Latest News and Comment from Education

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Des Moines Education Association: Thoughts on Proposed Statewide Retention Policy

Des Moines Education Association: Thoughts on Proposed Statewide Retention Policy:

Thoughts on Proposed Statewide Retention Policy

INTRODUCTION

We are on the brink of doing great harm to thousands of Iowa children by retaining them in 3rd grade based solely on their scores on a single state reading test. Before embarking on a massive retention spree, perhaps we should demand that the politicians calling for this radical change provide ONE SHRED of research to support its efficacy. The Governor and his education adviser Linda Fandel point to miraculous test score gains in Florida when this policy was implemented for 3rd graders. Ms. Fandel even admits that the Blueprint plan for 3rd graders is modeled almost entirely on the Florida plan. When I noted in a question to her that the "Florida Plan" was a comprehensive $20 billion+ commitment to everything from reduced class sizes in lower elementary to intensive reading assistance and reading coaches along with retention and asked her if there was ANY RESEARCH that was able to isolate the retention variable as responsible for any part of the test score gains, she very candidly said that there wasn't--that they are submitting the Florida model as a "package." That flies in the face of