Those pesky genetics again

“Genetics can play a bigger role in determining a child’s reading ability than teaching, an Australian researcher says. An international study showed some children were born with “an unfortunate deal of the genetic deck” when it comes to reading skills, said study co-author Brian Byrne, professor of psychology at the University of New England in northern NSW. No “magic bullet” of encouragement and tutoring would fully improve their reading abilities, he said. Published in the latest issue of the British-based Journal of Research in Reading, the study showed the influence of parents reading to their children diminished significantly a year or so after they started school. “The home environment doesn’t leave its mark much on children as they start to go through school, which is surprising to a lot of people,” Byrne said. “What seems to determine most of the differences amongst children, just in the normal school setting in terms of their reading skills, are genetics.”

More here.

[Anybody who knows the high correlation between IQ and early reading ability will of course not be at all surprised by the finding]

Chris Brand comments on the finding too

Posted by jonjayray on Monday, February 13, 2006 at 10:18 AM in IQ and Heredity
Comments (1) | Tell a friend

Comments:

Posted by Lars on February 13, 2006, 09:54 PM | #

The Feb., 2006 edition of the Journal of Research in Reading is entirely devoted to the topic mentioned by John, and all the papers in it concerning the very strong influence of genetics behind reading skills in children are a must read.

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