Starting school later could benefit a child’s adult life, says research

The debate about what age to send kids to school at is a contentious one, but a new study suggests that later rather than sooner could be best.

It's long been known that older kids in the classroom can do better while at school, but now it may be that being one of the oldest in the class could have long-term benefits. Research conducted in the US showed that children who are among the eldest in their class when starting school do better when it comes to cognitive development. It also showed that being older starting school "increases children’s college attainment and reduces the likelihood of being incarcerated for juvenile crime." The researchers, from Northwestern, the University of Florida and the University of Toronto, looked at kids in Florida, where the cut-off date for kids starting a school year is the end of August. The school system in Florida means that September-born kids wait longer to start school but as the research shows, being the eldest in their class can seriously benefit them. The children in the study with September birthdays were 2.1 per cent more likely to go to college than those born in August, and over 3 per cent more likely to graduate. They were also 7.2 per cent more likely to graduate from a 'competitive' university (a university that is more selective about its admissions) and were 15 per cent less likely to begin prison before they turned 16. The researchers did, however, caution against parents 'red-shirting', or holding back their kids on purpose. "If you recognize a child is struggling, it may make sense (to hold them back), but it should be a developmental tool to help the kids -- not a tool to give them an extra edge," said Krzysztof Karbownik, one of the study's co-authors, according to TIME.