Robert Rosenthal and Lenore Jacobson conducted an experiment to observe the effects of assessment on student achievement that was published in 1966 in the journal "Psychological Reports." False, random assessment scores were generated for each student in various different classroom settings and given to the teachers. Videotaped classroom sessions showed that students who were identified as gifted were given preferential treatment by their teachers, which was evidenced by the teacher smiling more often and making greater eye contact with these students. This can lead to higher expectations and more attention for these students. Students with lower scores may be met with lower expectations from teachers and less attention, even though they are the ones who need it most. A study conducted by Lee Jussim and Kent Harber and publisned in their 2005 book titled "Teacher Expectations and Self-Fulfilling Prophecies: Knowns and Unknowns, Resolved and Unresolved Controversies" confirmed these findings, although it suggested that teachers' expectations need to be reinforced over time to continue to have an effect.
Assessment scores and grades can have an effect on a student's self-esteem. A students will often internalize what a score says about him, as well as picking up on what teachers and parents believe about his capabilities. If a student's scores are low and the adults in his life don't have high expectations, he will often lose interest in school and forfeit his potential. Students with higher scores and expectations will usually enjoy school and show more interest in learning, which can lead to greater self-esteem and achievement.
It has long been assumed by some that such cultural minorities as Latinos and African Americans have lower intelligence than their white counterparts due to having lower IQ scores. Because IQ tests are as much a reflection of cultural familiarity as intelligence, cultural minorities are at an unfair disadvantage. Early assessments that reflect lower IQs due to cultural unfamiliarity can lead to less attention, lower expectations and low self-esteem. The opposite is also true. Some students falsely identified as "gifted" in early elementary school showed a greater increase in IQ over the years than their counterparts who were not identified as gifted. This demonstrates that IQ may be influenced by environment and that higher IQ scores are linked with higher achievement. Writing in their book titled "Gender Differences in the Educational Expectations of Urban, Low-Income African American Youth: The Role of Parents and the School," Dana Wood, Rachel Kaplan and Vonnie C. McLoyd said that teachers tend to have lower expectations for urban, African-American males than they do for females, which could have a broad effect on the IQ of this group.
Studies of the effects on student achievement imply that students with higher assessment scores earlier in life can create a "self-fulfilling prophecy" of a lifetime of higher achievement. These students will usually shift to accommodate the higher expectations, may eventually end up in honors courses, receive a better education and use the tools made available to them by going on to universities. Students with lower scores and expectations are less likely to receive quality educations and will be less invested in school.