Grit in an Urban Middle School: Social-Emotional Learning Skills Mediate Impact of Grit on Academic Achievement

• In Event: Roundtable Session 43
  In Roundtable Session: Understanding Social Emotional Learning Through Assessment, Profiling, and Mediation

Abstract

Grit, defined as “perseverance and passion for long-term goals,” has been linked to academic achievement in high-achieving students; however, little is known about how grit operates in disadvantaged students. This study examines grit in low-income Latino middle school students and investigates grit’s relationship with past academic achievement and social-emotional learning (SEL) skills. Controlling for age and gender, the Effort subscale (but not the Interest subscale) predicted current grades above the previous year’s final grades. Mediation analyses supported a partial mediation of grit’s impact on academic achievement by SEL skills. More research is needed to clarify the role grit plays in academic achievement for disadvantaged students.

Authors

• Danielle Hatchimonji, Rutgers University - New Brunswick/Piscataway

• Maurice J. Elias, Rutgers University