Early curiosity can boost maths, reading skills in young kids
New York, April 27: Let your child be curious for learning new things as it may help him or her to grasp basic math and improve reading skills from an early age, a new study led by an Indian-origin researcher suggests.
Curiosity in young children was defined as a trait for the joy of discovery, and the motivation to seek answers to the unknown.
But, the current early learning interventions just focus on improving a child's effortful control which includes their ability to concentrate or control impulses, the researchers rued.
The findings, published in the journal Pediatric Research, suggest that even if a child manifests low effort control, high curiosity can lead to higher academic achievement.
This is why children who have developed a wide range of socio-emotional skills such as invention, imagination, persistence, attentiveness to tasks, as well as the ability to form relationships and manage feelings, are generally more successful when they start school, the researchers said.
"Our results suggest that while higher curiosity is associated with higher academic achievement in all children, the association of curiosity with academic achievement is greater in children with low-socioeconomic status," said lead author Prachi Shah, from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
For children from poorer communities, curiosity is even more important for higher academic achievement, because it can help them close the achievement gap associated with poverty, the researchers added.
For the study, the reading and math skills and behaviour of 6,200 children in kindergarten were measured.
Their parents were interviewed during home visits and the children were assessed when they were nine-months and two-years-old, and again when they entered pre-school and kindergarten.
"Our results suggest that after controlling for other factors associated with higher achievement, curiosity continues to make a small but meaningful contribution to academic achievement," Shah explained.
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PM Modi speaks to Iranian president, discusses 'serious' situation in West Asia
New Delhi (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday night spoke to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian over the phone and discussed the "serious situation" in West Asia.
Modi expressed deep concern over the escalation of tensions in the region and the loss of civilian lives as well as damage to civilian infrastructure.
The prime minister told the Iranian President that the safety and security of Indian nationals, along with the need for unhindered transit of goods and energy, remain India's top priorities.
“Had a conversation with Iranian President, Dr Masoud Pezeshkian, to discuss the serious situation in the region. Expressed deep concern over the escalation of tensions and the loss of civilian lives as well as damage to civilian infrastructure,” Modi said in a post on X.
The prime minister also reiterated India's commitment to peace and stability and urged dialogue and diplomacy to end the crisis.
The prime minister had spoken to leaders of several West Asian countries in the last 10 days in the wake of the coordinated offensive launched against Iran by the United States and Israel, in which the Islamic country's Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, was killed last month.
In retaliation, Iran has fired drones and missiles at Israel and US military installations around the Gulf region, including the global business and aviation hubs of Dubai and Doha.
Modi earlier spoke to the leaders of Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Jordan, Israel and Qatar, and expressed concern over the attacks on their countries, and condemned the violation of some nation’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
He also discussed the welfare and security of the Indian community residing in those countries.
Around 1 crore Indians live in the Gulf and West Asia. While about 10,000 Indian citizens live, study and work in Iran, more than 40,000 live in Israel.
