According to a study of students in eleven countries (including the U.S.), curiosity and persistence are the strongest predictors of academic success in math and reading. The study by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development is the first major global assessment of students’ social and emotional skills, and it looked at five key areas:
- Task performance (such as persistence, and self-control),
- Emotional regulation (such as optimism and reaction to stress)
- Collaboration (like empathy and trust)
- Open-mindedness (such as tolerance, curiosity, and creativity)
- Engagement with others
One of the most surprising findings was that across countries and socioeconomic backgrounds, 15-year-olds showed lower social-emotional skills than 10-year-olds did. This may have significant implications for those who work with teenagers.
This article (complete with graphs) outlines the findings. More information on the study itself can be found here.