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Cited by 100Reading and Literacy DevelopmentEarly Childhood Education and DevelopmentSchool Choice and Performance

Matthew Effects for Whom?

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Morgan, Paul L., Farkas, George, Hibel, Jacob·2008·Learning Disability Quarterly
DOI 10.2307/25474651PMC PMC4554759
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Abstract

Which children are most at risk of experiencing a Matthew effect in reading? We investigated this question using population-based methodology. First, we identified children entering kindergarten on socio-demographic factors (i.e., gender, race/ethnicity, and socioeconomic status) known to index the relative risks and resources available to them as beginning readers. Second, we fitted growth curve models to the kindergarten-third-grade reading scores of these children as they participated in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten Class (ECLS-K) study. Third, we compared the relative reading achievement (as measured in standard deviation units from the sample's overall mean across the study's time points) of the children who were most and least at risk for reading disabilities. We found that the population subgroups most at risk for reading disabilities fell further behind typical readers over time. By contrast, those least at risk for reading disabilities did not move further ahead. Based on these findings, we conclude that a one-sided Matthew effect exists and that, moreover, it is likely to be experienced by children who are at greatest risk for reading disabilities.

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  • The findings provide further evidence of a Matthew Effect, in which pre-pandemic high performers maintained or increased their advantage because bottom-decile students' growth and achievement fell.

    “The present findings are further evidence of a Matthew Effect (e.g., Morgan et al., 2008), whereby students who were already performing at the highest levels before the pandemic maintained their advantage or became relatively even more advantaged due to the drop in growth and achievement for students in the bottom decile.”

    From Unequal Learning Loss: How the COVID-19 Pandemic Influenced the Academic Growth of Learners at the Tails of the Achievement Distribution (2025) · cites this paper as Morgan et al., 2008

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Cited by

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Authors
Morgan, P. L., Farkas, G., & Hibel, J.
Affiliations
  • Pennsylvania State University (US)
  • University of California, Irvine (US)
Corresponding author
Morgan, Paul L.
ORCID
Venue
Learning Disability Quarterly
Publisher
SAGE Publications
Published
2008-11
Volume
31
Issue
4
Pages
187-198
ISSN
  • 0731-9487 (ISSN-L)
  • 2168-376X
DOI
10.2307/25474651
PMC
PMC4554759
OpenAlex
W4293178720
Cited by
100
References
2
Citations by year
2025: 2 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 7 · 2022: 7 · 2021: 5 · 2020: 4 · 2019: 3 · 2018: 4 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 3 · 2015: 3 · 2014: 9 · 2013: 13 · 2012: 11
FWCI
12.89
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
journals.sagepub.com/page/policies/text-and-data-mining-license (tdm)
Locations
  • Learning Disability Quarterly (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
  • PubMed
Funders
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (R24HD041025)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Reading and Literacy Development
  • Social Sciences › Education › Early Childhood Education and Development
  • Social Sciences › Education › School Choice and Performance
Keywords
Matthew effect, reading achievement, reading disorders, vulnerable children, socioeconomic status, race and ethnicity, gender differences, early literacy, reading growth, kindergarten to third grade

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