Differences in exam performance between pupils attending selective and non-selective schools mirror the genetic differences between them.

ABSTRACT: On average, students attending selective schools outperform their non-selective counterparts in national exams. These differences are often attributed to value added by the school, as well as factors schools use to select pupils, including ability, achievement and, in cases where schools charge tuition fees or are located in affluent areas, socioeconomic status. However, the possible role of DNA differences between students of different schools types has not yet been considered. We used a UK-representative sample of 4814 genotyped students to investigate exam performance at age 16 and genetic differences between students in three school types: state-funded, non-selective schools ('non-selective'), state-funded, selective schools ('grammar') and private schools, which are selective ('privat

SUBMITTER: Smith-Woolley E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6220309 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature