The Prefrontal Cortex and Academic Success

The development of an individual’s prefrontal cortex is crucial to their academic life, along with their decision-making skills. The prefrontal cortex is a part of the brain which plays a large part in one’s memory, cognitive processes, decision-making, and problem-solving skills, along with attention-related skills. Damage to this region could seriously impair one's thought processes and affect their daily life. Since the abilities listed directly correlate with one’s academic skills, the prefrontal cortex development shows a strong correlation with one’s academic abilities as they lead to a higher level of cognition and inhibition.

In the publication “Relations between Frontal EEG Maturation and Inhibitory Control in Preschool in the Prediction of Children’s Early Academic Skills,” Dr. Martha Ann Bell and her colleagues explored the importance of the maturation of the prefrontal cortex in the early years of life. They focused on the developmental change in children’s resting state EEG signals compared to the amount of change in the frontal region. They do this to further explore how the EEG activity in children (during their early years of schooling) relates to their academic skills and inhibitory controls. Throughout the study, they recruited children to measure their EEG levels when given cognitive and emotional tasks. The participants were given two specific assessments: inhibitory control assessment and academic skills assessment, as those are the measures of this research. The EEG was recorded at certain months as they watched video clips, and many measures were considered. All the tests were compared to a baseline recorded by the EEG as well, and to my understanding, this would differ between each participant. The results showed that there was a relationship between frontal lobe maturation and the children’s ability to perform inhibitory control tasks and academic skills.

This study made me wonder how important the development of a student’s prefrontal cortex would be at later stages of their life, specifically, throughout pubertal development. The publication “Coming of age in the frontal cortex: The role of puberty in cortical maturation,” by Dr. Delevich and colleagues focuses on the role puberty plays on the brain, given specific hormonal changes. The article explains how pubertal processes can directly sculpt and further develop the prefrontal cortex. The results show an apparent change in gene expression within the prefrontal cortex, along with other crucial regions of the brain such as the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal and the neocortex in general. Additionally, researchers discuss how the gonadal hormones can directly influence brain structure and function via activational effects and organizational effects. 

While each article focuses on a different age group, they highlight the importance of the development of the prefrontal cortex and neural pathways in humans. While the prefrontal cortex must develop properly within young children, as supported by Dr. Martha Ann Bell’s work, this development looks different throughout one’s life span. Due to changes that are apparent in adolescents due to puberty and psychological maturation, their cognitive and inhibitory abilities are either matured or affected, along with various other psychological changes that are present. 

 

References: 

 

Delevich, Kristen, et al. “Coming of Age in the Frontal Cortex: The Role of Puberty in Cortical Maturation.” Seminars in Cell & Developmental Biology, vol. 118, Oct. 2021, pp. 64–72, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.semcdb.2021.04.021.

 

Whedon, Margaret, et al. “Relations between Frontal EEG Maturation and Inhibitory Control in Preschool in the Prediction of Children’s Early Academic Skills.” Brain and Cognition, vol. 146, no. 105636, Dec. 2020, p. 105636, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bandc.2020.105636.