Acceso usuarios
Floor Vandecruys, Maaike Vandermosten, Bert De Smedt
Massive changes in children’s early mathematical and reading skills manifest between ages 5 and 7, but the role of formal schooling in these changes remains unclear. This study investigated the effects of schooling and age in mathematics and reading and their precursors. Using a longitudinal school cutoff design, 144 five-year-olds were divided into a nonschooling (n = 74, Mage = 62 months, 34 girls) and schooling (n = 70, Mage = 65 months, 39 girls) group. We found schooling effects on arithmetic, numeral knowledge, symbolic magnitude comparison, word reading, letter knowledge, phonological awareness, and spatial ability. No schooling effects were found on numerical ordering and verbal ability. Schooling effects were strong but specific and they were larger for reading (fs ≥ 0.48) than for mathematics (fs ≥ 0.16). Our data emphasize the importance of considering the effects of schooling in studies on early mathematical and reading development. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved)
