The Effect of Early Childhood Stress on Executive Function Ability: Do we need to shift what we are teaching?

          I have been reading Paul Tough’s book, Why Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity and the Power of Character, lately and one chapter was particularly interesting, because it provided scientific insight to behaviors that we observe every day as teachers. The chapter spoke about the cognitive and social effects of growing up in poverty, due to the increase of stress in one’s life during early childhood. The following is a poignant quote that stood out to me as I read:

“The part of the brain most affected by early stress is the pre-frontal cortex, which is critical in self-regulatory activities of all kind, both emotional and cognitive. As a result, children who grow up in stressful environments generally find it harder to concentrate, harder to sit still, harder to rebound from disappointment, and harder to follow directions. And that has a direct effect on their performance in school” (Tough, 17).

As a teacher, I notice these behaviors every day, and, since I have only taught in Baltimore City, I often wonder whether my students are particularly bad at following directions or if following directions is a common issue across all students. Based on personal experience, the four actions presented that are “harder” for students who grew up in stressful environments resonated with me strongly as four issues I see consistently every day in my classroom.

It was both enlightening and frustrating that there was a scientific explanation for the difficulties my students face focusing in class – enlightening, because it confirmed my observations. It was frustrating, because I feel as though we never discuss the reasons why behind our students’ behavior and are seldom given concrete strategies to deal with students’ different behavior issues.

As I kept reading, the following quote also stood out because it isolates that stress, not poverty, is the real issue:

“It wasn’t poverty itself that was compromising the executive function ability of the poor kids. It was the stress that went along with it” (Tough, 20).   

Finally, this quote provides some interesting reflection on our work as teachers:

“The reason that researchers who care about the gap between rich and poor are so excited about executive functions is that these skills are quite malleable, much more so than other cognitive skills.”

The book explains that “executive function” has become the catchphrase for the ability to regulate emotions and make decisions when presented with unpredictable and confusing situations.

So, questions become: 

• How can I improve the executive function of my students in my classroom, if these are the skills that will lead them to greater success in life?
• What do I do on a daily basis that may actually hinder their ability improve their executive function abilities?
• What kind of support do schools and districts need to provide if we aim to equip teachers to improve executive functions of students, as opposed to solely deliver content?
• In the age of the Common Core State Standards and High-Stakes Testing, can we expect teachers to improve the cognitive level and abilities of their students as well as the executive functions?

If research is saying students’ executive function abilities are a stronger predictor of success in life, do we need to re-prioritize our goals for students?