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Factors for Testing Success
According to a survey by ETS (the makers of the SAT), the most significant factors that influence standardized test scores are beyond the control of the school. The home life of students determines two-thirds of the difference between high scoring schools and low scoring schools.
ETS conducted a survey centered around four factors over which schools have no control:
- The percentage of children living with one parent
- The percentage of 8th graders absent from school at least three times per month
- The percentage of children five and younger whose parents read to them daily
- The percentage of 8th graders who watch five or more hours of TV per day
Taking these factors alone, the researchers were able to predict a state's test score results with surprising accuracy. The researcher's claim that approximately two-thirds of the differences in test scores from state to state are due to these four variables.
Schools Aren't Making up the Gap
In addition, what this report shows is that students who are behind at age five are not catching up as they move through the school system. If they enter behind, they remain behind. The report stresses that perhaps it is just as important to spend time, money and effort on kids and parents at the starting line as it is to prepare them for the finish line.
What Parents Can Do
Reading to your child every day from an early age may be the most effective way to help your child be ready to succeed in school. Developing sensible TV habits and helping your child find more active ways of entertaining themselves are two more ways to stimulate their development.
Sources: Winerip, Michael, "In Gaps at School, Weighing Family Life," The New York Times, December 9, 2007; "The Family, America's Smallest School," Educational Testing Service, December 8, 2007, www.ets.org
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