Variation in educational pathways is increasingly common, with a substantial number of parents returning to school after the birth of their children. In the U.S., 24% of undergraduates were parents in 2003 (Perna, Fester, & Walsh, 2010). Most undergraduate parents are female, and low-income mothers are particularly likely to return to school after the birth of their children (Perna et al., 2010). Although the strong link between maternal education and children’s outcomes is one of the most well-established findings in developmental psychology (Sirin, 2005), how increases in maternal education affect children’s outcomes is less studied. The current research has three goals. First, we aim to use a different sample and novel methodology to replicate prior research that showed increases in maternal education were associated with increases in young children’s cognitive scores (Magnuson, 2007; Magnuson, Sexton, Davis-Kean & Huston, 2009). Second, we explore whether increases in maternal education are associated with children’s behavioral problems as this has not previously been examined. The third goal is to test whether child gender or baseline maternal education moderate these associations.  

Using a sample of low-income families from the Head Start Impact Study we identified 262 mothers who increased their education between when their child was aged 3 or 4 and in kindergarten. We then used inverse probability of treatment weighting in psmatch2 (Leuven & Sianesi, 2003) to create a group of mothers who did not increase their education who were equal, on average, on a substantial number of covariates (Mincy, Hill, & Sinkewicz, 2009). Next we conducted propensity score weighted regression analyses predicting children’s standardized cognitive scores (Woodcock Johnson-III composites) and teacher-reported behavioral problems (Adjustment Scales for Pre-school Intervention, Lutz, Fantuzzo, & McDermott, 2000) in first grade. We then conducted the same analysis for gender subgroups and baseline maternal education subgroups (less than high school education, a high school diploma or GED, and at least some college).

Results indicated that increases in maternal education were associated with significant increases in children’s cognitive scores and behavioral problems in first grade. These results vary by gender and starting level of maternal education. Male children and the children of mothers with low levels of education at baseline increased significantly more in behavioral problems when their mothers increased their education than female children or the children of mothers who have some college education at baseline did.

The poor academic performance of low-income children is a significant issue in social and educational policy. The present research illustrates that maternal education is an important influence on children’s development. The positive associations of increases in maternal education and children’s cognitive development mean that policies to increase maternal education are a potential avenue for decreasing socioeconomic gaps in educational achievement in the U.S. However, the finding that increases in maternal education were not universally positive for children’s outcomes, particularly for some subgroups, suggests that providing adequate supports while low-income mothers improve their education is crucial.