Recollection, Familiarity, and Working Memory Contributions to Math and Reading Achievement at Ages 6 and 9

Academic achievement involves complex processes that are not fully understood. That being said, the connection between working memory and academic achievement is well developed and emphasized in the literature. However considering the complex nature of academic achievement, other processes are likely involved. The current study examined the contributions of recollection, familiarity, working memory, and verbal IQ longitudinally in children at ages 6 and then 9. Recollection, but not familiarity, contributed to measures of both reading and math at age 6, but not 9. Path models suggested that the direct and indirect effects of working and episodic memory to academic achievement change from age 6 to 9. Furthermore, this study examined the contributions of the neural correlates of recollection and working memory to measures of academic achievement at ages 6 and 9. The neural correlates of working memory and recollection did not contribute to academic achievement, but additional research is needed to draw concrete conclusions. Overall, the results suggest that episodic memory should be considered in addition to working memory when examining academic achievement.