Intergenerational Transmission of School Grades – Insights from My Research Stay in Oslo
My name is Josefina Bernardo and I am a PhD candidate in the department of Biological Psychology at the Faculty of Behavioural and Movement Sciences. From November 2024 to April 2025, I had the opportunity to complete a research stay at the Norwegian Institute for Public Health (NIPH) in Oslo, Norway, which was very kindly supported by the FGB Travel Fund.
I conducted a study in behavioural genetics that examined the intergenerational transmission of educational outcomes – that is, why education tends to run in families. At the Centre for Fertility and Health of the NIPH, I learned more about statistical methods to model intergenerational transmission and applied them to data from the Norwegian population register.
The Study
We know that parents and their children have similar educational outcomes. Parents who go to university often have children who also pursue higher education. And if your parent had bad grades in Maths, you are more likely to struggle with Maths yourself. But why is this the case? Is it that parents with higher education behave differently at home? Is it related to household income, neighbourhood, or is this relationship mainly genetic — do parents with strong academic abilities pass them on to their children through their genes?
During my time at the NIPH, I worked with data from the Norwegian Population Register to look at pathways through which parents' education influences their children's GPA. I had the opportunity to learn more about the Children-of-Twins design — a method that examines similarities between different family members (children, parents, aunts, uncles, and cousins) to draw conclusions about why they resemble each other.
Our key finding: parents and children are indeed quite similar when looking at GPA in the offspring generation (r = .36). A large part of this similarity can be explained by shared genetic influences, with smaller but significant contributions of factors shared in the extended family and influences within the nuclear family.
Professional Development
To develop my statistical skills, I took a course on structural equation modelling at the University of Oslo (UiO). I also presented my work at the Centre for Fertility and Health and later at the CREATE Centre of the UiO. Speaking to people outside of my field — among them educational scientists, demographers and medical doctors — meant fielding questions that helped me look at my research from entirely new angles.
I joined a retreat at a Norefjell skiing resort where we discussed science communication and professional development. I found it refreshing to look at my research through a public health lens. I heard colleagues reflect on the challenges of seeing their findings be misunderstood or oversimplified in public discourse. My time at the NIPH showed me both that communicating complex research can be done — and that it is incredibly important to keep talking to the people our findings are ultimately meant to serve.
Personal Reflections
It was not always easy to leave behind my life here for half a year — to live in a different country and experience a darker, colder winter than I ever had before. I struggled to adjust to so many little aspects of daily life: how to find good plant-based food, which shoes to buy, what time to get to work so I would see the sun for at least a few hours each day.
But at every step of the way I met a patient, kind Norwegian who offered advice and empathy. I learned that, despite coming across as reserved and quiet at first, many Norwegians are incredibly hospitable and take great pride in their country and customs. It was a treat to see how well public life can function when people trust each other — and I benefitted from that both in my work and in my private life.