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The causes of long-term continuity in the level of children's school performance are not completely understood. Some of the continuity undoubtedly stems from the persistence of cognitive status. But this article, which reports on a follow-up study of schoolchildren in Baltimore, shows that it can also be related to the child's early social environment. That is, the influences of parents and teachers on children in Grades 1-3 were linked to the children's reading and mathematics performance four to nine years later. The reasons for this persistence are explored, including the maintenance of higher achievement levels originally fostered by teachers and parents, the continuance of a pattern of social dependence, and the reliance of parents and teachers on the child's cumulative record.
Entwisle et al. (Fri,) studied this question.