Correlations Of Various Ages To Achievement Age To Predict Academic Success

This study reports on levels of achievement among rural black and white Southerners of relatively low socioeconomic status. The 262 persons who were the objects of the study were reared in Millfield, North Carolina. They were first studied by Baughman and Dahlstrom (1968) in the early 1960s when they were in the eighth grade. Ten years later, this study located and, through interviews, collected data from 175 or 67% of the 262 eighth-grade subjects. Conclusions include the following. Performance on the eighth grade standardized tests of intellectual and academic ability was found to be clearly related to subsequent achievement, both educational and economic. Although there was a lack of racial differences in educational attainment, black subjects achieved significantly lower job statuses and earned significantly lower incomes than white subjects. The study found a strong association of the family size cluster with achievement. This finding is consistent with population theorists' arguments about how having many children or having children close together creates burdens on a family system which often reduce opportunity. Few significant relationships were found between migration and achievement. In fact, most of the Millfield eighth graders did not move very far away from home. However, living away from Millfield, even if only for a brief period of time, was associated with greater achievement. For comparison purposes, the study also presents findings from major longitudinal studies of similar psychological characteristics. Trends in social change in this area of the South are also described to give the reader a feel for the people and the times in which they matured. (Author/RM).

Purpose of the study . The effects of early entry of a child into first grade is an issue that has raised concern with both parents and educators. Studies show conflicting views regarding the optimal age for school entrance. At issue are the large differences which exist in cognitive, social, and emotional development among children who are up to one year apart in chronological age on entering the formal educational system. The purpose of this study was to analyze the relationship between chronological age and academic success in the middle grades. Specifically, the study investigated the differences in students' academic success as measured by grade point average and the Missouri Mastery and Achievement Test, students' ratings of self-esteem, students' attitude toward school, and students' participation in school activities for chronologically "younger" and "older" students in grades five through nine. Procedures . Four hundred fifty-eight public school students in grades five through nine were surveyed. Students were asked to complete the Student Questionnaire to obtain demographic information, the Coopersmith Self-Esteem Inventory to measure self-esteem, the National Association of Secondary School Principals' Student Self-Satisfaction Survey to determine attitude toward school, and the Student Survey of School Activity Participation to provide data regarding the number and type of activities in which students participate. Grade point average and Missouri Mastery and Achievement Test scores were used to determine academic success. Pearson Product Moment correlation analysis was used to test for significant relationships among the age, achievement, self-esteem, attitude toward school and school activity participation variables. To test for differences in the criterion variables between younger and older students, data were subjected to analysis of variance. Findings . Statistical analysis of the data included descriptive statistics, Pearson Product Moment correlation and analysis of variance. Significant correlational relationships were found between relative chronological age of sixth grade students and perceptions of student discipline and decision-making opportunities. A significant relationship also was found between seventh grade students and perceptions of student activities. Analysis of variance tests revealed no significant differences between younger and older students in grades five, six, eight, and nine on any of the criterion variables. For grade level seven, older students had more positive perceptions of self and peers, attitude toward school and greater activity participation than younger students.

Sponsored by Division 15 of APA, the second edition of this groundbreaking book has been expanded to 41 chapters that provide unparalleled coverage of this far-ranging field. Internationally recognized scholars contribute up-to-date reviews and critical syntheses of the following areas: foundations and the future of educational psychology, learners’ development, individual differences, cognition, motivation, content area teaching, socio-cultural perspectives on teaching and learning, teachers and teaching, instructional design, teacher assessment, and modern perspectives on research methodologies, data, and data analysis. New chapters cover topics such as adult development, self-regulation, changes in knowledge and beliefs, and writing. Expanded treatment has been given to cognition, motivation, and new methodologies for gathering and analyzing data. The Handbook of Educational Psychology, Second Edition provides an indispensable reference volume for scholars, teacher educators, in-service practitioners, policy makers and the academic libraries serving these audiences. It is also appropriate for graduate level courses devoted to the study of educational psychology.

A topically organized version of the bestselling Lifespan Development, this text illustrates how places, sociocultural environments and the ways in which individuals are raised influence human development.