Intellectual interest mediates gene × socioeconomic status interaction on adolescent academic achievement

Recent studies have demonstrated that genetic influences on cognitive ability and academic achievement are larger for children raised in higher socioeconomic status (SES) homes. However, little work has been done to document the psychosocial processes that underlie this Gene × Environment interaction. One process may involve the conversion of intellectual interest into academic achievement. Analyses of data from 777 pairs of 17-year-old twins indicated that Gene × SES effects on achievement scores can be accounted for by stronger influences of genes for intellectual interest on achievement at higher levels of SES. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that higher SES affords greater opportunity for children to seek out and benefit from learning experiences that are congruent with their genetically influenced intellectual interests.     

Socioeconomic advantage and achievement motivation: Important mediators of academic performance in minority children in urban schools

A correlational study examined relationships between socioeconomic advantage, achievement motivation, and academic performance in an urban elementary school population of 130 minority students (African-American, Hispanic). Level of socioeconomic advantage (more/less) was determined by school records and eligibility for participation in a compensatory school-lunch program for low-income children. A self-report measure of students' self-efficacy, intrinsic value, and self-regulatory learning orientation was used to determine level of achievement motivation (high/low). Performance data in reading and mathematics were obtained from an individually administered achievement test. Multivariate analyses revealed that socioeconomic advantage and achievement motivation are significant mediators of academic performance in minority children, independent of intellectual ability. The classroom implications of socioeconomic advantage and achievement motivation on individual differences in academic performance of minority children in urban elementary schools are discussed.     

Decreasing the SES math achievement gap: Initial math proficiency and home learning environments

Many children in the U.S., particularly those from low socioeconomic status (SES) backgrounds, do not develop sufficient math skills to be competitive in today's technological world. We utilized a mediation/moderation framework and the ECLS-K dataset to investigate factors that can decrease the SES-related math achievement gap in kindergarten. Starting kindergarten proficient in math and experiencing a supportive home learning environment significantly decreased SES achievement differences. Proficiency in math at the start of kindergarten accounted for the greatest decrease in the SES-math achievement gap. Findings support the importance of comprehensive and multi-contextual approaches targeted to families and schools for improving children's exposure to math-relevant experiences.     

Learning motivation from a cross-cultural perspective: a moving target?

This paper investigates the relationship between educational achievement and the motivation to learn. We used the 2006 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) that contains representative samples from 55 nations. A strong negative correlation between educational achievement and motivation toward science learning emerged at the national level. We found that differences in the socioeconomic levels of nations are associated with this unexpected negative correlation. Children from developed societies achieve higher educational results but may tend to be rather critical in describing their learning motivation, and vice versa, students from developing countries do not attain very high educational outcomes, but their motivation, as stated on the self-report questionnaires, is high. We offer different explanations for this phenomenon. The motivation to learn in relation to the level of development of countries is a moving target, and this should be taken into account at all levels of education policymaking, from schools to national governments.     

Distinct Influences of Mothers and Fathers on Kindergartners’ Numeracy Performance: The Role of Math Anxiety,Home Numeracy Practices,and Numeracy Expectations

The current study analyzed maternal and paternal differential influences on numeracy performance in kindergarten children. Participants were 180 Chilean children from backgrounds of low and high socioeconomic status (SES), their mothers, and their fathers. A path analysis was used to explore the influences of both maternal and paternal numeracy practices on children’s numeracy performance and the influences of maternal and paternal expectations and anxiety on those activities. Research Findings: Results showed that mothers and fathers who endorse higher numeracy expectations for their children and who report lower levels of math anxiety also report engaging more frequently in advanced numeracy practices with their children. Mothers’—but not fathers’—engagement in numeracy practices at home predicted children’s numeracy performance. Also, low-SES mothers engaged more frequently in numeracy practices with their children, and mothers in general engaged more often in numeracy activities with girls than with boys. Practice or Policy: These findings improve understanding of how maternal and paternal processes relate differently to numeracy performance in kindergarten children. Moreover, these results highlight the need to take into account parents’ numeracy attitudes and practices, as well as their SES, when designing interventions directed at increasing family support for math achievement.     

Arts involvement predicts academic achievement only when the child has a musical instrument

We examined the associations between academic achievement and arts involvement (access to a musical instrument for the child at home, participation in unspecified after-school arts activities) in a sample of 2339 11–12-year-olds surveyed in the USA between 1998 and 2008. We compared the contributions of these variables to other kinds of cognitive stimulation at home (e.g. books), participation in after-school sports, and socioeconomic factors. Involvement in after-school arts was positively related to academic achievement only for those children who also reported access to a musical instrument. Access to a musical instrument predicted academic achievement independently of socioeconomic status. We consider the possibilities that the results may be indicative of differing parental attitudes in homes with musical instruments and/or a causal link between instrumental music learning and academic achievement.     

Protective Factors for School Readiness Among Children in Poverty

The economic status of families and their children's learning outcomes are closely related. For example, children living in poverty tend to score worse on measures of reading and math performance than their more affluent peers, and this achievement gap is present by kindergarten. In this study, we identified protective factors associated with school readiness among an Arizona sample of children living at or below the federal poverty line (N = 230). Using multiple linear regression, we examined the association between assessments of school readiness, health status, childcare hours, home language, parent engagement, and parent education. We found that increased weekly childcare hours and better health were associated with higher proficiency in math, literacy, and approaches to learning, and may serve as resilience factors for children in poverty that may contribute to closing the achievement gap.     

Teacher Perceptions of Learning Motivation and Classroom Behavior: The Role of Student Characteristics

The present study investigates whether teacher perceptions of students’ cognitive skills, their learning motivation, and their classroom behavior differ according to students’ socioeconomic status, immigrant background, and gender. Data from N = 4746 German fourth graders and data from their parents and teachers were analyzed using structural equation modeling. Controlling for student achievement as measured in a standardized achievement test and student motivation as measured by student and parent reports, we found that teachers overestimated the cognitive skills of high-SES students and girls in comparison to those of low-SES students and boys. Similarly, teachers perceived high-SES students, students who are not from an immigrant background, and girls as having a higher learning motivation and as having more cognitive skills. Finally, we found that teachers’ perceptions of students’ learning motivation and classroom behavior mediated the relationship between student characteristics and cognitive skills as perceived by the teacher.     

Individual differences in an English learning achievement system: gaming flow experience,gender differences and learning motivation

Despite the growing interest in digital game-based learning (DGBL), there has been a lack of attention paid to the effects of individual differences, such as gaming flow experience and gender differences, in a reward-based achievement system. To this end, this study developed an achievement system with a reward mechanism to facilitate English learning. This study investigated how individuals’ gaming flow experience levels affected their levels of learning motivation, and whether any gender differences existed in gaming flow experience and learning motivation while engaging in the achievement system. The results showed that gaming flow experience significantly predicted learning motivation, whereby the students with high gaming flow experience were six times more likely to have high learning motivation than those with low gaming flow experience. Subsequent analysis showed that the female students had significantly higher gaming flow than the male students, but the male and female students showed similar learning motivation. Furthermore, the results indicated that the male students achieved more interactive rewards than the female students, but no significant differences were found in the male and female students’ achievement of other types of rewards. Based on these findings, the authors contribute to the literature by developing a framework which can be applied to support designers to accommodate individual differences in DGBL.     

Does Parent Involvement and Neighborhood Quality Matter for African American Boys' Kindergarten Mathematics Achievement?

Research Findings: There is growing evidence that home learning stimulation that includes informal numeracy experiences can promote math-related learning in school. Furthermore, national studies suggest that children who start kindergarten with stronger math skills are more likely to succeed in high school. This study used a large sample of African American boys to examine family, neighborhood, and demographic predictors of math achievement at kindergarten entry. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that mothers who engaged in more frequent home learning stimulation that included informal numeracy experiences (e.g., playing counting games) had sons who entered kindergarten with more advanced math skills. In addition, older, more educated mothers with fewer children living in their homes had sons with more advanced math skills at kindergarten entry. Practice or Policy: Findings suggest that home-based parent involvement that helps children make sense of numbers in ways that are meaningful for them can promote math skills at kindergarten entry.     

Role of Cognitively Stimulating Home Environment in Children's Academic Intrinsic Motivation: A Longitudinal Study

The short- and long-term, and direct and indirect, relations between cognitively stimulating home environment and academic intrinsic motivation were investigated in a longitudinal study from childhood through early adolescence. Structural equations modeling was used to test the hypothesis that home environment positively predicts academic intrinsic motivation over this period. It was also hypothesized that home environmental processes would positively predict motivation controlling for socioeconomic status (SES). When children were age 8, home environment (comprising both direct observations and parent report) and SES were measured. Academic intrinsic motivation was assessed at ages 9, 10, and 13. Results supported the hypotheses. Home environment had statistically positive and significant, direct and indirect paths to academic intrinsic motivation from childhood through early adolescence, indicating both short- and long-term effects across these ages. Moreover, home environment was significant above and beyond SES. The findings revealed that children whose homes had a greater emphasis on learning opportunities and activities were more academically intrinsically motivated.     

The timing of executive function development is associated with growth in math achievement from preschool through second grade

We examined whether the timing of executive function (EF) development was associated with growth in children's math achievement across eight measurement occasions from preschool through second grade. Using a prospective longitudinal sample of 351 children, we found that children who developed EF later, entered preschool with the lowest levels of math performance and did not catch-up to their intermediate or early EF developing counterparts despite exhibiting a similar math growth rate through second grade. This trend was also observed after controlling for children's biological sex, early language skills, and socioeconomic background. These findings suggest that developing EF late might place children at a unique risk for math difficulties independent of important child and family level characteristics and can provide insights for instructional strategies that take into account differences in children's EF development.     

The role of family orientation in predicting Korean boys' and girls' achievement motivation to learn mathematics

Informed by achievement goal orientation and self-determination theories, we explored the role of cultural/contextual factors on Korean students' achievement motivation. Specifically, we examined the role of the Korean middle school students' family orientation as a mediator between their perceptions of parent goals or motivating styles and their achievement motivations in learning math, when their perceptions of classroom goal structures were controlled. We also investigated gender differences in the role of the students' family orientation and of their perceptions of their parents and classroom variables in predicting their own achievement motivations. Multi-sample path analyses indicated that both Korean boys' and girls' family orientation mediated between their perceptions of parent variables and their own achievement motivations. Korean students' family orientation predicted mainly controlled forms of motivation and ego-focused goals. In addition, the relationships between students' perceptions of parent variables and their achievement motivations statistically varied across gender.     

Preschool Quality Effects on Learning Behavior and Later Achievement in Germany: Moderation by Socioeconomic Status

This study investigates whether children’s preschool experiences are associated with later achievement via enhanced learning behaviors using data from a German longitudinal study following children (N = 554) from age 3 in preschool to age 8 in second grade. There were two main findings. First, results suggest that more positive learning behaviors at school entry mediate effects of teacher–child interactions in preschool on second-grade achievement. Second, these effects varied by parental socioeconomic status (SES) indicating that low-SES children benefited the most. The findings highlight the role of preschool classroom environments in shaping the school readiness of children with socioeconomic risk factors.     

Self-concept, motivation, and competence among preschoolers from maltreating and comparison families

Maltreated children are at risk for impaired cognitive and school functioning. In this study, the role that home environment, self-concept, and mastery motivation play in this relation was investigated. Thirty-six preschool children and their mothers, representing three family backgrounds (12 low-income maltreating, 12 low-income comparison, 12 middle-income comparison), were assessed in a preschool/home study. Children from maltreating families scored lower than their peers on several measures of cognitive and physical competence and on ratings of motivation. At the same time, these children significantly overrated their physical competence, and self-ratings of competence and acceptance tended to be higher (and less realistic) than those of their low-income peers. An overall difference in developmental quality of the home environment of maltreating families was largely accounted for by socioeconomic status (SES), but the tendency of these homes to be less clean and safe remained significant even after SES was controlled. Various aspects of the home environment were associated with superior task performance, but not with motivation or self-perceptions. Whereas the general home environment may affect competence, relationship factors implicated in maltreatment may be more important in shaping self-concept and motivation.     

Advanced Math Course Taking: Effects on Math Achievement and College Enrollment

Using data from the Educational Longitudinal Study of 2002–2006, the authors investigated the effects of advanced math course taking on math achievement and college enrollment and how such effects varied by socioeconomic status and race/ethnicity. Results from propensity score matching and sensitivity analyses showed that advanced math course taking had positive effects on math achievement and college enrollment. Results also demonstrated that the effect of advanced math course taking on math achievement was greater for low socioeconomic status students than for high socioeconomic status students, but smaller for Black students than for White students. No interaction effects were found for college enrollment. Limitations, policy implications, and future research directions are discussed.     

Motivation across domains: Do goals and attributions change with subject matter for Grades 4 and 5 students?

This study explored a theory for motivation which included aspects of both attribution theory and goal theory. Motivational variables included beliefs about intelligence (entity or incremental), goal orientation (mastery/learning, performance-approach, performance-avoidance) and avoidant behaviours. Grades 4 and 5 students from a large, metropolitan school district were surveyed regarding these motivational variables across the academic domains of reading and mathematics. The relationships among these motivational variables were explored, as well as differences across domains. A diverse sample allowed differences across ethnic groups and socioeconomic status to be studied. Results indicate that children could have a generalised notion of motivation that becomes differentiated when students are asked to reflect on these variables within specified domains. The existence of few differences across ethnic and socioeconomic groups suggest that instructional style could be a more powerful influence than either of these variables.     

Searching for the golden model of education: cross-national analysis of math achievement

We utilised four waves of TIMSS data in addition to the information we have collected on countries’ educational systems to examine whether different degrees of standardisation, differentiation, proportion of students in private schools and governmental spending on education influence students’ math achievement, its variation and socioeconomic status (SES) gaps in math achievement. A higher level of standardisation of educational systems was associated with higher average math achievement. Greater expenditure on education (as a percentage of total government expenditure) was associated with a lower level of dispersion of math achievement and smaller SES gaps in math achievement. Wealthier countries exhibited higher average math achievement and a narrower variation. Higher income inequality (measured by the Gini index) was associated with a lower average math achievement and larger SES gaps. Further, we found that a higher level of standardisation alleviates the negative effects of differentiation in the systems with more rigid tracking.     

Educational theories and computer game design: lessons from an experiment in elementary mathematics education

Although educational games have been used for a considerable time, their true potential for enhancing achievement and motivation is still being explored. We argue in this paper that we may get closer to realizing this potential if the theoretical underpinning of educational games is improved. We developed a simple interactive math game based on insights from cognitive load and game design theory, in which players solve mathematical problems competitively and creatively. To investigate the effects of the game on achievement and motivation, we ran an experiment with fifth- and sixth-grade students. Our results show that students who played the game achieved better math results than those who did not. We did not find any significant differences in math motivation. Another promising finding, albeit beyond the scope of our hypotheses, relates to the potential effects of math games on student behavior.

     

Kindergarten children's growth trajectories in reading and mathematics: who falls increasingly behind?

The authors used a large sample of children (N ≈ 7,400) participating in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study--Kindergarten Cohort (ECLS-K) to estimate kindergarten children's academic achievement growth trajectories in reading and mathematics. The authors were particularly interested in whether the growth trajectories of children with learning disabilities (LD) or speech language impairments (SLI)--as well as those of other groups of children--were consistent with a cumulative or compensatory developmental cycle. Both LD and SLI children displayed significantly lower levels of kindergarten reading achievement than nondisabled children. However, and over the subsequent 5 years of elementary school, only children with SLI lagged increasingly behind nondisabled peers in their reading skills growth. The authors observed a different pattern for mathematics achievement. Children with LD, but not SLI, lagged increasingly behind nondisabled children in their mathematics skills growth. The authors also observed some consistency in "poor-get-poorer" effects across reading and mathematic achievement for additional population subgroups. Those kindergarten children who were from lower socioeconomic status families, who were African American, and who more frequently displayed learning-related behavior problems initially had lower levels of reading and mathematics achievement and also lagged increasingly behind in their acquisition of these skills over time. Some groups of children, including those with SLI, experience a cumulative rather than a compensatory cycle of achievement growth.