Cognitive functions in typically developing children with varied socioeconomic status and the impact of training on executive functions and reading skills

Abstract

Reading comprehension refers to a complex cognitive ability that draws on a variety of language skills and processes. Executive Functions play an important role in complex cognition and are essential mental processes needed for language processing. Thus, based on research about Executive Functions, Language Processing and Socioeconomic Status, this study investigated: (i) the relationships between EF skills, SES and measures of achievement and cognitive abilities; (ii) the effectiveness of a gaming intervention that directly and specifically taxes the EF system on the same set of skills (near transfer); (iii) the effectiveness of a gaming intervention that taxes the EF system on reading abilities (far transfer). Overall, 122 3 rd and 4th grade students from private and public schools in Natal / RN took part in this study. They were randomly split into two groups. One group trained on Android tablets games which taxed Executive Function skills. The other group (active control) trained on Android tablet games which minimally taxed Executive Function skills. Paper and pencil tasks were also administered to assess reading comprehension and attention. Results indicated that there is a very close relation between EF skills, and scholastic outcomes. Findings also pointed out that children’s updating feature of working memory and their selective attention improves after training. The ability to read pseudowords also improves after training, which signals an important contribution of the intervention in ameliorating decoding skills and language acquisition processes. The main contributions of this study are that it might offer insights for pedagogical purposes (adjusting EF training to best fit each specific group of students, therefore aiding teachers); as well as serve as guideline for future educational policies.