EDITORIAL | Shaping children’s intelligence
A country can benefit from higher standards of living and economic growth when its human resources are intelligent, competent and of high quality. – REUTERSPIC.
“Unlike financial investments, the risks associated with human resource investment cannot be guaranteed. Education also requires long-term commitment because it takes years of investment before its benefits can be realised.”
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THE EDITOR
A CHILD’S intelligence, usually measured by cognitive abilities, is one of the outcomes of education. This intelligence is acquired through the learning process and serves as the foundation of human resources.
Children with low intelligence levels are likely to face more difficulties in the labour market, with lower future incomes.
Overall, a country benefits from higher standards of living and economic growth when its human resources are intelligent, competent and of high quality.
Unfortunately, some Asean countries, such as Malaysia, Brunei, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines, ranked in the lowest quartile of the 2018 PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) scores, which measure children’s abilities in mathematics, science and reading. Only two Asean countries, Singapore and Vietnam, ranked at the top.
Memento Maxima Digital MarketingInvesting in a child’s education
A child’s intellectual abilities is undoubtedly influenced by the parents’ attributes as decisions regarding the child are made by the parents, especially in education matters.
Investing in a child’s education is not without risks due to uncertainties about the child’s future income and employment prospects.
Unlike financial investments, all the risks associated with human resource investment cannot be guaranteed and cannot be shared. Education also requires long-term commitment because it takes years of investment before its benefits can be realised.
As the returns on investment span throughout a person’s working years, the risks they face are linked to the fluctuation in lifetime income. Therefore, a greater return on investment is needed to offset the inherent risks associated with these investments.
Considering that the value of an investment depends on the estimated return and associated risks, the risk tolerance behaviour of parents can affect the accumulation of their child’s resources because they are responsible for financing and selecting schools, especially during the early years.
Parents with a low-risk tolerance tend to enrol their children in less advanced levels of education and have low expectations for their children’s educational attainment.
One reason for this is the uncertainty surrounding children’s abilities and their drive to succeed academically.
Therefore, there is an unseen risk of children experiencing academic setbacks, such as failing to advance to the next grade or even dropping out of school. This situation can hinder parents from investing in their children’s education.
Past research has revealed a significant correlation between time perspective and risk tolerance behaviour. A propensity to be impatient with the passage of time can lead to risk-averse behaviour, which may explain why parents are reluctant to invest in their children’s education.
Their impatience to await the benefits of education contributes to a child’s diminished intelligence.
This connection is further supported by findings in Indonesia, which underscores the critical role parents play in shaping their children’s intelligence based on their level of risk tolerance.
Similar studies conducted in the US also reveal that parents who frequently avoid risks tend to have children with lower academic achieve-ments. The high level of risk aversion among parents can become an obstacle for them to invest in their children’s education, especially in households with lower income.
Interestingly, the influence of parental risk aversion behaviour is more pronounced in girls, strengthening the notion that education is perceived as a riskier investment for females.
Educating parents
In many Asian countries, the education of girls tends to be undervalued. Cultural norms often dictate that girls are destined for marriage and motherhood rather than pursuing careers. Consequently, some families view their investment in girls’ education as futile, believing that they will not have the chance to reap the benefits.
As a result, more boys than girls are enrolled in schools within families, especially those with limited financial resources.
In this instances, sociocultural factors play a significant role in shaping parents’ risk-averse behaviour, in addition to considering the return on investment in human capital.
Considering the time and financial constraints of parents investing in their children’s education, policymakers need to formulate policies that can reduce the risk associated with education.
Policymakers should focus on educating parents about the financial and societal benefits of investing in their children’s education.
Scholarships, especially those tied to mandatory service after graduation, can serve as a means to alleviate the perceived risks associated with such investments.
Additionally, the sociocultural context needs to be considered when formulating education policies, especially for female students.
The writer is a post-doctoral Research Fellow at Ungku Aziz Centre for Development Studies at Universiti Malaya and assistant professor at the Department of Economics at Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta. Comments: [email protected]
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