Poor Students Have Lower Test Scores Than Wealthier Ones: Study

A new study suggests that poverty plays a significant factor on why some children tend to have lower test scores than their more affluent peers. 

The study published in JAMA Pediatrics reveals that children growing up in poverty have a 20 percent less educational achievement and poor brain development compared to their more affluent peers. Study researchers looked at the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans of hundreds of children and adolescents ages 4 to 22 from demographically diverse households.

For the study, the participants were asked to complete Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence (WASI) for general intelligence assessment and the Woodcock-Johnson III Tests of Achievement (WJ-III) to measure language and math skills.

They found a 20 percent gap in test scores and educational performance in children from low-income households compared to children coming from households with higher incomes. Additionally, they found that children who grew up in poor households (defined as households living below 1.5 times the federal poverty level) had less gray matter in some parts of their brains.

The research shows that there is a notable gap between "poor" children and "near-poor children" (defined as living 1.5 to 2 times the federal poverty level). Interestingly, MedPage Today reports that near-poor children and children of well-to-do families show almost no difference in brain development.

"What was already discovered is there is an achievement gap between poor children and middle-class children," study author Seth Pollak told Reuters. "Even when they move to better neighborhoods, children growing up in poor families tend to do less well in school than their less poor counterparts."

"When compared with their more-advantaged peers, children living in poverty experience less parental nurturance while confronting elevated levels of life stress, increased family instability, and greater exposure to violence," the researchers wrote. "Their homes are more crowded and often provide less-cognitive stimulation."

Pollak added that the poor brain development and dismal test scores may be due to the underdevelopment of the frontal and temporal lobes in the brain. The frontal lobe is responsible for problem solving, reasoning, and planning. It is where the sensory and memory centers are located in the brain, according to Live Strong. Meanwhile, the temporal lobe is regarded as the "language center" of the brain and is responsible for comprehending speech through sensory information derived from sounds, according to Brain Made Simple.

The researchers concluded and suggested that in order to better equalize the educational system in the US, the government must give funding for additional resources to improve the early childhood environments of children living below the poverty line.

"We used to think of poverty as a social policy issue in the U.S., but now it appears to be a biomedical issue," Polka said in a report by MedPage. "This early life circumstance appears to affect brain growth and hinders what children can take away from their schooling."