Measuring executive function skills in young children in Kenya: Associations with school readiness

Area of Science:

• Developmental Psychology
• Education Research
• Global Health

Background:

• Most research on executive function (EF) and school readiness is from Western countries.
• This study examines these associations in a middle-income country context.
• Early childhood education (ECE) models are being implemented in various global settings.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between executive function (EF) and school readiness skills in children aged 4-7 years in Kenya.
• To assess the feasibility of large-scale direct assessments of EF in young children in a low-resource setting.
• To determine if EF skills are associated with early literacy, numeracy, and social-emotional competencies.

Main Methods:

• 1,480 children aged 4-7 years participated in an endline assessment of the Tayari program in Kenya.
• Direct assessments of EF were conducted, with high task completion and assessor quality.
• Statistical analyses examined associations between EF composite scores and school readiness measures, controlling for covariates.

Main Results:

• Direct assessments of EF were feasible in this population.
• Children's attention-related behaviors during testing correlated with EF task performance.
• Executive function (EF) composite scores were significantly associated with early literacy, early numeracy, and social-emotional competencies, independent of demographic factors and ECE program exposure.

Conclusions:

• Executive function (EF) skills are important for school readiness in young children, regardless of socioeconomic context.
• These findings support the integration of EF development into early childhood education (ECE) programs in low- and middle-income countries.
• Investments in ECE can be informed by understanding the role of EF in children's learning and development.