Neural markers of the development of executive function: relevance for education

•The executive system displays a protracted course of development.•Executive system structure, function and connectivity mature into young adulthood.•Neuropsychiatric disorders display common and dissociable executive deficits.•Executive functioning is strongly linked to educational performance.•Few studies directly relate educational interventions to neural markers of EF.

Executive functions are involved in the development of academic skills and are critical for functioning in school settings. The relevance of executive functions to education begins early and continues throughout development, with clear impact on achievement. Diverse efforts increasingly suggest ways in which facilitating development of executive function may be used to improve academic performance. Such interventions seek to alter the trajectory of executive development, which exhibits a protracted course of maturation that stretches into young adulthood. As such, it may be useful to understand how the executive system develops normally and abnormally in order to tailor interventions within educational settings. Here we review recent work investigating the neural basis for executive development during childhood and adolescence.