School Outcomes For Children Research Articles

School Closures During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Psychosocial Outcomes in Children - a Systematic Review

With implemented school closures, the global crisis of COVID-19 has caused drastic changes in the dynamics and routines of children and their families. The rapid transition to homeschooling and social distancing measures have been particularly challenging for schoolchildren and their parents. In the adverse situation of COVID-19, children are more vulnerable to contextual factors such as familial risks, leading to unfavorable outcomes in children’s mental health, their emotional and psychosocial development. The present study aimed to synthesize available literature on psychosocial outcomes in schoolchildren (ages 6–13 years) who were exposed to family-related stressors during mandatory school closures. A systematic review was carried out, following the PRISMA guideline. A total of 419 records were retrieved from electronic databases, journals, and reference lists of primary studies and reviews. Studies were analyzed by the interrelation of negative child outcomes and parent-related variables during the period of school closure. Ten studies were included in this review. Studies varied in quality, in the combination of psychosocial factors, and child outcomes. Identified psychosocial variables impacting children included parental mental health, parental stress, parent-child interaction, and parenting stress. Identified negative outcomes in children encompassed emotional problems, behavioral problems, hyperactivity, anxiety and depression. Overall, results highlighted the link between children’s psychological response and parent-related variables during school closures. Results show that pandemic-related school closures had a considerable effect on children. However, findings cannot be interpreted conclusive as studies measured other factors, that contributed to a child’s psychological status quo.

Does Grandparenting Pay Off for the Next Generations? Intergenerational Effects of Grandparental Care

Grandparents act as the third largest caregiver after parental care and daycare in Germany, as in many Western societies. Adopting a double-generation perspective, we investigate the causal impact of this care mode on children's health, socio-emotional behavior, and school outcomes, as well as parental well-being. Based on representative German panel data sets, and exploiting arguably exogenous variations in geographical distance to grandparents, we analyze age-specific effects, taking into account counterfactual care modes. Our results suggest null or negative effects on children's outcomes: If children three years and older are in full-time daycare or school and, in addition, cared for by grandparents, they have more health and socio-emotional problems, in particular conduct problems. In contrast, our results point to positive effects on parental satisfaction with the childcare situation and leisure. The effects for mothers correspond to an increase of 11 percent in satisfaction with the childcare situation and 14 percent in satisfaction with leisure, compared to the mean, although the results differ by child age. While the increase in paternal satisfaction with the childcare situation is, at 21 percent, even higher, we do not find an effect on paternal satisfaction with leisure.

Soil-transmitted helminth infections and nutritional indices among Filipino schoolchildren.

BackgroundSoil-transmitted helminth (STH) infections are still prevalent among schoolchildren in the Philippines. We evaluated the risk factors associated with STH and the relationship between STH and nutritional indices among schoolchildren aged 9–10 years in Laguna province, the Philippines.MethodsWe used the baseline data from 40 schools enrolled in a randomised controlled trial of the Magic Glasses Philippines health education package. Data on demographic and socio-economic variables, and STH related knowledge, attitudes and practices, were obtained through a questionnaire. Stool samples were collected and assessed for STH egg presence using the Kato-Katz technique. Haemoglobin levels and height and weight of study participants were also determined. The generalized estimating equations approach was used to construct logistic regression models to assess STH-associated risk factors, and the association between any STH infection and anaemia, child stunting, wasting and being underweight. The trial is registered with the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ACTRN12616000508471).FindingsAmong 1,689 schoolchildren, the prevalence of any STH was 23%. The prevalence of anaemia, stunting, being underweight and wasting was 13%, 20.2%, 19% and 9.5%, respectively. Age, socio-economic status, rural/urban classification of schools and knowledge of STH were significant risk factors for acquiring a STH infection. Moreover, infections with any STH were significantly associated with stunting (P = <0.001) and being underweight (P = <0.003), but not wasting (P = 0.375) or anaemia (P = 0.462) after controlling for confounding covariates.ConclusionThe study findings emphasise the need for sustainable deworming in tandem with other measures such as the provision of health education, improvements in sanitation and hygiene, and nutritional programs in order to control STH infections and improve morbidity outcomes in schoolchildren.Trial registrationAustralian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ACTRN12616000508471).

Effects of parental health shocks on children's school achievements: A register-based population study

This paper studies how a severe parental health shock affects children's school achievements using a rich longitudinal dataset of Danish children. We use coarsened exact matching to control for potential endogeneity between parental health and children's school outcomes and employ cancer specific survival rates to measure the size of the health shock. We find robust negative (albeit small) effects of a parental health shock on children's basic school grades as well as their likelihood of starting and finishing secondary education, especially for poor prognosis cancers. We observe different outcomes across children's gender and age and gender of the ill parent, but no effects of family-related resilience factors such as parental education level. The effects appear to be driven by non-pecuniary costs rather than by pecuniary costs. Moreover, we find that the negative effects on school performance increase in the size of the health shock for both survivors and non-survivors.

The Link Between Medicaid Expansion and School Absenteeism: Evidence From the Southern United States.

Parental Medicaid eligibility has been shown to be linked to positive academic and school outcomes for children. However, the impact of adult Medicaid expansion on children's school absenteeism is largely unexplored in the literature. The aim of this study was to examine whether Medicaid expansion for adults under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), affected school absenteeism of children. This study used data from the National Survey of Children's Health 2016 to 2017 and the difference-in-differences method. The decrease in the predicted probability of missing 11 or more school days in Louisiana, after Medicaid expansion, among school-going children from low-income families, was greater by 18 percentage points (p=.007), as compared to the decrease in the predicted probability of missing 11 or more school days in the neighboring nonexpansion states of Texas and Mississippi. The positive impacts of Medicaid expansion are not limited to adults, but also extend to children's school absenteeism.

Association between Exposure to Particulate Matter during Pregnancy and Multidimensional Development in School-Age Children: A Cross-Sectional Study in Italy.

Air pollutants can potentially affect the development of children. However, data on the effect of exposure to air pollution during pregnancy and developmental outcomes in school children are rare. We investigated the link between prenatal exposure to particulate matters smaller than 10 microns (PM10) and the development of school-age children in multiple domains. Cross-sectional data were collected in Italy between 2013 and 2014. Children aged between 5 and 8 years (n = 1187) were assessed on cognitive, communication, socio-emotional, adaptive, and motor developmental domains using the Developmental Profile 3 questionnaire. The monthly average concentration of PM10 during the entire fetal period was linked to the municipality of residence of the children. The increase in the prenatal PM10 was associated with a decrease in the cognitive score during the second (+13.2 µg/m3 PM10 increase: −0.30 points; 95%CI: −0.12–−0.48) and third trimesters of pregnancy (−0.31 points; 95%CI: −0.11–−0.50). The communicative domain was also negatively influenced by PM10 increases in the second trimester. The development of cognitive and communicative abilities of children was negatively associated with the exposure to PM10 during the period of fetal development, confirming that exposure to air pollution during pregnancy can potentially hinder the development of the brain.

Formation of metasubject educational achievements of primary schoolchildren in the process of assessment activities

The main mission of modern education - improving the quality, cannot be realized without innovative approaches to the assessment system, without the formation of mechanisms, procedures and technologies for monitoring the educational achievements of students. Federal state educational standards of primary general education of the second generation orient teachers towards the qualitative formation of subject, meta-subject and personal results. Modern teachers successfully diagnose the level of subject and personal achievements of junior schoolchildren, evaluating these universal educational actions. Certain difficulties arise with the assessment of metasubject learning outcomes of schoolchildren. The assessment activity of students, according to the authors, acts as an effective means of forming metasubject competences of younger students, since the mechanisms for diagnosing metasubject educational achievements have not yet been worked out. This scientific work discusses not only modern approaches to assessing metasubject achievements, but also proves that a well-constructed assessment activity can become an effective means of forming metasubject competencies. The authors pay great attention to such methods of assessment activities, which, within the framework of the implementation of the state standard, ensure the flexibility of the educational process, create an opportunity not only for teachers, but also for the students themselves to control and evaluate metasubject results.

Impact of Nurse-Led Asthma Intervention on Child Health Outcomes: A Scoping Review

Given the leading role school nurses occupy within the school setting, they are often the most suited health care professionals to lead asthma programs. However, most school-based asthma programs have been conducted by researchers outside the school setting. Thus, we aim to determine what is currently known about the type of school nurse-led asthma intervention programs and their impact on children’s asthma-related outcomes. This article describes published literature on school nurse-led asthma intervention programs for the school-aged population using Arksey and O’Malley’s scoping review framework. A search strategy was developed and implemented in six electronic databases from 1980 to 2020. Results showed that school nurse-led asthma programs were predominantly educational interventions. Yet given the positive outcomes of school nurse-led asthma interventions reported across the articles reviewed, it is important to emphasize the leadership role school nurses assume in asthma programs, to promote more positive asthma-related outcomes in school children.

Family Size and Children\u2019s Education: Evidence from the One-Child Policy in China

Evidence on a causal link between family size and children’s education is still inconclusive. Recent empirical studies have focused heavily on China, exploiting for identification the country’s One-Child Policy (OCP) as an exogenous source of variation in the number of offspring. This literature, however, suffers from measurement error in the key policy variable (individual OCP coverage) and the use of inadequate measures of child quality outcomes (educational attainment). Using a novel and more accurate taxonomy of provincial OCP regulations and studying exclusively post-compulsory schooling outcomes of children that are subject to parental discretion, we find evidence for a sizeable child quantity–quality trade-off in China. Various robustness checks corroborate this conclusion.

Does Grandparenting Pay off for the Next Generations? Intergenerational Effects of Grandparental Care

Grandparents act as the third largest caregiver after parental care and daycare in Germany, as in many Western societies. Adopting a double-generation perspective, we investigate the causal impact of this care mode on children's health, socio-emotional behavior, and school outcomes, as well as parental well-being. Based on representative German panel data sets, and exploiting arguably exogenous variations in geographical distance to grandparents, we analyze age-specific effects, taking into account counterfactual care modes. Our results suggest null or negative effects on children's outcomes: If children three years and older are in full-time daycare or school and, in addition, cared for by grandparents, they have more health and socio-emotional problems, in particular conduct problems. In contrast, our results point to positive effects on parental satisfaction with the childcare situation and leisure. The effects for mothers correspond to an increase of 11 percent in satisfaction with the childcare situation and 14 percent in satisfaction with leisure, compared to the mean, although the results differ by child age. While the increase in paternal satisfaction with the childcare situation is, at 21 percent, even higher, we do not find an effect on paternal satisfaction with leisure.

Practical use of the digital pedagogical activity simulator: efficiency, innovation, and experience

The article presents the experience of developing and using the digital simulators in teaching and learning at a pedagogical university. Testing the innovative technologies in the course of teachers’ training enables to conclude that this tool is effective when acquiring the professional competencies. The simulators, including the virtual ones, ensure modeling the pedagogical activity in terms of the principles of the activity approach. The analytical part of the article includes the content of the assessment criteria when planning and giving the classes on a digital simulator. The criteria for assessing the operations of a university student on the simulator are consistent with the requirements for the learning outcomes of schoolchildren. The results obtained confirm the relation between the labor operations performed by future teachers and the requirements established by the Federal State Educational Standards for universal learning skills (cognitive, communicative, and regulatory). The content of these requirements involves skills at searching for the study material and assuming the position of an active subject. The requirements content is consistent with the criteria for assessing the operations of the future teacher. The results of testing the simulator enable to analyze the advantages and disadvantages of using a digital simulator in teachers’ training. Its use may involve making some changes in Teaching Methodology at a pedagogical university.

School outcomes of adolescents with cerebral palsy in Sweden.

AimTo study school outcomes of adolescents with cerebral palsy (CP) compared with a matched comparison group from the general population, and to observe to what extent sociodemographic and disability‐specific factors are associated with school outcomes.MethodThis was a register study of persons with CP in Sweden, born between 1990 and 1999, with a matched comparison group. Logistic regressions were used to estimate the associations between CP and disability‐specific factors and school outcomes (receiving final grades, grade scores, fulfilling the requirements for progressing to secondary school/university, and attending secondary school).ResultsChildren with CP had substantially lower school achievement compared with a general population sample. Much of the difference can be attributed to intellectual disability; however, CP remained strongly negatively associated with school outcomes. Ability to communicate in an effective manner explained most of the variation in children with CP, whereas motor function played a smaller role.InterpretationThe results suggest that school achievements might be improved if the communication barrier could be reduced, for example by ascertaining access to appropriate communication devices and by educators being aware that communicative difficulties do not necessarily imply intellectual disability. This might enhance the school experience and create an environment where children with CP can reach their full potential.What this study adds There are reduced educational outcomes associated with cerebral palsy.Negative outcomes are mainly driven by reduced communicative and intellectual ability.Gross motor function is associated with outcomes, but plays a smaller part.

Association between Body Composition, Physical Activity, Food Intake and Bone Status in German Children and Adolescents.

Achieving a high bone mass during childhood and adolescence is important for the prevention of osteoporosis in later life. Herein, the purpose was to assess the relationship of various lifestyle factors and bone outcomes in school children. In 248 girls (13.4 ± 1.9 years, BMI: 20.2 ± 4.8 kg m−2) and 231 boys (13.6 ± 1.7 years, BMI: 19.3 ± 3.3 kg m−2), bone mass (stiffness index, SI; calcaneal quantitative ultrasonometry), body composition (bioelectrical impedance analysis), food intake (food frequency questionnaire), and physical activity level (PAL; standardized questionnaire) were assessed. The individual food intake of eight food groups was related to the German recommendations (Bone Healthy Eating Index, BoneHEI; 0–100 points). Relationships between SI and lifestyle factors (Spearman´s rank correlation) and the influence of the factors on the variance of SI (multiple linear regression) were tested (α = 0.05). SI correlated with age, BMI, absolute fat-free mass, relative fat mass, PAL, and puberty category score in both girls and boys (r = 0.18–0.56, p < 0.01), but not with BoneHEI (p > 0.05). Age, absolute fat-free mass, sex, and PAL explained 35% of the variance of SI (p < 0.0001): SI = −0.60 + 2.97∙age (years) + 0.65∙fat-free mass (kg) + 6.21∙sex (0 = male, 1 = female) + 17.55∙PAL. Besides age and sex, PAL and fat-free mass are important factors relating to bone health. School children should perform regular physical activity to improve their bone status.

Effect of Healthy Lifestyle Interventions in Schools of Jazan City, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: A Quasi-experimental Study

Background&#x0D; Unhealthy dietary habits and lifestyle among adolescents is considered as a risk factor for nutrition-related diseases in adulthood. The objective of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of a healthy lifestyle intervention—including physical activity (PA) and eating habits (EH)—among female students in Jizan City, southwest Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA).&#x0D; Methods&#x0D; A representative sample of 565 school students aged 12–15 years was randomly selected from four schools in Jizan, KSA. The PA and EH were assessed using a validated self-administered questionnaire. A pre-post quasi-experimental study was implemented in three phases.&#x0D; Results&#x0D; Following the intervention, the school children in the intervention groups showed a significant improvement in their EH and PA. These improvements were documented in increased physical walking measured by the number of students walking daily, the number of days walked, and the time spent on vigorous activities (54.11 ± 54.89 to 63.24 ± 76.16). Fruits and vegetables had a similar consumption frequency in both the intervention and control groups. The snacks were frequently consumed among intervention group with a significant increase in the mean number from 1.64 ± 0.93 to 1.96 ± 1.13 (p = 0.000) and fast food were less frequently consumed among intervention group than the control group (p = 0.000). The prevalence of obesity in the intervention group was reduced from 16.3% to 12.9%, while it was significantly increased from 17.6% to 19.0% in the control group (p = 0.0148). Weight decreased by 0.37 kg in the intervention group, while it increased by 0.07 kg in the control group, but with no statistically significant increase.&#x0D; Conclusion:&#x0D; In conclusion, healthy lifestyle interventions can improve short- and long-term outcomes in school children. When examining the health benefits of healthy lifestyle, the importance of dietary and PA behaviors should be considered.&#x0D; Keywords: lifestyle, dietary habits, physical activity, chronic diseases, Jazan-KSA&#x0D;

Women’s Bargaining Power and Children’s Schooling Outcomes: Evidence From Ghana

ABSTRACT This study uses data from the Ghana Living Standards Survey to examine the link between women’s bargaining power and children’s schooling outcomes. It employs a principal component analysis to generate an index measuring women’s bargaining power based on a couples’ education gap and age gap when their child reaches age 6. It then uses women’s age at first marriage as an instrument to identify women’s bargaining power. The results show that women’s bargaining power holds no significant association with late school enrollment. However, it has a negative and significant association with the probability and intensity of grade repetition (the number of times the same grade is repeated), especially for firstborn children. Girls tend to benefit more from the mother’s bargaining power compared to boys. The study further shows that women’s bargaining power is linked with school enrollment and attainment, which confirms previous findings in the literature. Highlights • Slow school progression caused by late enrollment and grade repetition is a problem worldwide, especially in developing countries. • This study examines the impact of women's intrahousehold bargaining power on children's schooling outcomes in Ghana. • Increased women's bargaining power has no effect on the timing of school enrollment but reduces the chances of grade repetition and how many times the same grade is repeated. • Girls benefit more from their mothers' bargaining power compared to boys. • Women's bargaining power has a larger impact on the education of firstborn children than on subsequent children. • Policies aimed at empowering women will improve children's schooling outcomes.

Child-Driven Parenting: Differential Early Childhood Investment by Offspring Genotype

A growing literature points to children’s influence on parents’ behavior, including parental investments in children. Further, previous research has shown differential parental response by socioeconomic status to children's birth weight, cognitive ability, and school outcomes – all early life predictors of later socioeconomic success. This study considers an even earlier, more exogenous predictor of parental investments: offspring genotype. Specifically, we analyze (1) whether children’s genetic propensity towards educational success affects parenting during early childhood; and (2) whether parenting in response to children’s genetic propensity towards educational success is socially stratified. Using data from the Avon Longitudinal Survey of Parents and Children (N=7,738), we construct polygenic scores for educational attainment and regress cognitively stimulating parenting behavior during early childhood on these polygenic scores. We use a range of modeling strategies to address the concern that child’s genotype may be proxying unmeasured parent characteristics. Results show that parents provide more cognitive stimulation to children with higher education polygenic scores. This pattern varies by socioeconomic status with college-educated parents responding less to children’s genetic propensity towards educational success than non-college-educated parents do.

Schoolchildren Determination in Kazakhstan: Condition Analysis and Project Suggestions

In accordance with data from the labor market formation (nearest past) in Kazakhstan, the prevalence of some jobs over the others can be put into the question. However, the following hypothesis might be stated in advance: do high school students possess a clear vision of current labor market conditions and make their choice consciously with the help of objective information? Judging by the first glance, the hypothesis might be proven false, therefore, a deeper research with respect to both theoretical and empirical evidence is to be analyzed, as is discussed below.Firstly, it should be taken into account, that the question of self-determination has been put into question by various researchers, however, the area remains largely understudied. For example, according to Wrigth, a larger share of schoolchildren demonstrates a tendency towards changing a major for one or more times, however, the explanatory causes of such behavior have been largely uncertain (Wrigth, 2018). It should be noted, that such behavior can be also attributed to Kazakhstan situation, which has further consequences of inappropriate labor market performance. Therefore, the intention of this article is to analyze the situation of schoolchildren determination in Kazakhstan, and to propose potential areas of development. Further, the intention is an attempt to improve the life outcomes of schoolchildren and students via investigation of such factors as major and occupation selection, most important motives and potential outcomes, that could be eventually used for social development, such as higher information policies, enhancement of school and university administration and schoolchildren decisions

The effects of ambient NO2 and PM2.5 exposure on asthma-related outcomes in school children residing in informal settlements in South Africa.

OPS 52: Air pollution and respiratory health, Room 110, Floor 1, August 28, 2019, 10:30 AM - 12:00 PM Background/Aim: No previous epidemiological study has investigated the independent effect of long-term ambient nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and particulate matter smaller than 2.5 µm in diameter (PM2.5) exposure on asthma-related outcomes among school children in Africa. This study aimed to investigate these effects in a cohort of school children in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. Methods: Grade-4 school children (n = 522) residing in four informal settlements were followed for a 12-months period. Spirometry and fractional exhaled nitric-oxide (FeNO) measurements were conducted on each child in addition to the International Study on Asthma and Allergy in Children (ISAAC) questionnaire that was administered to the parent/caregiver at baseline and follow-up. Annual NO2 and PM2.5 levels were estimated for each child’s home using land-use regression modelling. Two-pollutant models were constructed to assess the independent effects of both ambient NO2 and PM2.5 on incident asthma-associated outcomes adjusting-for host characteristics, indoor exposures and residential area. Results: The annual average concentration of PM2.5 and NO2 in the four study areas (10.01 μg/m3 and 16.62 µg/m3 respectively), were below the South Africa National Ambient Air Quality Standards (20 μg/m3 and 40 µg/m3, respectively) for both pollutants. An interquartile range (IQR) increase of 14.2 µg/m3 in NO2 was associated with an increased risk of new onset ocular-nasal symptoms (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]: 1.63, 95% Confidence Interval [CI]: 1.01 – 2.60), wheezing (aOR: 3.57, 95% CI: 1.18 – 10.92), symptom score ≥2 (aOR: 1.71, 95% CI: 1.02 – 2.86), and allergic airway inflammation defined as FeNO > 35 ppb (aOR: 3.10, 95% CI: 1.10 – 8.71), independent of PM2.5 exposures. Conclusion: This study provides evidence of an effect of ambient NO2 below national and international guidelines, independent of PM2.5 exposure, on 12-months incidence of asthma-related outcomes among children residing in informal settlements of South Africa.

Association of school hours with outcomes of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in schoolchildren

ObjectiveTo investigate the association of school hours with outcomes of schoolchildren with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA).MethodsFrom the 2005–2014 nationwide databases, we extracted the data for 1660 schoolchildren (6–17 years) with...

Fecundity and human birth seasonality in Sweden: a register-based study

BackgroundIt is well-established that couples’ fecundities vary widely. Each couple has a relatively constant monthly probability of conceiving, which can vary from zero to quite high. This underlying probability is usually expressed as the time (number of menstrual cycles) the couple requires to conceive. Couples with high fecundity will, on average, need fewer cycles than couples with low fecundity. It is also well-documented that almost all human populations exhibit seasonal variation in births. Most European countries show seasonal variation that usually peak in the spring and are the lowest during the last quarter of the year. The increasingly strong pattern of depressed birth rates in November and December is likely explained by the December–January cut-off threshold for Swedish pupils’ school entry and their parents increasing awareness of the negative effects on school outcomes for children who are juniors in the school-entry cohort they belong to. To actively plan births for a specific time of the year, couples need to have some knowledge of the time required for them to conceive.MethodsWe use the duration between marriage of childless couples and first birth as a proxy measure of couples’ fecundity. Based on this time-to-pregnancy measure we study to what extent couples’ capacity to conceive affects the seasonality of their second births. We hypothesize that in a society with highly controlled fertility and a strong norm of having at least two children, sub-fertile couples will on average show less seasonal variation in second births. Sub-fertile couples, requiring more time to conceive the first time, will be less likely to try to target a desired birth month for their second child because doing so could jeopardize fulfilling their desired family size. We apply multinomial logistic regressions on 81,998 Swedish couples who married while being childless and subsequently gave birth to at least two children between 1990 and 2012, to investigate fecundity’s role in seasonal variation in second births.ResultsWe found that seasonal variation in second births was strongly associated with couples’ observed fecundity, measured as the duration between marriage formation and first birth. Our results support the hypothesis that sub-fertile couples, requiring more time to conceive the first time, show less seasonal variation in second births. The seasonal variations in second order births among couples with normal fecundity shows some similarities to traditional patterns as seen in agricultural and industrial societies of the past, with high numbers of births during the spring, and low numbers during the last quarter of the year. However, two important differences are notable. The characteristic Christmas peak in September has vanished, and the low birth rates in November and December come out much stronger than in the past.ConclusionsThe birth seasonality among couples with normal fecundity are what we would expect if couples actively plan their births according to the cut-off date for Swedish pupils’ school entry. We argue that our findings support the notion that scheduled childbirth is a reality in contemporary sociality.