High school quality is associated with cognition 58 years later

Abstract

We leveraged a unique school‐based longitudinal cohort—the Project Talent Aging Study—to examine whether attending higher quality schools is associated with cognitive performance among older adults in the United States (mean age = 74.8). Participants (n = 2,289) completed telephone neurocognitive testing. Six indicators of high school quality, reported by principals at the time of schooling, were predictors of respondents’ cognitive function 58 years later. To account for school‐clustering, multilevel linear and logistic models were applied. We found that attending schools with a higher number of teachers with graduate training was the clearest predictor of later‐life cognition, and school quality mattered especially for language abilities. Importantly, Black respondents (n = 239; 10.5 percentage) were disproportionately exposed to low quality high schools. Therefore, increased investment in schools, especially those that serve Black children, could be a powerful strategy to improve later life cognitive health among older adults in the United States.

Early-Life Circumstances and Racial Disparities in Cognition Among Older Adults in the US

“…For example, attending segregated schools may expose Black children to discrimination and racism that contribute to stress, traumatized brain development, and are associated with behavioral problems . Moreover, attending segregated schools may adversely affect late-life cognition by diminishing school resources, such as spending per pupil, student-teacher ratio, term length, combined grade levels in classrooms, and teacher training experience, as shown in prior studies . Overall, our results suggest that policies implemented to improve educational equity may generate long-lasting improvements that could reduce racial disparities in cognition in older ages …”

“…36,37 Moreover, attending segregated schools may adversely affect late-life cognition by diminishing school resources, such as spending per pupil, student-teacher ratio, term length, combined grade levels in classrooms, and teacher training experience, as shown in prior studies. 15,[38][39][40][41][42][43] Overall, our results suggest that policies implemented to improve educational equity may generate longlasting improvements that could reduce racial disparities in cognition in older ages. 39,43 Third, relative to the pivotal role played by educational factors, most of the traditionally measured early-life exposures showed only a modest role, and almost no independent associations with cognitive outcomes were discovered.…”

The (in)visible Brazilians: A perspective review on the need for brain health and dementia research with Brazilian immigrants in the United States

“…23 In addition, high school quality is associated with cognitive functioning six decades later. 53 Another aspect to consider is the challenge of dementia underdiagnosis in Brazil. For instance, a study using a large nationally representative Brazilian sample (ELSI-Brazil), a Health and Retirement Study (HRS) partner in South America, found a prevalence of 5.8% for dementia in people 60 years and older in Brazil.…”

A fresh look at the multi‐level social determinants of disparities in Alzheimer's disease and related dementias

“…In true reflection of the deeply multifaceted nature of this line of inquiry, the topics covered in this special issue span a diverse array of content areas such as SDoH-linked cognitive decline across racial groups, the lack of representativeness in ADRD research, the effects of early life experiences on late-life cognition, the impact of COVID-19 on cognitive impairment in older adults, the economic burden associated with mild cognitive impairment and mild dementia, proposals emanating from workshops and perspectives on improving access to timely diagnosis, differences in performance across racial groups on commonly used instruments for tracking cognitive change, and novel methodologies that can be used to better understand how the environment affects brain health. [9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24] Taken together, the studies in this special issue bring us closer to identifying key constructs related to economic stability, social and community context, access to and quality of health care, and other things that are linked to cognitive outcomes and the progression to ADRD in minoritized older adults. Email: ozioma@medicine.wisc.edu…”