Executive functions and key competencies in secondary education students. Can we improve the teaching-learning process?

Abstract

Executive functions play a crucial role in the social and academic development of students. This study aimed to examine the relations of students’ executive functions with their reading competence, mathematical competence, and social, emotional, and moral competencies. The sample was made up of 198 students (50.50 % girls, and 4 % did not report their sex) aged between 11 and 15 years (M = 12.53, SD = 1.08). This quantitative, cross-sectional ex-post-facto study was conducted using a self-report survey. Data were collected at the end of the 2018–2019 academic year. Bivariate Pearson correlations and linear regression analyses were performed. Students’ executive functions were positively related to their reading competence, mathematical competence, and social, emotional, and moral competencies. However, they only significantly predicted social and emotional competencies. The main conclusion of this study highlights the need to explicitly develop reading competence, mathematical competence, and social, emotional and moral competencies, considering the role of executive functions. Implications for the curriculum and school systems are debated.