Direct Assessment, Teacher Report, and Observed EF Skills and Behaviors: Unique Associations with Academic Achievement in Ghana

• In Event: The Importance of Executive Functions and Social-Emotional Skills for Students’ Academic Success in Sub-Saharan Africa

Abstract

Introduction:
The link between EF skills and behaviors with academic outcomes is well established in high-income countries (e.g., Jacob & Parkinson, 2015). More recently, studies have showed that EF skills and behaviors relate to academic outcomes in low-and-middle-income countries (LMIC) in early childhood (e.g., Obradović & Willoughby, 2019). Given that skill development can vary across cultural and economic contexts and developmental periods, it is important to understand how EF measures relate to achievement in middle childhood in LMICs.

Past studies have typically utilized either direct assessments of EF or adult reports of EF behavior. We examined how direct assessment, observer-report and teacher-report of EF skills and behaviors uniquely contribute to literacy and numeracy outcomes in middle childhood in Ghana. Since each measurement approach offers unique advantages and drawbacks regarding objectivity, conceptual precision, generalizability, and ecological validity (e.g., McCoy, 2019), we hypothesized the three assessments will emerge as unique predictors of academic achievement.

Method:
The sample (N = 325, average age = 9.29 years) is drawn from Ghana’s Greater Accra region. Most children (90.2%) were in third and fourth grade. All measures were adapted to the Ghanaian context.

Direct assessment of EFs was measured using a composite score from two tasks: Hearts and Flowers and Visual Working Memory (Obradović, 2019). Teacher ratings of EF behaviors (Fast Track Project, 2010) captured students’ ability to focus, work independently and in groups, and follow directions (7 items, alpha = 0.85). Assessor report of EF behaviors (Smith-Donald et al., 2007) captured students’ focused attention, impulsive behaviors and cooperation (6 items, alpha = 0.90).

Literacy skills and numeracy skills were measured in 2018 and 2019 with the Early Grade Reading Assessment (EGRA; Dubeck & Grove, 2015) and Early Grade Math Assessment (EGMA; Platas et al., 2014). Child sex, age, and private school attendance, household measures of wealth and parental education, and school districts were included as covariates. Table 1 shows bi-correlations among key variables.

Results:
All three EF measures had significant additive associations with concurrent numeracy and literacy performance with direct assessment having a largest effect. Controlling for previous levels of achievement, direct assessment of EF skills independently predicted numeracy achievement, whereas teacher-report of EF behaviors independently predicted literacy skills (see Figure 1). Assessor report was positively related to the longitudinal change in both numeracy and literacy skills.

Discussion:
Our study revealed that EF skills and behaviors are both relevant for academic achievement of primary school students in LMICs. Given the unique relevance of direct assessment of EF skills for numeracy achievement, brief EF tasks could be used to assess numeracy capacities of children who may lack formal math instruction. Also, EF skills could be targeted by interventions designed to improve numeracy skills in LMICs. Similarly, programs aiming to improve literacy should consider children’s self-regulation in the classroom context. Finally, practitioners and program evaluators without the resources to implement direct assessments or opportunities to collect teacher reports should consider using observer ratings of EF behaviors during standardized assessments of other skills.

Authors

• Ishita Ahmed, Stanford University
  Presenting Author

• Lily Steyer, Stanford University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Noelle Suntheimer, University of Pennsylvania
  Non-Presenting Author

• Sharon Wolf, University of Pennsylvania
  Non-Presenting Author

• Jelena Obradovic, Stanford University
  Non-Presenting Author