A recent study has shown that the impact of family structure on a child’s academic success outweighs factors such as race or family income.
In recent years, debates have emerged among major universities in the United States on whether to eliminate requirements for standardized entrance exams like the SAT. The University of Michigan, for example, does not count the first semester grades of some freshmen due to performance anxiety resulting from poor grades.
However, a new study suggests that lowering admission standards and no longer publishing exam scores may not be the most effective way to help academically struggling students.
The Institute for Family Studies (IFS) and the American Enterprise Institute conducted research based on data collected from the National Survey of Children’s Health concerning elementary school students’ performance and their descriptions of family life, leading to the publication of their latest report.
The report found that “compared to race and family poverty, family structure is a stronger predictor of a child’s future academic performance and whether they may develop conditions like depression.”
Researches pointed out that while the National Report Card by the Department of Education has been collecting data on student situations based on categories like race, gender, or family income, the factor of family structure has not been part of the consideration, despite collecting information in this area since 2013.
In contrast, this new study focused more on family structure factors such as “whether children are raised by both biological parents.”
According to Brad Wilcox, a senior researcher at the Institute for Family Studies, they have found that family structure often emerges as a more critical factor influencing a child’s future well-being.
Wilcox expressed to The Epoch Times, “It’s clear that the environment you grow up in is more important than your skin color.”
The research results demonstrated that among children from “intact families with stable parent marriages,” 74% achieved excellent grades (A and B), while this percentage was 60% among children from “other family structures.”
Furthermore, the Institute for Family Studies pointed out that children not raised by both biological parents have a 47% higher likelihood of experiencing disciplinary issues at school and over twice the likelihood of developing depression.
Wilcox stated, “It’s evident that raising children in stable married families can be extremely beneficial for children.”
It is becoming increasingly apparent that graduation rates alone may not accurately reflect actual educational outcomes. Even among students who graduate after passing exams, many fail to master basic language and arithmetic skills.
Data released by the National Literacy Institute reveals that 64% of fourth-grade students in the United States fail to reach proficient reading levels, while currently, over half of American adults read below a sixth-grade level.
Several state-level reports indicate that elementary students, whether or not they have basic literacy and mathematics skills, are allowed to automatically progress to higher grades or graduate.
In 2023, the Baltimore school system announced measures to “avoid punitive practices that cause students to fail,” citing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on schooling disruptions.
Earlier, a report released by Maryland in 2021 indicated that approximately half of high school graduates in the state who entered Maryland universities or colleges in 2013 were assessed as needing remediation in math, English, and/or reading.
Studies from Texas, Alabama, and Missouri over the past two decades have presented similar findings.
A report from the University of California-San Diego in 2025 revealed that one in every twelve college freshmen had math skills below junior high level.
Furthermore, Zvezdelina Stankova, a mathematics professor at the University of California-Berkeley, recently mentioned in a column in the San Francisco Standard that she had to pause calculus courses and instead teach students algebra and fraction operations at a middle school level.
In many cases, U.S. schools respond by relaxing assessment tests or even canceling exams altogether to accommodate students’ lacking basic skills.
Currently, over 2,000 higher education institutions, including some Ivy League and state universities, no longer use academic ability assessment tests like the SAT and ACT as admission criteria.
In a potential case of “grade inflation,” Harvard University recently reported that 60% of grades given to students in the academic year 2024-2025 were A’s, while this proportion was only around 25% in the academic year 2005-2006.
At the same time, the University of Michigan’s College of Literature, Science and the Arts announced that starting from the fall semester of 2027, they will no longer evaluate the grades of first-semester freshmen to address the growing mental health crisis among the college-age population.
Researcher Brad Wilcox believes that focusing on family structure may be a better solution compared to grade inflation or avoiding assessment grading.
One of his proposed measures is to raise awareness among the American public about the significant impact of raising children in a stable home environment with both parents.
Wilcox emphasized, “While not every couple raising children should be married, and not every married couple should retain their marriage, maintaining a married status and upholding the marriage are crucial for parenting and raising children.”
To assist parents in maintaining family relationships, some advocates call for the elimination of the so-called “marriage penalty,” where when two individuals with similar incomes marry, their combined income exceeds the threshold for qualifying for welfare benefits, resulting in both losing eligibility for benefits.
Republican U.S. Congressman Glenn Grothman from Wisconsin stated, “The marriage penalty is one of the most destructive and erroneous features of the federal welfare system. For decades, Washington has been punishing families who choose to marry, undermining family responsibility and trapping parents and children in long-term welfare dependency.”
Citing federal data, the Institute for Family Studies highlighted that only 3% of families receiving government-subsidized housing consist of parents and children, while households where single mothers raise children make up as much as 30%.
However, the Institute for Family Studies’ report also noted that, albeit slowly, family trends in America are starting to show a slightly positive direction. The percentage of children living in married families, after dropping to a low point of 64% in 2012, has risen to 66% by 2024.