Executive Functions in 5- to 8-Year Olds: Developmental Changes and Relationship to Academic Achievement

Abstract

Pronounced improvements in executive functions (EF) during preschool years have been documented in cross-sectional studies. However, longitudinal evidence on EF development during the transition to school and predictive associations between early EF and later school achievement are still scarce. This study examined developmental changes in EF across three time-points, the predictive value of EF for mathematical, reading and spelling skills and explored children's specific academic attainment as a function of early EF. Participants were 323 children following regular education; 160 children were enrolled in prekindergarten (younger cohort: 69 months) and 163 children in kindergarten (older cohort: 78.4 months) at the first assessment. Various tasks of EF were administered three times with an interval of one year each. Mathematical, reading and spelling skills were measured at the last assessment. Individual background characteristics such as vocabulary, non-verbal intelligence and socioeconomic status were included as control variables. In both cohorts, changes in EF were substantial; improvements in EF, however, were larger in preschoolers than school-aged children. EF assessed in preschool accounted for substantial variability in mathematical, reading and spelling achievement two years later, with low EF being especially associated with significant academic disadvantages in early school years. Given that EF continue to develop from preschool into primary school years and that starting with low EF is associated with lower school achievement, EF may be considered as a marker or risk for academic disabilities.

Similarities and differences across countries in the development of executive functions in children: A systematic review

“…At the same time, not all of the reviewed studies found task improvement with age in samples of children from developing countries or severely disadvantaged communities, these generally being reported for children from developed countries (Roethlisberger, Neuenschwander, Cimeli, & Roebers, ). Results reported by Legare et al () showed that linear improvements with age on a three‐dimensional DCCS task were only apparent in the U.S. American sample but not in the sample of children from economically disadvantaged communities in South Africa.…”

Early language and executive skills predict variations in number and arithmetic skills in children at family-risk of dyslexia and typically developing controls

“…Given the unitary structure of executive functions during childhood, the three measures of executive functioning were combined into a composite score based on the mean of the z-standardized scores for the three subtests (see Röthlisberger, Neuenschwander, Cimeli, & Roebers, 2013 ).…”

Phonographic spelling errors in developmental language disorder: Insights from executive functions

“…EF abilities are responsible for directing, adapting, switching, and monitoring tasks (Miyake et al 2000), and contribute to writing and spelling productions (Altemeier et al, 2006;Åsberg Johnels, Kopp, & Gillberg, 2014;Berninger et al, 2009). Most studies examining EF components and their links with spelling analyzed written language skills in a general manner (Hooper et al, 2010;Roebers & Jäger, 2014;Röthlisberger et al, 2013), and showed that inhibition and cognitive flexibility explained variance in reading and writing performance (Altemeier et al, 2008) without describing each component's role. Nonetheless, few studies established links between each component and spelling acquisition.…”