Obviously that the structure of the brain changes due to household income and affects the academic performance

ByHappyHorizons

Previous studies showed that students in low-income brackets had lower results of academic performance such as common tests compared with students of wealthy levels, but according to the latest research by MIT and Harvard University, students of wealthy students It turned out that the cerebral cortex of the brain became thicker than the brains of low - income students, and it also affected academic ability.

Study links brain anatomy, academic achievement, and family income | MIT News
http://newsoffice.mit.edu/2015/link-brain-to-anatomy-academic-achievement-family-income-0417


MIT and Harvard University studied "academic inequality" by a different measurement method from conventional research. The research team gathered a total of 58 students aged 12 to 13 from low-income families to 23 people from high-income families and 35 people from high-income families, and conducted an academic ability test by the Massachusetts State Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) and an MRI scan of the brain . "Low-income family students" are defined as students applying for free or discount catering at school.

As a result of the survey, we found that the cerebral cortex, which is a region related to visual cognition and knowledge accumulation, is thicker in the brains of wealthy students. We have found out that there is a link to the three elements "brain structure" "academic achievement" and "household income" which had not been understood so far. We do not know why the structure of the brain will differ depending on the family environment, but according to previous research, children in low-income families are less exposed to spoken language in early childhood, exposed to more stress It is believed that academic ability will decline due to factors such as lack of educational resources.

ByMichael Cramer

Incidentally,McGovern Brain LaboratoryOne of the researchers said, "There are several solid evidences that the brain is an aptamerically changing plastic material", and the change in brain structure found in this study is permanent There is no point. In the future we plan to investigate which kind of educational program can minimize academic gap as much as possible, and we will also investigate whether the program difference will affect brain structure.