[Relationship between age-related development of the neuropsychic sphere in primary schoolchildren and academic activity].

The aim of this work was to study age-related dynamics of the development of higher psychic functions and manifestations of CNS fatigue in 1-4-form schoolchildren in relation to the duration of schooling. Psychophysiological studies in several Moscow schools included evaluation of cognitive and psychomotor functions and nervous fatigue (in the critical flicker fusion frequency test). It is shown that psychophysiological development of junior schoolchildren is a sequel to two major factors, age and schooling duration, that have differential effect on the neuropsychic sphere. Psychomotor activity is largely age-dependent and practically unrelated to educational experience whereas cognitive abilities form in conjunction with adaptive changes in the course of academic activity, regardless of age. Duration of schooling has both positive and negative effect on the child's neuropsychic sphere. The age-specific fall of CFF in young children as they reach a higher educational level is due to the negative influence of schooling duration on the lability of visual analyzer rather than to aging. It reflects cumulative fatigue of the nervous system during previous school years.