All around college campuses, lazy, unmotivated students walk around just aimlessly wasting away their time and potential. Well new research suggests that it's not these kids' fault that they are like this. Researchers in Ohio studied how genes affected how well a child performed in school. The study suggests that children inherit motivation from their parents rather than from environmental factors, such as teachers. Researchers made not of nearly 13000 sets of twins between the ages of 9 - 16 and from six different countries. The conclusion that was drawn was that nearly 50% of the differences in a child's ability to learn and motivation was linked back to their genetics. The study found no environmental linkage to school performance, at all. The study involved asking students from each country how much they enjoy activities such as mathematics and writing, and to rate their own academic ability. Answers of fraternal and identical twins were then compared. It was seen that identical twins had closer matching answers than fraternal twins. While a particular set of genes can motivate children to learn, it doesn't necessarily mean they will enjoy it.
The research gives insight as to why some students may perform better than others. Students and their differences have to be accepted. Students who don't perform well in school should not be frowned upon. Rather, they should be encouraged to achieve greatness. The mechanisms for reaching those students is more complicated and will need further research.
Link1:
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2015/04/blame-it-on-their-genes-genetics-may-play-a-role-in-lazy-unmotivated-students/
Link2:
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0191886915000987
I'm don't particularly agree with this as I'm really lazy and my parents are highly motivated. Maybe the laziness is combined in the children- that'd make more sense but seems improbable.
ReplyDeleteI always thought that one's environment effected the way a person learned and motivation.I think it would be interesting to see this study comparing siblings instead of twins, since the birth order can influence the personality of each sibling. How would the study explain how lazy one is when factoring their personality?
ReplyDeleteI also do not agree with this article I think your environment has everything to do with you motivation to learn and be a functioning member of society. Time and time again in America we hear about kids in other countries who would kill to be in our positions and I don't think that is a testament to their genetics, but their motivation, their desire to move past a certain type of environment.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Amanda. I feel like the study should consist of other siblings as well. For example, my older sister was highly motivated when going to school and went on to become a doctor. However, my brother was not motivated at all and did not even bother going to college. I always used to think they went down opposite paths due to the friends they had and their own outlook on life.
ReplyDeleteThere is a subtle difference between motivation and inspiration in my opinion. When one is motivated, something outside of themselves is pushing them forward. This can be as simple as a high energy song motivating someone to run faster etc. When someone is inspired, they are pulled towards something and naturally gravitate towards it. I think genetics has nothing to do with either of these, and if we want students to excel in school, we need to inspire them.
ReplyDeleteI believe the environment plays a major role in whether or not we are lazy. However it would be very interesting if more research proved that there is a genetic disposition toward this.
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