ArticleJournal of child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines2019
Teacher assessments during compulsory education are as reliable, stable and heritable as standardized test scores.
Article in Journal of child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 16 papers.
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Who cites it
16 citing papers in PubMed.
- Non-cognitive skills mediate education-related polygenic score associations with academic achievement across development.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Domain-general scientific reasoning abilities in kindergarten independently predict the mathematics ability of elementary school children.The British journal of developmental psychology · 2026Article
- Gene-environment correlation: the role of family environment in academic development.Molecular psychiatry · 2025Article
- From genetic disposition to academic achievement: The mediating role of non-cognitive skills across development.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
- Profiles and Longitudinal Growth Trajectories of Teacher-Rated Academic Skills and Enablers in Autistic Children and Adolescents.Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2025Article
- An assessment of the teacher completed 'Early Years Foundation Stage Profile' as a routine measure of child developmental health.PloS one · 2025Article
- The relationship of school performance with self-control and grit is strongly genetic and weakly causal.NPJ science of learning · 2023Article
- Self-control and grit are associated with school performance mainly because of shared genetic effects.JCPP advances · 2023Article
- Literacy skills seem to fuel literacy enjoyment, rather than vice versa.Developmental science · 2023Article
- A sequential model of the contribution of preschool fluid and crystallized cognitive abilities to later school achievement.PloS one · 2022Article
- Observational
- Ordinary extraordinary: Elusive group differences in personality and psychological difficulties between STEM-gifted adolescents and their peers.The British journal of educational psychology · 2021Article
- Article
- Multivariable G-E interplay in the prediction of educational achievement.PLoS genetics · 2020Observational
- Cognitive ability and education: How behavioural genetic research has advanced our knowledge and understanding of their association.Neuroscience and biobehavioral reviews · 2020Review
- Twins Early Development Study: A Genetically Sensitive Investigation into Behavioral and Cognitive Development from Infancy to Emerging Adulthood.Twin research and human genetics : the official journal of the International Society for Twin Studies · 2019Article
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7 authors.
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Abstract
backgroundChildren in the UK go through rigorous teacher assessments and standardized exams throughout compulsory (elementary and secondary) education, culminating with the GCSE exams (General Certificate of Secondary Education) at the age of 16 and A-level exams (Advanced Certificate of Secondary Education) at the age of 18. These exams are a major tipping point directing young individuals towards different lifelong trajectories. However, little is known about the associations between teacher assessments and exam performance or how well these two measurement approaches predict educational outcomes at the end of compulsory education and beyond.
methodsThe current investigation used the UK-representative Twins Early Development Study (TEDS) sample of over 5,000 twin pairs studied longitudinally from childhood to young adulthood (age 7-18). We used teacher assessment and exam performance across development to investigate, using genetically sensitive designs, the associations between teacher assessment and standardized exam scores, as well as teacher assessments' prediction of exam scores at ages 16 and 18, and university enrolment.
resultsTeacher assessments of achievement are as reliable, stable and heritable (~60%) as test scores at every stage of the educational experience. Teacher and test scores correlate strongly phenotypically (r ~ .70) and genetically (genetic correlation ~.80) both contemporaneously and over time. Earlier exam performance accounts for additional variance in standardized exam results (~10%) at age 16, when controlling for teacher assessments. However, exam performance explains less additional variance in later academic success, ~5% for exam grades at 18, and ~3% for university entry, when controlling for teacher assessments. Teacher assessments also predict additional variance in later exam performance and university enrolment, when controlling for previous exam scores.
conclusionsTeachers can reliably and validly monitor students' progress, abilities and inclinations. High-stakes exams may shift educational experience away from learning towards exam performance. For these reasons, we suggest that teacher assessments could replace some, or all, high-stakes exams.
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