The Cognitive Genesis study by Dr. Elissa Kido, professor of education and director of the Centre for Research on Adventist Education (CRAE) at La Sierra University in Riverside, California, USA, confirms excellence for students at Adventist schools. This is reported by the news department of the continental church leadership of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Northern Europe and the Mediterranean, Trans-Europe-Division (TED), during a conference for kindergarten and primary school employees. About 150 participants came to Sundvolden for this training, about 35 minutes by car northwest of Oslo.
The Cognitive Genesis study examined 52,000 students at Adventist schools in the United States, Bermuda and Canada. It was a research project that was carried out over four years. The pupils tested represented a cross-section of society. This means that the children attended private schools, but their parents mostly did not belong to the upper middle class. The research was not funded by the Adventist Church. Standardized tests were used, which are also used in other areas.
Results
According to Prof. Kido, the survey shows that the students of Adventist schools do better in all subjects and at all levels than those in the control group. The most striking thing, however, is that students at Adventist schools do even better than one would normally expect in terms of their measured abilities. This effect will be greater the more years are spent in the Adventist school system and the more students who switch from other schools to Adventist schools show a significant improvement in their academic performance.
The study also shows that there was no difference in performance between small and large Adventist schools. Any city and country produced the same results in the survey. This breaks the myth that small schools do not offer students the same opportunities as larger, urban schools. It was also surprising that the amount of dollars per student did not make a big difference in the students' performance.
The success factors
This result is due to the holistic educational approach of the Adventists. In fact, school performance is best for students who have a positive spiritual focus and relationship with their parents, and who care about their own health. In order to further support these results, the CRAE has commissioned a study to examine the influence of the students' own worldview on their school performance.
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