I like reading studies. They’re funny, the way they observe and state the obvious: “Study finds that on average, men are, in fact, stronger than women” and “Report concludes that oxygen deprivation can lead to death.”
There’s a new study in a journal called Child Development about early learning skills. It seems to state the obvious, but I’d like to read it. From now on until the end of the world, academics, educators, politicians, and others will be discussing the academic achievement gap and how to narrow/close it. According to the study, a child’s “self-regulation skills” are associated with his abilities in his early education. From the article:
Although intelligence is generally thought to play a key role in children’s early academic achievement, aspects of children’s self-regulation abilities-including the ability to alternately shift and focus attention and to inhibit impulsive responding–are uniquely related to early academic success and account for greater variation in early academic progress than do measures of intelligence. Therefore, in order to help children from low-income families succeed in school, early school-age programs may need to include curricula designed specifically to promote children’s self-regulation skills as a means of enhancing their early academic progress.
One of the study’s authors said, “Children’s ability to regulate their thinking and behavior develops rapidly in the preschool years.”
The bottom line, it seems, is that children must learn to control their impulses, learn to behave, sit still, and concentrate on their work in order to perform well in school. Author Abigail Thernstrom believes such skills are of primary importance, particularly for children in inner city schools. She says children in these schools can and do succeed, but qualified the statement:
Superior schools in today’s inner cities counter the isolation of black kids from mainstream norms by…[insisting] that their students learn how to speak standard English; show up on time, properly dressed; sit up straight at their desks, chairs pulled in, workbooks organized…walk down halls quickly and quietly…listen to teachers politely and follow their directions precisely; treat their classmates with respect; and shake hands with visitors to the school, introducing themselves.
Although the study’s conclusions are obvious, some parents may not associate these traits with success in school. There is the very human tendency to blame others for problems, failures, and deficiencies, and parents — especially black parents — must look beyond the bureaucrats and politicians and to themselves and other black parents (like Club 2012) to help their kids excel in school.
I requested a review copy of the study so I can write about it more knowledgeably. I’ve never asked for a “review copy” of a study before, so I have no idea whether I’ll get it. In the meantime, check out my latest column, “Parental involvement, family stability and the achievement gap.”
Update: In response to my Examiner column, Heritage Foundation fellow Patrick Fagan (I met him last year at this event) sent me a PDF copy of his study called Why Religion Matters Even More: The Impact of Religious Practice on Social Stability.
Update II: Good Lord. Summer vacation, says Seattle schools, is racist. Danny Westneat, a level-headed white parent unencumbered by guilt, lays it out. Good read.
