It is common knowledge that children’s reading achievement is influenced by genetics as well as by family and school environments. Despite this known fact, the importance of teacher quality as a specific school environmental influence on reading achievement is unknown.
Researchers from Florida State University studied first- and second-grade students from schools representing diverse environments. They found that the magnitude of genetic variance associated with students’ oral reading fluency increased as the quality of their teacher increased. In circumstances with excellent teachers, measured by how much reading gain students achieved, the variability in student reading achievement may appear to be largely due to genetics. This shows that poor teaching ultimately may impede the ability of children to reach full potential.
More research on this subject will be necessary to deduce further implications. To read the current study, visit: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2905841/.