Posts Tagged ‘academic achievement’

12 Jul 2010 Later School Start Times Leads to Better Academic Achievement 1 Comment

A recent article in the Scientific American reviewed research about effects of school start time on academic achievement. It probably comes as no surprise to parents of teens, that starting in adolescence, children have “delayed sleep phase” where they start sleep later and sleep later in the morning.  In addition, for optimal functioning, teenagers should sleep at least 9 hours a night.  A study conducted in Rhode Island High Schools examined the effects of starting school at 8:00 to 8:30. The participants (high school students) completed a sleep habits survey both before and after the delayed school start. The results indicated that the students who got at least 8 hours sleep of increased from 16 % before the delayed start to 55% after the delayed start. In addition, a number of other benefits were apparent:

1)      Class attendance improved

2)      Fewer visits to the health center for fatigue related symptoms

3)      Student self reports of unhappiness, depression, annoyance and depression decreased significantly

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Posted in Educational Support, Happiness & Well-Being

8 Jul 2010 Gender Differences in Math Achievement No Comments

A recent article in the Monitor on Psychology  entitled Math Plus Culture Equal Gender Gap?  reviewed  the research on gender and math achievement.  Gender differences in mathematics has been one of the most debated and lively topics in education psychology.  Given the popularity of this topic, a large body of research has been conducted that examines if and what type of gender differences exists in mathematics. Most of the leading researchers agree that if gender differences actually exist, they are small and likely to affect areas of math skills at the highest level of the spectrum. Furthermore, research indicates that there is no reason why women cannot succeed in mathematically demanding fields. Despite these conclusions, women still are underrepresented in math, science and engineering related fields.  This discrepancy, in part, could be due to classroom influences starting in elementary school.  A study conducted by Martha Carr at the University of Georgia found that in elementary school , boys often utilize memory when learning math facts where as girls of rely on manipulatives, such as counting fingers. These differences in strategies result in girls demonstrating slower math fluency (i.e. the ability to solve math problems quickly) than boys.  Therefore, Carr argues that math fluency should be emphasized for all students.  In addition, research also suggests that the stereotype that “boys are good in math and girls are good in reading” is still prevalent in many elementary schools. Therefore, it is important to for educators to be aware of their own beliefs about math and gender.

 Considering the research findings, experts advise that “its not just the girls who need math help… we need to look toward better math instruction, not just for boys or girls.”  This advice seems to be logical given that the research does not support large gender abilities.

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Posted in Educational Support

7 May 2010 Should Kids Be Paid For Good Grades? 1 Comment

I distinctly remember sitting in my first undergraduate educational psychology class and the professor putting forth the question, “should parents provide financial incentives for earning good grades” to spark interest. For the remaining 45 minutes of the lecture, the professor described how paying children for grades was a bad idea because it resulted in children losing “their love of learning” because they will only be extrinsically motivated for money. While I think this stance may be a little strong, I could understand where my professor (and the educational literature) was coming from.

A recent article reviewed in Time magazine, however, has made me reconsider my beliefs on this topic.  A Harvard economist, Roland Fryer Jr., recently conducted research in which he paid students for academic success (defined in a variety of different ways) to those who were not paid. The schools were in cities across the nation and each school was randomly assigned to condition (i.e. the type of pay or control condition). The results of the study found that in some circumstances, students who were paid demonstrated better academic gains than those who were not paid. Students who showed the greatest gains were those who were paid for behaviors ( e.g. reading books, attendance, appropriate behavior, etc) that they perceived as being within their control. Students, however, who were paid for less concrete behaviors (i.e. higher performance on standardized tests) did not perform any better (or worse) than those in the control condition.  All in all, it does not appear that paying students for academic success squelches their desire to learn.

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Posted in Educational Support, Parenting

1 Mar 2010 Are All Forms of Praise Created Equal? No Comments

Most parenting advice resources highlight the importance of praising your child. Upon further investigation, however, it appears as if not all praise is created equal. Below I briefly summarize and evaluate different types of praise.
1. Evaluative Praise vs. Acknowledgement Praise
• Evaluative praise provides a comment on the child’s desired/appropriate behavior that includes a judgment or feeling from the commentator (e.g. “you are so smart, your handwriting is so neat”)
• Acknowledgement praise offers a description of the Child’s appropriate behavior without value. (e.g. “I noticed that you sat and waited quietly while mommy was on the phone.”)
• Acknowledgements are generally thought to be more effective in shaping behavior than evaluative praise.
2. Praising Ability vs. Praising Effort
• Praising ability can have negative outcomes. Particularly, children who’s successes are attributed to an innate ability (i.e. “you are smart,” “you are excellent at mathematics”) have a tendency to avoid difficult task for fear of appearing inadequate.
• Praising for effort, however, encourages children to take academic risks and have a growth oriented mindset.

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Posted in Parenting

17 Dec 2009 Reading, Writing, Arithmetic and Compassion? No Comments

A recent article titled “More Compassion, Less Competition” by Richard Davidson presents the benefits of having a broader definition of education that focuses not only on academic growth but also overall emotional well being. Specifically, he argues that focusing heavily on competition and passing tests has resulted in teachers and students discriminating against those who do not achieve as well. In educational systems where teachers provide rigorous academic demands while focusing on the strengths of each student, children perform better academically as well as report higher levels of overall well being.  Furthermore, neuroscience experiments provide preliminary evidence that children who are in learning environments where kindness, cooperation and patience are taught as skills in the classroom show greater abilities to regulate their own emotions.  The article highlighted the importance of teachers and parents focusing on their own kindness and compassion towards others as the first step in modeling compassionate behavior.

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Posted in Brain & Neuroscience, Dyslexia and Other Learning Disabilities, Educational Support, Happiness & Well-Being