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posted by CoolHand on Monday September 11 2017, @09:08PM   Printer-friendly
from the we-finally-have-an-excuse dept.

Submitted via IRC for Bytram

It's been known for years that the oldest children in class perform better in school than their youngest classmates. But according to a new study co-authored by University of Toronto Scarborough economist Elizabeth Dhuey, that gap can persist, with older children more likely to attend post-secondary school and graduate from an elite university.

"Older children, in this case those born in early September, do better in elementary school than their younger peers," says Dhuey, whose past research has explored this phenomenon.

"What we found in this study is that gap persists throughout their school careers, so they end up being more likely to attend a post-secondary school and graduate from an elite university."

The study, by Dhuey, an associate professor of economics, and a team of three economists from U.S.-based universities, was published by the National Bureau of Economic Research. It followed differences between Florida children born just before and after the Sept. 1 cut-off date to start kindergarten. (In Ontario, the cut-off date to start kindergarten is Jan. 1.)

precocious kids need not apply

Source: https://phys.org/news/2017-09-oldest-kids-class-university.html

Reference: Elizabeth Dhuey et al. School Starting Age and Cognitive Development, (2017). DOI: 10.3386/w23660[PDF]


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  • (Score: 3, Informative) by Arik on Monday September 11 2017, @11:28PM (1 child)

    by Arik (4543) on Monday September 11 2017, @11:28PM (#566466) Journal
    This isn't new at all, this is a very old phenomena that was noticed decades ago!

    I know because it was an issue that was discussed when I started school, as I was younger than most of my classmates. Right at the beginning of the year we were told that it *might* be a problem and if it was I could be moved back a class with no hassle. As it turned out, within a couple weeks I was top of my class and that held for years, so they didn't do it, but it was certainly on their radar and I know other people that were moved, both up and down, for the best fit.
    --
    If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
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  • (Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 12 2017, @12:17AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 12 2017, @12:17AM (#566479)

    One of my kids had a November birthday, which was near the dividing point for our school system. I decided to make him the oldest in his class instead of the youngest; I thought this fit his personality better. When he reached the end of the seventh grade, he decided to skip ahead because most of his friends were a year older and leaving for high school. His high school career didn't seem to suffer from the change in age position. He remained a top student. He would have had algebra in the eighth grade, but got it as a freshman in high school instead. If he had stayed back, he would have had his high school science courses one academic year earlier, but it would have been at the same actual age.