Early maths skills 'lead to higher pay'

Saturday 9 March 2013

Children who are good at maths at the age of 10 earn more later in life, new research suggests.

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It reveals that a pupil who scores highly in the subject is likely to earn about £2100 extra a year by the time they are 30.

The study also reveals an earnings premium for youngsters who have good reading skills.

The research, published by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), looked at the link between the reading and maths score of pupils born in April 1970 at the age of 10, and their earnings at the ages of 30, 34 and 38.The findings show a child who scored in the top 15% of maths scores when they were 10 years old was likely to earn about 7.3% more when they were 30 than a similar child who gained a middle-ranking score in the subject.This is equivalent to about £2100 extra a year in their pay packets, the report suggests.The study found children who were good at reading also had higher salaries later in life – although the effect was smaller.The study found a 10-year-old who scored in the top 15% for reading was likely to earn about 1.9% more per year at age 30 than a similar pupil with a middle-ranking score. This is equivalent to earning an extra £550 a year.

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Education

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Early maths skills 'lead to higher pay'

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