13 Reasons Why Grade Retention is Terrible, and 12 Better Solutions
There are few education issues that anger me more than massive retention of third graders based on one test score! Mississippi recently became the latest state to embrace retention. It’s a huge mistake. Adults fail children by not assisting them with their learning problems. Why is massive school retention terrible?
- A retained student doesn’t learn as well as a promoted student. Research shows that students held back learn slower and gains don’t last. Students who are promoted make more growth especially if their learning problems are addressed.
- It is based on one test! There is a mistaken assumption that the test is a perfect measure of all a child knows. The questions are selected by a monolithic publishing company, like Pearson, who knows nothing else about the child.
- It’s hard to find research that supports retention. The American Psychological Association and the American Educational Research Association are just two organizations against using a single score to retain students. Researchers have combed through hundreds of studies and they indicate retention doesn’t work and is often harmful.
- Retained students often drop out of school later. The association between retention and dropping out of school is real. The older a student is when they are retained, the more likely it is they will drop out.
- Some children aren’t test-takers. Children, even gifted students, might dislike 13 Reasons Why Grade Retention is Terrible, and 12 Better Solutions:
