FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT IN MATHEMATICS, READING, AND WRITING

Abstract

Academic achievement in mathematics, reading, and writing is shaped by a range of demographic, socioeconomic, andeducationalinfluences, yet these factors are often examined separately. Focusing on their combined role, the articleinvestigates how gender, lunch type, parental education, race/ethnicity, and test preparation are associated with studentperformance across three core subjects. A quantitative cross-sectional design was used with a secondary dataset of 1,000student records. Descriptive statistics, independent sample t-tests, one-way ANOVA, and Pearson correlation wereapplied to identify patterns and significant differences in achievement. The findings show that reading had the highestmean score, followed by writing and mathematics. Male students performed better in mathematics, while female studentsscored higher in reading and writing. Students receiving standard lunch and those who completed test preparationachieved consistently better results across all subjects. Academic performance also increased with parental education, with the highest average scores observed among students whose parents held bachelor’s or master’s degrees. In addition, strong positive correlations were found among mathematics, reading, and writing, especially between reading and writing. These results suggest that student achievement is not determined by ability alone but reflects the combined influence of family background, socioeconomic conditions, and academic support. The article highlights the need forequitable educational strategies that reduce disadvantage, strengthen family engagement, and expand access to academic preparation in order to improve learning outcomes across core subject areas