Children's Educational Outcomes Research Articles

Factors and Communication Impact of Unilateral Hearing Loss in U.S. Adults

Factors and Communication Impact of Unilateral Hearing Loss in U.S. Adults

Lack of access to clean fuel and piped water and children's educational outcomes in rural India.

Investments in clean fuel and piped water are often recommended in developing countries on health grounds. This paper examines an alternative channel, the relationship between piped water and access to liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and children's educational outcomes. Results based on the second round of the India Human Development Survey (2011-12) for rural India show that children aged 6-14years, living in households that rely on free collection of water and cooking fuel, have lower mathematics scores and benefit from lower educational expenditures than children living in households that do not collect water and fuel. Moreover, gender inequality in this unpaid work burden also matters. In households where the burden of collection is disproportionately borne by women, child outcomes are significantly lower, particularly for boys. The endogeneity of choice to collect or purchase water and cooking fuel are modeled via Heckman selection and the entropy balancing method.

Unconditional cash transfers, child labour and education: theory and evidence

We examine the impact of unconditional cash transfers (UCTs) on child labour and educational outcomes. We first develop a simple theoretical model where we explore how government transfers financed by labour income taxation affect household decisions on child labour and education. We then empirically examine the impact of Pakistan's Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), which is the largest cash transfer program in South Asia, on child labour and school outcomes. We employ a regression discontinuity design (RDD) to estimate the average effect of the UCTs on child labour and school outcomes, and find that UCTs have a positive and statistically significant impact on school enrolment and grade promotion, but no impact on school dropout rates in the short run. The BISP policy intervention increases grade promotion amongst boys but not amongst girls. In the short run, the BISP substantially reduces dropout for boys but increases substantially for girls. With regards to child labour, we find that the BISP policy intervention has no impact on child labour in the short run; but in the medium to long run, cash transfers help to reduce child labour amongst boys as well as girls. In the short run, however, the BISP increases child labour amongst girls but not boys. These findings are largely consistent with our theoretical predictions and also robust to a series of robustness and sensitivity checks.

Consequences of serious parental health events on child mental health and educational outcomes.

I show that serious, yet common, parental health events in childhood have immediate and lasting effects on mental health and educational outcomes for children. Following a parental health event, the children are more likely to receive therapy and consume anti-depressant (AD) medication. More so, the children achieve lower test scores and have lower school enrollment rates. The effect immediately occurs following the event and persists at least into early adulthood. I find that the effect on test scores doesn't differ significantly across family income, but that children from low-income families are more likely to be prescribed ADs following the event, while children from high-income families are more likely to receive therapy. Exploiting differences in general practitioners' behavior in prescribing AD and referring children to therapy, I find suggestive evidence that children who are more exposed to medical treatment of mental health issues have lower educational attainments in early adulthood.

Effects of accumulated environmental, social and host exposures on early childhood educational outcomes

BackgroundPersistent disparities in academic performance may result from a confluence of adverse exposures accruing disproportionately to specific subpopulations. ObjectiveOur overarching objective was to investigate how multiple exposures experienced over time affect early childhood educational outcomes. We were specifically interested in whether there were: racial/ethnic disparities in prevalence of adverse exposures; racial/ethnic disparities in associations observed between adverse exposures and early childhood educational outcomes; and interactions between exposures, suggesting that one exposure augments susceptibility to adverse effects of another exposure. MethodsWe link geocoded North Carolina birth data for non-Hispanic white (NHW) and non-Hispanic black (NHB) children to blood lead surveillance data and 4th grade end-of-grade (EOG) standardized test scores (n = 65,151). We construct a local, spatial index of racial isolation (RI) of NHB at the block group level. We fit race-stratified multi-level models of reading and mathematics EOG scores regressed on birthweight percentile for gestational age, blood lead level, maternal smoking, economic disadvantage, and RI, adjusting for maternal- and child-level covariates and median household income. ResultsThere were marked racial/ethnic disparities in prevalence of adverse exposures. Specifically, NHB children were more likely than NHW children to be economically disadvantaged (80% vs. 40%), live in block groups with the highest quintile of RI (46% vs. 5%), have higher blood lead levels (4.6 vs. 3.7 μg/dL), and lower birthweight percentile for gestational age (mean: 39th percentile vs. 51st percentile). NHB children were less likely to have mothers who reported smoking during pregnancy (11% and 22%). We observed associations between key adverse exposures and reading and math EOG scores in 4th grade. Higher birthweight percentile for gestational age was associated with higher EOG scores, while economic disadvantage, maternal smoking, and elevated blood lead levels were associated with lower EOG scores. Associations observed for NHB and NHW children were generally not statistically different from one another, with the exception of neighborhood RI. NHB children residing in block groups in the highest RI quintile had reading and math scores 1.54 (0.74, 2.34) and 1.12 (0.38, 1.87) points lower, respectively, compared to those in the lowest RI quintile; statistically significant decrements in EOG scores associated with RI were not observed for NHW children. We did not find evidence of multiplicative interactions between exposures for NHB or NHW children. DiscussionKey adverse host, environmental, and social exposures accrue disproportionately to NHB children. Decrements in test scores associated with key adverse exposures were often but not always larger for NHB children, but were not significantly different from those estimated for NHW children. While we did not observe interactive effects, NHB children on average experience more deleterious combined exposures, resulting in larger decrements to test scores compared to NHW children.

Development and validation of an instrument to measure scope of practice in school nurses.

The aim of the study was to develop and psychometrically test a new instrument to measure the scope of school nursing practice. Methodological study. Data were collected in Spring 2018. Frontline school nurses in the United States (N=3099) completed the 39-item Scope of School Nursing Practice Tool (SSNPT) with two domains (current practice and importance to practice). One half of sample data (N1=1521) were used for exploratory factor analysis, item analysis, Cronbach's alpha, and Spearman-Brown to estimate validity and reliability of the instrument. Sample data from the other half (N2=1578) were retained for future analysis. Factor analysis resulted in a stable four-dimension solution: (A) Using the Nursing Process; (B) Applying Evidence to Improve Practice; (C) Connecting with Community; and (D) Leveraging the School and Family Team, accounting for 50.48% (current practice) and 53.31% (importance to practice) of total variance. Cronbach's alpha and Spearman-Brown ranged from .73 to .90 and .73 to .92, respectively. Item-total correlations ranged from .36 to .82. Initial psychometric properties indicate the new SSNPT is valid and reliable to assess the scope of practice of frontline school nurses. School nurses play a key role in population health and frequently serve as the sole provider of healthcare in schools worldwide. However, variability in school nursing practice affects the health, safety and educational outcomes of children and youth. No instrument exists that measures the scope of practice of school nurses. Frontline school nurses can use the SSNPT to assess practice, school nurse administrators can use the tool for resource utilization and school nurse researchers can use the tool to examine school nursing practices' impact on student/community health and academic outcomes. The SSNPT may provide a template for others who wish to examine specialty nursing scope of practice.

The impact of the school feeding programme on the education and health outcomes of South African children

This paper applies two-stage least square (2SLS) model to quantify the impact of school feeding programme (SFP) on the education and health outcomes of South African children. The paper also estimates the spillover effects of SFP on parents' health spending. The results shows that the SFP has a significant effect, improving illness, school attendance, and academic achievement. The impact of SFP is higher in rural regions than in urban settings and larger in boys than in girls. Notably, the positive effects of SFP are also confirmed by the presence of positive spillover effects. Parents whose children benefited from SFP recorded lower health spending than parents who did not benefit from SFP. In light of these positive findings, the paper concludes that SFP supports the South African population beyond the targeted children education and health outcomes.

The impact of immigration-related separation and reunification on children’s education: Evidence from the American Community Survey 2010–2018

Forced separation of immigrant children from their parents in 2018 spurred calls for immigration reform. Research shows that immigrant children experience separation from parents during the immigration process for many reasons and that they experience a wide range of negative outcomes. This paper builds on the scholarship exploring the relationship between family separation and education outcomes of US immigrant children. Using the sample of immigrant children (n = 94,731) in the 2010–2018 American Community Survey, this study analyzes the association between separation and the likelihood of a peer education gap using descriptive statistics and multivariate logistic regression analysis. This paper supports prior scholarship and finds that immigrant children who experience separation are over 35% more likely to experience a peer education gap. It adds to the literature by exploring patterns of immigrant children from all countries of origin and examining the effects of length of separation on education outcomes. While children from all places of origin experience separation, the percentage of such children is much smaller when children come from wealthier countries and regions and, more importantly, the length of separation is much longer for immigrant children from poorer countries. This study finds that the length of separation correlates with poorer education outcomes.

How does Families and Schools Together (FAST) compare with no intervention or usual care for improving behavior, education, and health outcomes for children and their families?

How does Families and Schools Together (FAST) compare with no intervention or usual care for improving behavior, education, and health outcomes for children and their families?

Does parental education influence child educational outcomes? A developmental analysis in a full-population sample and adoptee design.

Children's educational outcomes are strongly correlated with their parents' educational attainment. This finding is often attributed to the family environment-assuming, for instance, that parents' behavior and resources affect their children's educational outcomes. However, such inferences of a causal role of the family environment depend on the largely untested assumption that such relationships do not simply reflect genes shared between parent and child. We examine this assumption with an adoptee design in full-population cohorts from Danish administrative data. We test whether parental education predicts children's educational outcomes in both biological and adopted children, looking at four components of the child's educational development: (I) the child's conscientiousness during compulsory schooling, (II) academic performance in those same years, (III) enrollment in academically challenging high schools, and (IV) graduation success. Parental education was a substantial predictor of each of these child outcomes in the full population. However, little intergenerational correlation in education was observed in the absence of genetic similarity between parent and child-that is, among adoptees. Further analysis showed that what links adoptive parents' education did have with later-occurring components such as educational attainment (IV) and enrollment (III) appeared to be largely attributable to effects identifiable earlier in development, namely early academic performance (II). The primary nongenetic mechanisms by which education is transmitted across generations may thus have their effects on children early in their educational development, even as the consequences of those early effects persist throughout the child's educational development. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

A Brief Home-Based Parenting Intervention to Reduce Behavior Problems in Young Children

Behavior problems are one of the most common mental health disorders in childhood and can undermine children's health, education, and employment outcomes into adulthood. There are few effective interventions for early childhood. To test the clinical effectiveness of a brief parenting intervention, the Video-feedback Intervention to promote Positive Parenting and Sensitive Discipline (VIPP-SD), in reducing behavior problems in children aged 12 to 36 months. The Healthy Start, Happy Start study was a 2-group, parallel-group, researcher-blind, multisite randomized clinical trial conducted via health visiting services in 6 National Health Service trusts in England. Baseline and 5-month follow-up data were collected between July 30, 2015, and April 27, 2018. Of 818 eligible families, 227 declined to participate, and 300 were randomized into the trial. Target participants were caregivers of children who scored in the top 20% for behavior problems on the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Participants were randomly allocated on a 1:1 basis to receive either VIPP-SD (n = 151) or usual care (n = 149), stratified by site and number of participating caregivers. Analysis was performed on an intention-to-treat basis. Statistical analysis was performed from September 5, 2019, to January 17, 2020. All families continued to access usual care. Families allocated to VIPP-SD were offered 6 home-based video-feedback sessions of 1 to 2 hours' duration every 2 weeks. The primary outcome was the score on an early childhood version of the Preschool Parental Account of Children's Symptoms, a semistructured interview of behavior symptoms, at 5 months after randomization. Secondary outcomes included caregiver-reported behavior problems on the Child Behavior Checklist and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Among 300 participating children (163 boys [54%]; mean [SD] age, 23.0 [6.7] months), primary outcome data were available for 140 of 151 VIPP-SD participants (93%) and 146 of 149 usual care participants (98%). There was a mean difference in the total Preschool Parental Account of Children's Symptoms score of 2.03 (95% CI, 0.06-4.01; P = .04; Cohen d = 0.20 [95% CI, 0.01-0.40]) between trial groups, with fewer behavior problems in the VIPP-SD group, particularly conduct symptoms (mean difference, 1.61 [95% CI, 0.44-2.78]; P = .007; d = 0.30 [95% CI, 0.08-0.51]). Other child behavior outcomes showed similar evidence favoring VIPP-SD. No treatment or trial-related adverse events were reported. This study found that VIPP-SD was effective in reducing symptoms of early behavior problems in young children when delivered in a routine health service context. isrctn.org Identifier: ISRCTN58327365.

Rural minimum living standard guarantee (rural Dibao) program boosts children's education outcomes in rural China

PurposeTo combat poverty in China's rural areas, Chinese government has established an unconditional cash transfer program known as the Rural Minimum Living Standard Guarantee (Rural Dibao) Program. Interestingly, despite the importance of education in breaking cycles of poverty, little is known about Rural Dibao's impact on rural children's education. This study investigates Rural Dibao's impact on rural children's learning outcomes by first examining targeting issues within the program, exploring a causal relationship between Rural Dibao and learning outcomes, and then exploring potential mechanisms and heterogeneous effects.Design/methodology/approachFixed effects model and propensity score weighting method and data from China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) from the years 2010 and 2014 were used.FindingsThe results suggest that the Rural Dibao program suffers from high levels of targeting error, yet is still effective (i.e., program transfers generally still go to people in need). The fixed effects and propensity score weighting models find that program participation raises rural children's standardized test scores in CFPS Chinese-language and math tests. In investigating mechanisms, increased education expenditure seems to connect Rural Dibao participation to increased learning results. The heterogeneity analysis shows that poorer, non-eastern, not left behind, younger or male children benefit from the program (while others have no effect).Originality/valueThese findings suggest that Rural Dibao participation boosts rural children's learning, which could indicate a long-term anti-poverty effect, and that if the program can resolve targeting problems, this effect could be even greater.

Child Sexual Abuse, Academic Functioning and Educational Outcomes in Emerging Adulthood

ABSTRACT In many parts of the world, emerging adults, aged 18 to 25 years old, require education beyond high school to transition to a stable, secure adulthood. Child abuse, trauma, victimization, and adversity have been shown to negatively affect academic functioning and educational attainment during childhood and adolescence. Despite this, many emerging adults who have experienced these adverse events also show remarkable resilience. Understanding both maladaptation and resilience among emerging adults will inform efforts to increase academic success and post-secondary educational attainment. In the current review, we synthesize literature on associations between child sexual abuse and academic functioning and educational outcomes in emerging adults and college students, including possible social, emotional, and cognitive mediators. We find initial evidence that academic functioning and educational outcomes are separable, with more research needed on reasons for leaving college other than low grades, more research on community colleges, trade schools, on-the-job training, military training, and other sites of post-secondary learning, and as well as the antecedents and consequences of academic experiences in emerging adulthood. Overall, we have a limited understanding of the social and emotional functioning important to educational success in college and other post-secondary educational settings.

School-based integrated healthcare model: how Our Mia Mia is improving health and education outcomes for children and young people.

Integrating healthcare into education settings represents a promising model to address complex health problems in disadvantaged communities through improving access to health and social services. One such example of an effective school-based health hub is the Our Mia Mia (OMM) Wellbeing Hub, located in a primary school in Nowra and servicing a community experiencing significant socioeconomic disadvantage. The efficacy of OMM rests on its success in facilitating access to services by removing the barriers of cost and transport and establishing connection to community. The OMM fosters collaborations between health professionals and educators to coordinate holistic treatment and implement appropriate student supports in a timely manner. The support of key individuals and groups, in addition to the flexibility of the model, has allowed the hub to pivot and adapt to meet the changing needs of its community, particularly as challenges pertaining to bureaucracy, financial sustainability and community mistrust have presented themselves. Future directions for the OMM hub, and the possibility of adapting and translating school-based healthcare delivery models in other disadvantaged communities, is discussed.

Poverty and Child's Educational Outcomes: Evidence from China's New Poverty Alleviation Program

Poverty and Child's Educational Outcomes: Evidence from China's New Poverty Alleviation Program

The Effects of Negative Equity on Children's Educational Outcomes

The Effects of Negative Equity on Children's Educational Outcomes

Local Labor Markets and Child Learning Outcomes in India

Abstract This paper uses data from rural India to study the relationship between local labor market opportunities and child education outcomes. We construct a Bartik index as a measure of exogenous changes in district-level labor demand and find that an increase in predicted overall employment growth is associated with higher years of education and better test scores for both boys and girls of primary school age. The effects on test scores of older boys are smaller and less statistically significant. Older girls, however, do benefit from better labor market opportunities. We do not find evidence for changes in school quality or district-level investment. Instead, we find support for increases in household education spending, possibly because of overall higher wages, or re-allocation of resources.

A rapid review of the impact of quarantine and restricted environments on children's play and the role of play in children's health.

Amidst the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) pandemic, there is uncertainty regarding potential lasting impacts on children's health and educational outcomes. Play, a fundamental part of childhood, may be integral to children's health during crises. We undertook a rapid review of the impact of quarantine, isolation and other restrictive environments on play and whether play mitigates adverse effects of such restrictions. Fifteen peer‐reviewed studies were identified, spanning hospitals, juvenile and immigration detention and refugee camps. We found evidence of changes in children's access to play in crises and quarantine. These studies indicated how play might support children enduring isolation but lacked robust investigations of play as an intervention in mitigating impacts of restriction. Studies pertaining to children in isolation due to infectious disease outbreaks were notably absent. It is important that the potential effects of changes to such a crucial aspect of childhood are better understood to support children in this and future crises.

Participation in Boys & Girls Clubs Of Winnipeg is Associated With Health, Social and Education Outcomes Among First Nation Children

IntroductionThe Boys & Girls Clubs of Winnipeg (BGCW) provide out-of-school programs to children and youth living in low-income neighbourhoods in Winnipeg, Canada. These programs aim to set participants on a path to success by supporting healthy behaviours, academic achievement and social skills. First Nation children and youth make up a substantial proportion of BGCW participants, but there are few empirical data available on how the programs influence health, social and education outcomes in this population.
 Objectives and ApproachWe linked BGCW attendance records for all Manitoba children born 1987-2010 to the individual-level administrative health, social and education data in the population-based Data Repository at the Manitoba Centre for Health Policy in Winnipeg. The comparison group of non-participants was matched on age and neighbourhood of residence. We narrowed the cohort to First Nation participants by linking to datasets containing First Nation identifiers. Education outcomes were examined using a generalized additive model, and health and justice system outcomes with a time-to-event model, adjusted for socioeconomic status, mother's mental health and age at first birth, and involvement in the child welfare system.
 Results3,754 First Nation children and youth participated in BGCW from 2005-2016. The comparison group comprised 23,593 First Nation children and youth. Greater BGCW participation was associated with higher likelihood of performing well in grade 3 numeracy, but not other education outcomes (grade 3 reading, grade 7 student engagement or mathematics, grade 7/8 reading/writing, or graduating high school). Greater BGCW participation was also associated with lower risk of becoming involved with the justice system among youth aged 12-17 (i.e., lower risk of being charged with a crime) and with lower risk of teen pregnancy.
 Conclusion / ImplicationsParticipation in BGCW programs may contribute to improved health, justice and education outcomes for First Nation children and youth in Winnipeg.

Participation in Boys & Girls Clubs Of Winnipeg is Associated With Health, Social and Education Outcomes Among Metis Children

IntroductionThe Boys & Girls Clubs of Winnipeg (BGCW) provide out-of-school programs to children and youth living in low-income neighbourhoods in Winnipeg, Canada. These programs aim to set participants on a path to success by supporting healthy behaviours, academic achievement and social skills. Metis children and youth make up a substantial proportion of BGCW participants, but there are few empirical data available on how the programs influence health, social and education outcomes in this population.
 Objectives and ApproachWe linked BGCW attendance records for all Manitoba children born 1987-2010 to the individual-level administrative health, social and education data in the population-based Data Repository at the Manitoba Centre for Health Policy in Winnipeg. The comparison group of non-participants was matched on age and neighbourhood of residence. We narrowed the cohort to Metis participants by linking to datasets containing Metis identifiers. Education outcomes were examined using a generalized additive model, and health and justice system outcomes with a time-to-event model, adjusted for socioeconomic status, mother's mental health and age at first birth, and involvement in the child welfare system.
 Results1,664 Metis children and youth participated in BGCW from 2005-2016. The comparison group comprised 9,248 Metis children and youth. Greater BGCW participation was associated with higher likelihood of performing well in grade 3 numeracy (boys and girls) and grade 7 student engagement (boys only), but not other education outcomes (grade 3 reading, grade 7 mathematics, grade 7/8 reading/writing, or graduating high school). Greater BGCW participation was also associated with lower risk of becoming involved with the justice system (i.e., lower risk of being charged with a crime) and with lower risk of teen pregnancy.
 Conclusion / ImplicationsParticipation in BGCW programs may contribute to improved health, justice and education outcomes for Metis children and youth in Winnipeg.