Executive functions and academic performance in children aged 6 to 9 years old
Keywords:
Learning, Child, Executive functionAbstract
Background: Executive functions (EF) are a set of cognitive skills necessary to learn new things, to think or concentrate facing a distractor environment. They can be arranged in different ways according to the literature, including core EF (cognitive flexibility, inhibitory control and working memory) and more complex EF (problem-solving, reasoning and planning). Objective: The present study investigated the relationship between EF and academic performance of children between 6 and 9 years in a public school. Methods: The study included 40 children evaluated by a functional instrument (IFERI) answered by parents and teachers on the executive functions and behaviors observed in activities of everyday life. The results were correlated with children academic performance, represented by the mean of the bimester grades in 2012, considering the main subjects of each school year (mathematics and Portuguese for 1st and 2nd grades, besides history, geography and science for 3rd grades). Results: It was found that the children assessed by their parents and teachers as having better executive skills also have better academic performance, even at early stages of elementary school. Conclusions: The differential relations between school performance and scales completed by parents and teachers suggest that teachers may be better able to assess those skills due to their educational background, which enables them to understand child development and behavior, which would, or not, be appropriate for a given age.Downloads
References
Hanna-Pladdy B. Dysexecutive syndromes in neurologic disease. J Neurol Phys Ther. 2007;31(3):119-27.
Lezak MD, Howieson DB, Loring DW. Neuropsychological assessment. New York: Oxford University Press; 2004.
Gazzaniga MS, Ivry RB, Mangun GR. Neurociência cognitiva. Porto Alegre: Artmed; 2006.
Malloy-Diniz LF, Sedo M, Fuentes D, Leite WB. Neuropsicologia das funções executivas. In: Fuentes D, Malloy-Diniz LF, Camargo CHP, Cosenza RM, orgs. Neuropsicologia: teoria e prática. Porto Alegre: Artmed; 2008. p.187-206.
Diamond A, Barnett WS, Thomas J, Munro S. Preschool program improves cognitive control. Science. 2007;318(5855):1387-8.
Vasconcelos, L. Funções executivas e resolução de problemas aritméticos. In: Valle LELR, Capovilla, FC orgs. Temas multidisciplinares de neuropsicologia e aprendizagem. Ribeirão Preto: Novo Conceito; 2011. p.475-85.
Huizinga M, Dolan CV, Van Der Molen MW. Age-related change in executive function: developmental trends and a latent variable analysis. Neuropsychologia. 2006;44:2017-36.
Lehto JE, Juujärvi P, Kooistra L, Pulkkinen L. Dimensions of executive functioning: evidence from children. Brit J Dev Psychol. 2003;21(1):59-80.
Miyake A, Friedman NP, Emerson MJ, Witzki AH, Howerter A, Wager TD. The unity and diversity of executive functions and their contributions to complex “frontal lobe” tasks: a latent variable analysis. Cogn Psychol. 2000;41(1):49-100.
Stclair-Thompson HL, Gathercole SE. Executive functions and achievements in school: shifting, updating, inhibition, and working memory. Q J Exp Psychol. 2006;59(4):745-59.
Diamond A, Lee K. Interventions shown to aid executive function development in children 4-12 years old. Science. 2011;333(6045):959-64.
Barkley RA. The executive functions and self-regulation: an evolutionary neuropsychological perspective. Neuropsychol Rev. 2001;11(1):1-29.
Dawson P, Guare R. Executive skills in children and adolescents. New York: Guilford Press; 2010.
Meltzer L. Promoting executive function in the classroom. New York: Guilford Press; 2010.
Menezes A, Godoy S, Teixeira MCTV, Carreiro LRR, Seabra AG. Definições teóricas acerca das funções executivas e da atenção. In: Seabra AG, Dias NM, eds. Avaliação neuropsicológica cognitiva: atenção e funções executivas. Vol. 1. São Paulo: Memnon; 2012. p.34-41.
Baddeley A. The episodic buffer: a new component of working memory? Trends Cogn Sci. 2000;4(11):417-23.
Dias NM. Avaliação neuropsicológica das funções executivas: Tendências desenvolvimentais e evidências de validade de instrumentos [Dissertação]. São Paulo: Universidade Presbiteriana Mackenzie; 2009.
Diamond A. IV Seminário Internacional Educação Infantil: evidências científicas, melhores práticas. São Paulo: Universidade Presbiteriana Mackenzie; 2012. Disponível em: http://www.alfaebeto.org.br/279.
Blair C, Razza RP. Relating effortful control, executive function, and false belief understanding to emerging math and literacy ability in kindergarten. Child Dev. 2007;78(2):647-63.
Capovilla AGS, Dias NM. Desenvolvimento de habilidades atencionais em estudantes da 1ª a 4ª série do ensino fundamental e relação com rendimento escolar. Rev Psicopedagogia. 2008;25(78):198-211.
Duncan GJ, Dowsett CJ, Claessens A, MagnusonK, Huston AC, Klebanov P, et al. School readiness and later achievement. Dev Psychol. 2007;43(6):1428-46.
Montiel JM, Seabra AG. Teste de atenção por cancelamento. In: Seabra AG, Dias NM, orgs. Avaliação neuropsicológica cognitiva: atenção e funções executivas. vol. 1. São Paulo: Memnon; 2012. p.57-66.
Montiel JM, Seabra AG. Teste de trilhas: partes A e B. In: Seabra AG, Dias NM, orgs. Avaliação neuropsicológica cognitiva: atenção e funções executivas. vol. 1. São Paulo: Memnon; 2012. p.79-85.
Gathercole SE, Alloway TP, Willis C, Adams A. Working memory in children with reading disabilities. J Exp Child Psychol. 2006;93:265-81.
Barkley RA. Behavioral inhibition, sustained attention and executive function: constructing a unifying theory of ADHD. Psychol Bull. 1997;121:65-94.
Sergeant JA. The cognitive-energetic model: an empirical approach to attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2000;24(1):7-12.
Sonuga-Barke EJS. The dual pathway model of AD/HD: an elaboration of neuro-developmental characteristics. Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2003;27:593-604.
Sonuga-Barke EJS, Sergeant JA, Nigg J, Willcutt E. Executive dysfunction and delay aversion in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: nosologic and diagnostic implications. Child Adolesc Psychiatr Clin N Am. 2008;17(2):367-84.
Vitaro F, Brendgen M, Larose S, Trembaly RE. Kindergarten disruptive behaviors, protective factors, and educational achievement by early adulthood. J Educ Psychol. 2005;97(4):617-29.
Trevisan BT, Seabra AG. Inventário de funções executivas e regulação infantil (IFERI) para pais ou responsáveis e professores (Manuscrito não publicado, 2012).
Thorell LB, Nyberg L. The childhood executive functioning inventory (CHEXI): a new rating instrument for parents and teachers. Dev Neuropsychol. 2008;33(4):536-52.
Seabra-Santos MJ, Gaspar MFF. Pais, educadores e testes: estão de acordo na avaliação de aptidões de crianças pré-escolares? Psicol: Reflex Crít. 2012;25(2):203-11.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2013 Camila Barbosa Riccardi León, Camila Cruz Rodrigues, Alessandra Gotuzo Seabra, Natália Martins Dias
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
