Science, the study of the natural world, is an essential skill to develop in a child.
For children, knowledge of science is also essential in social life and in many aspects of everyday life, from cooking to sports to reading and writing.
However, many children are not learning science at an appropriate level.
A new study has found that children with poor science literacy are more likely to be at risk of social exclusion and even discrimination in school.
This means that children of low-income parents are more vulnerable to exclusion, as their parents have little or no knowledge of basic science, according to the study, published by the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
The researchers used data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health) to examine how the literacy of children with low levels of science knowledge differed across the age groups.
They also used data collected in the Children’s Study of Early Development (CSEED) to measure children’s science literacy across the entire lifespan.
The study, which was funded by the US Department of Education, found that, on average, children with lower levels of knowledge were more likely than their peers to be excluded from science classes.
“If you’re reading science books, you’re not getting a lot of exposure to the basics of science.
And that can affect kids’ development,” said Dr. Kelli Dufresne, who led the study.
“In terms of social outcomes, children who don’t know basic science skills have a higher risk of exclusion, discrimination, and even exclusion from science education.”
In contrast, children of high-income families, who are more than twice as likely to have an IQ of at least 100, had a significantly lower risk of being excluded from schools.
This finding, she said, is important to the broader science education agenda.
“I think we can expect a similar effect in other areas of society where children are disadvantaged,” Dufersne said.
The authors say their findings suggest that a greater number of children in poor families have limited or no access to science education, which can have detrimental effects on students’ health and mental health.
The children of affluent families were also found to be more likely not to be enrolled in science class.
“These are important findings,” said study author Dr. Mark Stober, an associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Emory University in Atlanta.
“This is a real concern for students who are going to be affected by these issues.
We need to make sure that our schools are prepared for a changing world and that they’re prepared for kids from less fortunate backgrounds.”
A number of studies have suggested that children from lower-income households have a poorer understanding of how to communicate with others and interact with others.
A study published in 2016 by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development found that lower-class children who are poor in social skills, such as social anxiety and communication skills, are more apt to be treated with disdain by adults and to be viewed with suspicion.
The research was published in the Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology.
Other research has also found that students from low- and middle-income homes are more prone to poor health, such that children who live in poor homes are twice as at risk for developing chronic diseases.
According to a recent report from the U.S. Department of Health and Mental Health, children living in poor households are less likely to live in households with adequate medical care and are more often exposed to toxic chemicals, such a mercury exposure, that can have negative health consequences.
The new study also found a link between low science literacy and exclusion from education.
Children with poor scientific literacy were also more likely on average to report experiencing exclusion from activities and sports, and they were more at risk than their more educated peers for being denied entry into schools.
“Our findings are consistent with prior studies showing that low science knowledge and exclusion are linked,” Stober said.
“Given that we are in an era of technological advancement, our future is bright for science education.
And this is just a start.”
For more on science and health, visit scienceandhealth.org.