I claim that the mere fact that you're here reading this is some evidence to suggest that you think educational environment can have a long-lasting effect on your child. That's certainly what I think: I may not be able to prove it, but I think that the steps I'm taking to get my DS systematically challenged are building him a better brain and a better character than he'd have otherwise, and that both of those things will affect his achievement long term.
Research that challenges my intuitions is interesting, though...
Thanks for starting this fantastic topic. I do strongly believe that educational environment can have a long-lasting effect on a person. It would be necessary to tease out the other elements of level parental involvement, quality of outside enrichment in counter-acting school negativity, child's personality...
What I am finding personally is that I've been bending over backwards to ensure my DD has outside activities or influences that help her learn skill-building discipline and confidence (including just at home and how we handle her stress etc), and my conclusion of late is that it's helped slow down any process of her sinking too far beneath her potential and keeping her self-estem from being as damaged as if I weren't stepping in...but she's still not on par with kids in these programs who have an appropriate school fit and have been experiencing optimal social development all along. I believe in the research you'd also have to have a layer of detail as to what exactly the issues with the school were...simply not being challenged, not learning good study habits but managing and more-or-less adjusted, or really having a poor academic fit across the board coupled with negative behavior management strategies such as my DD's class with the color card changes.
Thanks, ColinsMum! I'll definitely be following this thread.
