well as neurobiological embedding of childhood disadvantage. In addition, many studies conducted moderation analyses of factors that were hypothesized to interact with (i.e. exacerbate or mitigate) the harmful effects of childhood disadvantage. SUMMARY Many of the factors that contribute to the excess risk of neurodevelopmental and neuropsychiatric problems among children in disadvantaged households are potentially modifiable (e.g. cognitively stimulating materials, parental language input, cultural resources, parental stress and psychopathology, negative parenting, neighbourhood violence). If their causality is ultimately established, they could be targets for the prevention and reduction of disparities. The continued search for mechanisms should not detract from work to reduce and hopefully eliminate children's exposure to disadvantage.
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Lurie LA, Hagen MP, McLaughlin KA, Sheridan MA, Meltzoff AN, Rosen ML. Mechanisms linking socioeconomic status and academic achievement in early childhood: Cognitive stimulation and language. COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT 2021; 58:101045. [PMID: 33986564 PMCID: PMC8112571 DOI: 10.1016/j.cogdev.2021.101045] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
There is a strong positive association between childhood socioeconomic status (SES) and academic achievement. This disparity may, in part, be explained by differences in early environmental experiences and language development. Cognitive stimulation-including language exposure, access to learning materials, caregiver involvement in children's learning, and variety of experiences-varies by SES and may link SES to language development. Childhood language development in turn is associated with academic achievement. In the current longitudinal study of 101 children (60-75 months), SES was positively associated with cognitive stimulation and performance on language measures. Cognitive stimulation mediated the association between SES and children's language. Furthermore, children's language mediated the association between SES and academic achievement 18 months later. In addition to addressing broader inequalities in access to resources that facilitate caregivers' abilities to provide cognitive stimulation, cognitive stimulation itself could be targeted in future interventions to mitigate SES-related disparities in language and academic achievement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucy A Lurie
- Department of Psychology, Harvard University
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
| | | | | | - Margaret A Sheridan
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
| | - Andrew N Meltzoff
- Department of Psychology and Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences, University of Washington
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18
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Matte-Landry A, Boivin M, Tanguay-Garneau L, Mimeau C, Brendgen M, Vitaro F, Tremblay RE, Dionne G. Children With Persistent Versus Transient Early Language Delay: Language, Academic, and Psychosocial Outcomes in Elementary School. JOURNAL OF SPEECH, LANGUAGE, AND HEARING RESEARCH : JSLHR 2020; 63:3760-3774. [PMID: 33105083 DOI: 10.1044/2020_jslhr-20-00230] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Purpose The objective of this study was to compare children with persistent versus transient preschool language delay on language, academic, and psychosocial outcomes in elementary school. Method Children with persistent language delay (n = 30), transient language delay (n = 29), and no language delay (controls; n = 163) were identified from a population-based sample of twins. They were compared on language skills, academic achievement, and psychosocial adjustment in kindergarten and Grades 1, 3, 4, and 6. Results Children with persistent language delay continued to show language difficulties throughout elementary school. Furthermore, they had academic difficulties, in numeracy, and psychosocial difficulties (attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder behaviors, externalizing behaviors, peer difficulties) from Grade 1 to Grade 6. Children with transient language delay did not differ from controls on language and academic performance. However, they showed more externalizing behaviors in kindergarten and peer difficulties in Grade 1 than controls. Conclusion Difficulties at school age are widespread and enduring in those with persistent early language delay but appear specific to psychosocial adjustment in those with transient language delay.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra Matte-Landry
- School of Psychology, Université Laval, Québec City, Québec, Canada
- School of Social Work, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Michel Boivin
- School of Psychology, Université Laval, Québec City, Québec, Canada
| | | | - Catherine Mimeau
- School of Psychology, Université Laval, Québec City, Québec, Canada
| | - Mara Brendgen
- Department of Psychology, Université du Québec à Montréal, Canada
| | - Frank Vitaro
- School of Psychoeducation, Université de Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Richard E Tremblay
- Institute of Genetic, Neurobiological, and Social Foundations of Child Development, Tomsk State University, Russian Federation
- Department of Pediatrics and Psychology, Université de Montréal, Québec, Canada
- School of Public Health, Physiotherapy and Population Science, University College Dublin, Ireland
| | - Ginette Dionne
- School of Psychology, Université Laval, Québec City, Québec, Canada
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