Relations between preschool attention span-persistence and age 25 educational outcomes

Abstract

This study examined relations between children’s attention span-persistence in preschool and later school achievement and college completion. Children were drawn from the Colorado Adoption Project using adopted and non-adopted children (N = 430). Results of structural equation modeling indicated that children’s age 4 attention span-persistence significantly predicted math and reading achievement at age 21 after controlling for achievement levels at age 7, adopted status, child vocabulary skills, gender, and maternal education level. Relations between attention span-persistence and later achievement were not fully mediated by age 7 achievement levels. Logistic regressions also revealed that age 4 attention span-persistence skills significantly predicted the odds of completing college by age 25. The majority of this relationship was direct and was not significantly mediated by math or reading skills at age 7 or age 21. Specifically, children who were rated one standard deviation higher on attention span-persistence at age 4 had 48.7% greater odds of completing college by age 25. Discussion focuses on the importance of children’s early attention span-persistence for later school achievement and educational attainment.

Writing fluency and quality in kindergarten and first grade: the role of attention, reading, transcription, and oral language

“…Several studies have demonstrated the impact of attention on early academic outcomes, such as reading and math achievement, in preschool and early elementary grades (Duncan et al, 2007; McClelland, Acock, Piccinin, Rhea, & Stallings, 2013; Rhoades, Warren, Domitrovich, & Greenberg, 2011). One might argue that the ability to regulate attention would also impact early writing, as it allows students engaged in a writing task to specifically attend to relevant tasks and keep previous content written in mind for use in subsequent composing, all while disregarding extraneous information.…”

Self-Regulation and School Success

“…In fact, self-regulation is ot en a better predictor of academic outcomes than is IQ or grades. In an especially impressive report, with school achievement levels controlled, children who were rated one standard deviation above the mean on attention span/persistence at age 4 years had 39% greater odds of completing college by age 25 (McClelland, Piccinin, Acock, & Stallings, 2011 ).…”

The freedom vs. health paradox

“…15 Another experiment demonstrated that a preschool child's attention span-persistence is strongly associated with later school achievement and college completion. 16 Children who were rated higher than average at age 4 had nearly 50% greater odds of completing college by age 25. Simple developmental disciplines like selfrestraint and maintaining attention are so important but these days, in the name of freedom, it is more common to see social attitudes, media, environment and upbringing foster a lack of self-restraint and shorter attention spans.…”