Low-achieving Children Research Articles

Strategies and Procedural and Conceptual Knowledge of Addition of Unlike Denominator Fractions: The Case of Grade 8 Children in Two Districts of the Central Region of Ghana

This study investigated children’s knowledge of the addition of fractions with unlike denominators. It focussed on the strategies used by children to add fractions with unlike denominators. A cross-sectional survey of Grade 8 children in schools in two districts in Ghana was used. A test on the addition of fractions with unlike denominators was administered to 543 high-, average- and low-achieving children, and their responses were categorised based on the characterisation of correct strategies by Braithwaite et al. and Siegler and Pykes. Cluster bar charts and analysis of variance were used to analyse the data. The results showed that the children’s use of correct strategies for adding proper fractions with unlike denominators was higher than their use of correct strategies for adding improper fractions with unlike denominators. Thus, the children’s procedural knowledge of the addition of proper fractions with unlike denominators was higher than that of improper fractions with unlike denominators. Conceptual knowledge of the addition of fractions with unlike denominators was much lower than procedural knowledge of the same. The less advantaged (females, rural and low achievers) used fewer correct strategies and demonstrated less procedural and conceptual knowledge. Among other recommendations, curricula and classroom teaching should emphasise conceptual knowledge and its support for procedural knowledge of the addition of fractions with unlike denominators. Research interventions focussed on the less advantaged are advised.

Development of Self-Concept in Multi-Grade 3rd and 4th Classes

The assumption that multi-grade learning enhances and sustains positive self-concept is widespread, although neither theory nor empirics have yet allowed for firm conclusions. This paper reports on a representative longitudinal study of multi-grade learning in grades 3 and 4 comparing the development of students' self-concept in reading in multi-grade and single-grade classes, also providing a differentiated analysis of the development at varying performance levels. The results show that self-concept is less stable in multi-grade classes. At the end of grade 3, students' self-concept in multi-grade classes is lower than in single-grade classes, although the average achievement level is higher. This effect is mainly ascribed to low-achieving children; however, all students’ self-concept recovers by the end of grade 4. Regarding students with a very low self-concept, they are found to a comparable extent in both multi-grade and single-grade classes, but the number of these students is low and the affected students change. The data indicates that pedagogical support is needed, especially in grade 3, to mitigate the effects of social comparison. Further analysis should include the quality of multi-grade teaching implemented in the classroom and its effects.

Association between Non-Verbal Intelligence and Academic Performance of Schoolchildren from Taza, Eastern Morocco.

Interest in identifying factors influencing educational success is growing. It is often observed that a group of students share the same external variables (school environment) yet have different results, which states that individual variables have more impact on the determination of academic performance. Therefore, the present study aimed to substantiate this fact by investigating the association between non-verbal fluid intelligence and academic performance in a population of schoolchildren in Eastern Morocco. The investigation was a cross-sectional study based on a self-administered questionnaire. Items included the standard Raven’s progressive matrices. Students’ grades were collected from the administrative offices of the visited schools. Significant and positive correlations between the non-verbal intelligence scores and the school results were found: for the general average, the correlation was 0.574; for the school subject French, the correlation coefficient was 0.475; and for mathematics, we found a relatively low coefficient of 0.381. Non-verbal fluid intelligence significantly and positively predicted academic performance (β = .574, p = .000). These results call for policymakers to implement the use of intelligence tests with school directors and teachers as a diagnostic tool to guide support efforts for low-achieving children and even to create pilot classes for the best-performing students.

Motivating low-achievers—Relative performance feedback in primary schools

Relative performance feedback (RPF) has often been shown to improve effort and performance in the workplace and educational settings. Yet, many studies also document substantial negative effects of RPF, in particular for low-achievers. We study a novel type of RPF designed to overcome these negative effects of RPF on low-achievers by scoring individual performance improvements. With a sample of 400 children, we conduct a class-wise randomized-controlled trial using an e-learning software in regular teaching lessons in primary schools. We demonstrate that this type of RPF significantly increases motivation, effort, and performance in math for low-achieving children, without hurting high-achieving children. Among low-achievers, those receiving more points and moving up in the ranking improved strongest on motivation and math performance. In an exploratory analysis, we document substantial gender differences in response to this type of RPF: improvements in motivation and learning are much stronger for girls. We argue that using this new type of RPF could potentially reduce inequalities, especially in educational settings.

Parental involvement in low-achieving children’s learning: The role of household wealth in rural India

Existing research recognises that while parents often aspire to be involved in their children’s education, some face barriers that prevent this. Studies situated in the Global North recognise economic constraints as a barrier, presenting a steep gradient whereby the richer households are, the higher their parental involvement levels. This paper analyses the influence of household wealth on parental involvement in low-achieving children's education in a resource-constrained area in rural Uttar Pradesh, India. Based on regression models from a sample of 13,558 households, we corroborate evidence from wealthier contexts: wealthier parents are consistently more likely to be involved in low-achieving children’s learning. This suggests that stakeholders should be aware of the potential influence of household wealth on parental involvement in rural India.

Information, Preferences, and Household Demand for School Value Added

This paper examines the roles that information and preferences play in determining whether households choose schools with high value added. We study Romanian school markets using administrative data, a survey, and an experiment. The administrative data show that, on average, households could select schools with 1 s.d. worth of additional value added. This may reflect that households have incorrect beliefs about schools’ value added, or that their preferences lead them to prioritize other school traits. We elicit households’ beliefs and find that they explain less than a fifth of the variation in value added. We then inform randomly selected households about the value added of the schools in their towns. This improves the accuracy of households’ beliefs and leads low-achieving students to attend higher-value added schools. We next estimate households’ preferences and predict their choices under the counterfactual of fully accurate beliefs. We find that beliefs account for 18 (11) percent of the value added that households with low- (high-) achieving children leave unexploited. Interestingly, for households with low-achieving children, the experiment seems to have affected both beliefs and preferences. This generates larger effects on choices than would be predicted via impacts on beliefs alone. Institutional subscribers to the NBER working paper series, and residents of developing countries may download this paper without additional charge at www.nber.org.

Information, Preferences, and Household Demand for School Value Added

This paper examines the roles that information and preferences play in determining whether households choose schools with high value added. We study Romanian school markets using administrative data, a survey, and an experiment. The administrative data show that, on average, households could select schools with 1 s.d. worth of additional value added. This may reflect that households have incorrect beliefs about schools’ value added, or that their preferences lead them to prioritize other school traits. We elicit households’ beliefs and find that they explain less than a fifth of the variation in value added. We then inform randomly selected households about the value added of the schools in their towns. This improves the accuracy of households’ beliefs and leads low-achieving students to attend higher-value added schools. We next estimate households’ preferences and predict their choices under the counterfactual of fully accurate beliefs. We find that beliefs account for 18 (11) percent of the value added that households with low- (high-) achieving children leave unexploited. Interestingly, for households with low-achieving children, the experiment seems to have affected both beliefs and preferences. This generates larger effects on choices than would be predicted via impacts on beliefs alone.

Motivating Low-Achievers—Relative Performance Feedback in Primary Schools

Relative performance feedback (RPF) has often been shown to improve effort and performance in the workplace and educational settings. Yet, many studies also document substantial negative effects of RPF, in particular for low-achievers. We study a novel type of RPF designed to overcome these negative effects of RPF on low-achievers by scoring individual performance improvements. With a sample of 400 children, we conduct a class-wise randomized-controlled trial using an e-learning software in regular teaching lessons in primary schools. We demonstrate that this type of RPF significantly increases motivation, effort, and performance in math for low-achieving children, without hurting high-achieving children. Among low-achievers, those receiving more points and moving up in the ranking improved strongest on motivation and math performance. In an exploratory analysis, we document substantial gender differences in response to this type of RPF: improvements in motivation and learning are much stronger for girls. We argue that using this new type of RPF could potentially reduce inequalities, especially in educational settings.

Narrowing the achievement gap in low-achieving children by targeted executive function training

By comparing the performance of two low-achieving (LA) training groups, targeting working memory (WM) or inhibitory control (IC), respectively, with that of a matched LA group and a normal-achieving (NA) group, the present study aimed to test whether cognitive training might be helpful to narrow the gap between the LA children and their (NA) peers. We tested children's Chinese language skills, math and fluid intelligence (Gf) at baseline, posttest, as well as two months after training completion. We observed training-related improvement in Chinese language skills, and furthermore, a substantial reduction of the achievement gap in Chinese between the trained groups and the NA control group at follow-up. These findings provide further evidence for the malleability of executive function, and demonstrate that targeted interventions can facilitate the acquisition of Chinese language skills, suggesting that low-cost interventions can be used to supplement regular classroom activities to benefit children who struggle academically.

The Exploratory Study of Dialogue Among Parents and Their Middle School Low-achieving Children at Home: Comparisons with High-achieving Children

The Exploratory Study of Dialogue Among Parents and Their Middle School Low-achieving Children at Home: Comparisons with High-achieving Children

Competitive classroom norms and exclusion of children with academic and behavior difficulties

We investigated effects of classroom-level norms and individual competitive attitudes on children's exclusion of hypothetical peers with behavior or academic difficulties. Upper elementary school children (N=1009) from Switzerland were presented with four scenarios about social exclusion at two time points (fifth and sixth grade). These scenarios varied according to difficulty type of exclusion target (low-achieving vs. hyperactive) and context of exclusion (academic vs. social). Multilevel analyses revealed that children were more likely to exclude hypothetical hyperactive peers than low-achieving peers for reasons of effective group functioning. When children transferred to the sixth grade, they became more likely to coordinate the type of difficulty of the exclusion target with the context of exclusion. Moreover, competitive classroom-level norms and individual attitudes positively predicted the exclusion of low-achieving children. To improve social inclusion, teachers can encourage learning environments, where children learn to integrate effective academic group functioning with fairness principles.

Learning behaviours of low-achieving children’s mathematics learning in using of helping tools in a synchronous peer-tutoring system

ABSTRACTThis study examined the effects of low-achieving children’s use of helping tools in a synchronous mathematics peer-tutoring system on the children’s mathematics learning and their learning behaviours. In a remedial class, 16 third-grade students in a remedial class engaged in peer tutoring in a face-to-face synchronous online environment during a 7-week period. In comparison to their 18 counterparts in the control group, the students in the experimental group had a very significant gain in the mathematics learning. The helping tools, especially the indicating errors function requested by the tutee to the tutor, had significant effects on learning achievement for low-achieving children. The tools also facilitated the tutor’s demonstration of solutions, indicating errors and the provision of guided instruction. Several patterns of peer-tutoring behaviour in face-to-face online peer-tutoring sessions were identified. The findings support the effectiveness of the helping tools in enhancing children’s tutoring behaviours in a face-to-face online peer-tutoring environment.

Test-Based Admission to Selective Universities: A Lever for First-Generation Students or a Safety Net for the Professional Classes?

This article examines whether the existence of a secondary higher education admission system honouring more qualitative and extra-curricular merits has reduced the social class gap in access to highly sought-after university programmes in Denmark. I use administrative data to examine differences in the social gradient in the primary admission system, admitting students on the basis of their high school grade point average, and in the secondary admission system, admitting university students based on more qualitative assessments. I find that the secondary higher education admission system does not favour first-generation students; further, the system serves as an access route for low-achieving children from the privileged professional classes. Drawing mainly on theories in the social closure tradition, I argue that children with highly educated parents will be favoured when qualitative merits are honoured, and that professional-class families will be especially vigilant in pursuing educational pathways that will secure the reproduction of their class.

Cognitive functioning in children with learning problems

Several cognitive deficits associated with reading and mathematics problems have been identified. However, only few studies assessed the impact of these variables in children with combined problems in reading and arithmetics, and none of these studies included children with low IQ. This longitudinal study was designed to assess the impact of different cognitive variables as well as socioeconomic status on literacy and mathematics development of elementary school children with different kinds of learning problems and IQ levels over the course of 2 years. A total of six subgroups was selected from a total sample of 929 second-grade children, with the subgroups differing according to their IQ level and the type of learning disorder. The subgroups consisted of initially 24 reading disabled, 22 mathematics disabled, 35 combined, and 29 low- and 28 overachieving children, as well as 28 typically developing children. Participants were repeatedly assessed in regard to their literacy, mathematics, IQ as well as specific and general cognitive variables. Overall, reading problems were linked to deficits in phonological awareness, while mathematics problems were linked to memory and attention deficits. Children with combined problems showed additive deficits in phonological awareness and attention. The same applied for low-achieving children who were additionally characterized by low socioeconomic status. Good phonological awareness served as a protective factor in overachieving children. The correlation of cognitive variables and group membership was more pronounced at the end of elementary school than in grade 2. Our results confirm an additive approach of cognitive deficits in children with combined learning problems. Phonological awareness constitutes not only a risk factor for learning problems but also a protective factor for good academic achievement in children with low IQ.

Longitudinal Study of an After-school, Inquiry-based Science Intervention on Low-achieving Children's Affective Perceptions of Learning Science

This longitudinal study explores the effects of an after-school, inquiry-based science intervention on improving low-achieving elementary school children's affective perceptions of learning science (APLS) and positive thinking. Thirty-nine low-achieving children nominated by their teachers attended a three-semester intervention and formed the experimental group; another 87 typical fourth graders were randomly selected as the comparison group. The elementary school student questionnaire was administered to assess all participants' APLS and positive thinking. In addition, eight target students from the experimental group with the lowest scores on either APLS or positive thinking were selected for observation and interviews. Factor analyses, paired-wise t-tests, and theme content analyses were used to compare the similarities and differences between groups and within semesters. It was found that the experimental group children's APLS and positive thinking were gradually and significantly more improved than their counterparts' during the intervention. Interview and observation results were consistent with the quantitative findings. This longitudinal study provided evidence that the after-school, inquiry-based science intervention acted as a facilitating agent for improving low achievers' APLS and positive thinking. Instructional implications and research recommendations are discussed.

Working memory and executive functions: effects of training on academic achievement

The aim of this review is to illustrate the role of working memory and executive functions for scholastic achievement as an introduction to the question of whether and how working memory and executive control training may improve academic abilities. The review of current research showed limited but converging evidence for positive effects of process-based complex working-memory training on academic abilities, particularly in the domain of reading. These benefits occurred in children suffering from cognitive and academic deficits as well as in healthy students. Transfer of training to mathematical abilities seemed to be very limited and to depend on the training regime and the characteristics of the study sample. A core issue in training research is whether high- or low-achieving children benefit more from cognitive training. Individual differences in terms of training-related benefits suggested that process-based working memory and executive control training often induced compensation effects with larger benefits in low performing individuals. Finally, we discuss the effects of process-based training in relation to other types of interventions aimed at improving academic achievement.

Longitudinal predictors of reading achievement among at-risk children

Early exposure to multiple risk factors is related to an elevated risk for academic difficulty. Thus, it is important to promote academic resilience as early as possible and to identify factors that support resilience. Given the positive relation between early literacy skills and later academic outcomes, examining resilience in reading is important. This study examined, first, whether the reading gap widens or narrows for below-average and above-average, at-risk children during the first four years of school; and, second, what protective factors predict reading achievement over time from kindergarten through the end of third grade. Results indicated that as a group, low-achieving children made smaller gains in reading than high-achieving children over the first four years of school. In addition, participation in center-based prekindergarten care, plus more access to books in the home, better interpersonal skills, and fewer poor physical conditions immediately surrounding elementary schools served as prote...

Relations between Shyness-Sensitivity and Internalizing Problems in Chinese Children: Moderating Effects of Academic Achievement

Shy-sensitive children are likely to develop adjustment problems in today's urban China as the country has evolved into an increasingly competitive, market-oriented society. The main purpose of this one-year longitudinal study was to examine the moderating effects of academic achievement on relations between shyness-sensitivity and later internalizing problems in Chinese children. A sample of 1171 school-age children (591 boys, 580 girls) in China, initially at the age of 9years, participated in the study. Data on shyness, academic achievement, and internalizing problems were collected from multiple sources including peer evaluations, teacher ratings, self-reports, and school records. It was found that shyness positively and uniquely predicted later loneliness, depression, and teacher-rated internalizing problems, with the stability effect controlled, for low-achieving children, but not for high-achieving children. The results indicate that, consistent with the stress buffering model, academic achievement may be a buffering factor that serves to protect shy-sensitive children from developing psychological problems.

Trajectories of math and reading achievement in low-achieving children in elementary school: Effects of early and later retention in grade.

This study investigated the effects of retention or promotion in first grade on growth trajectories in mathematics and reading achievement over the elementary school years (grades 1-5). From a large multiethnic sample (n = 784) of children who were below the median in literacy at school entrance, 363 children who were either promoted (n = 251) or retained (n = 112) in first grade could be successfully matched on 72 background variables. Achievement was measured annually using Woodcock-Johnson W scores; scores of retained children were shifted back one year to permit same-grade comparisons. Using longitudinal growth curve analysis, trajectories of math and reading scores for promoted and retained children were compared. Retained children received a one year boost in achievement; this boost fully dissipated by the end of elementary school. The pattern of subsequent retention in grades 2, 3 and 4 and placement in special education of the sample during the elementary school years is also described and their effects are explored. Policy implications for interventions for low achieving children are considered.

Explaining school mathematics performance from symbolic and nonsymbolic magnitude processing: Similarities and differences between typical and low-achieving children.

Magnitude processing is one of the most central cognitive mechanisms that underlie persistent mathematics difficulties. No consensus has yet been reached about whether these difficulties can be predominantly attributed to deficits in symbolic or nonsymbolic magnitude processing. To investigate this issue, we assessed symbolic and nonsymbolic magnitude representations in children with low or typical achievement in school mathematics. Response latencies and the distance effect were comparable between groups in both symbolic and nonsymbolic tasks. The results indicated that both typical and low achievers were able to access magnitude representation via symbolic and nonsymbolic processing. However, low achievers presented higher error rates than typical achievers, especially in the nonsymbolic task. Furthermore, measures of nonsymbolic magnitude explained individual differences in school mathematics better than measures of symbolic magnitude when considering all of the children together. When examining the groups separately, symbolic magnitude representation explained differences in school mathematics in low achievers but not in typical achievers. These results suggest that symbolic magnitude is more relevant to solving arithmetic problems when mathematics achievement is particularly low. In contrast, individual differences in nonsymbolic processing appear to be related to mathematics achievement in a more general manner.