TY - JOUR
T1 - Investigating the predictive roles of working memory and IQ in academic attainment
AU - Alloway, Tracy Packiam
AU - Alloway, Ross G.
PY - 2010/5
Y1 - 2010/5
N2 - There is growing evidence for the relationship between working memory and academic attainment. The aim of the current study was to investigate whether working memory is simply a proxy for IQ or whether there is a unique contribution to learning outcomes. The findings indicate that children's working memory skills at 5 years of age were the best predictor of literacy and numeracy 6 years later. IQ in contrast, accounted for a smaller portion of unique variance to these learning outcomes. The results demonstrate that working memory is not a proxy for IQ but rather represents a dissociable cognitive skill with unique links to academic attainment. Critically, we find that working memory at the start of formal education is a more powerful predictor of subsequent academic success than IQ. This result has important implications for education, particularly with respect to intervention. (c) 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
AB - There is growing evidence for the relationship between working memory and academic attainment. The aim of the current study was to investigate whether working memory is simply a proxy for IQ or whether there is a unique contribution to learning outcomes. The findings indicate that children's working memory skills at 5 years of age were the best predictor of literacy and numeracy 6 years later. IQ in contrast, accounted for a smaller portion of unique variance to these learning outcomes. The results demonstrate that working memory is not a proxy for IQ but rather represents a dissociable cognitive skill with unique links to academic attainment. Critically, we find that working memory at the start of formal education is a more powerful predictor of subsequent academic success than IQ. This result has important implications for education, particularly with respect to intervention. (c) 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=77649187753&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.jecp.2009.11.003
DO - 10.1016/j.jecp.2009.11.003
M3 - Article
SN - 0022-0965
VL - 106
SP - 20
EP - 29
JO - Journal of Experimental Child Psychology
JF - Journal of Experimental Child Psychology
IS - 1
ER -