Comparison of reading skills in nine first graders retained in first grade and nine similar children promoted to second grade suggested that retention may benefit such children if they start the repeated year with increased phonemic awareness and increase their spelling-sound knowledge in second grade. Listening comprehension was not aided by…

The equity audit is a new tool with remarkable power to identify, analyze, and evaluate a given school districts' quality control. In three case study school districts located in urban areas of New York, North Carolina, and Arkansas, considerable inconsistency and incongruity were documented in student placement practices, promotion and retention…

In Europe, academic mobility has a long tradition which began with the birth of the European universities in the middle ages. Recently, European policies were strongly oriented towards the promotion of student and academic mobility and the creation of research networks and projects within Europe. Nevertheless, academic labour markets in Europe…

This study was motivated by the need to redress the problem of decline in the quality of education in Nigerian schools. Although there are several factors that influence success in the learning situation, it is contended in this paper that the provision of the other conditions of learning may not have marked impact on successful learning if the…

KIPP Ujima Village Academy is a member of the KIPP (Knowledge is Power) National Network of schools. The Baltimore KIPP serves approximately 300 students in Northwest Baltimore in grades 5-8; the school opened in Fall 2002 and converted to a charter school in 2005. This study analyzes four cohorts of 5th grade students in the Baltimore City Public…

Seemingly endless tinkering and adjustment of the structure of education in the United States over the past century have led to the adoption of different school forms (grouping particular grades into separate schools) at different times. These different school forms necessitate transitions between schools (e.g., from a middle school to a high…

The OEYP state-funded program provides extended learning for students who are at risk of academic failure. This report summarizes Austin Independent School District's OEYP activities during 2008-2009.

This booklet examines ways to promote student success in a California standards-based system. It reviews the history of social promotion and retention in the United States and suggests why it is time to move beyond the "either/or" mindset. The booklet suggests that neither social promotion nor retention solves the basic problem of…

This study examines retention rates in Dade County (Florida) schools, using aggregate statistical data for the school years 1982-83 through 1988-89 to describe existing patterns and changes over time. An earlier study established commonalities of pattern across grades, over great disparities of circumstances, and across time. The following…

This Digest reviews the historical background on grade retention and promotion and examines research, criteria, and policies concerning these options. The historical overview points out changes in attitudes toward mastery-based promotion and social promotion practices in the schools. Valid and invalid approaches to research on grade retention are…

Describes a program in which student promotion is based on achievement. Standardized test scores have risen as a result of the program. (IRT)

This report reviews the research on summer school and demonstrates that summer school makes a difference in students' lives if it is done right. A survey of more than 1,000 schools in the southern United States found that one-third of the responding schools did not offer summer school, many programs being the victims of budget cuts. Of those…

Retaining students in New York City public schools is an intensely debated issue. Each year an increasing number of students are retained in grade. The objective of this paper is to analyze the New York City Board of Education promotion policy as a way to assess whether and how it is being implemented. Current research and a teacher-made survey…

This report examined the academic review processes at the three Department of Defense service academies, describing how the academies use these processes to review cases of students who have not met academic performance standards. Based on interviews with academy officials and relevant documents, it outlines the review processes in place at the…

This policy brief presents an in-depth look at the issue of grade-retention in Texas, reviews research that finds this practice to be ineffective, and outlines alternatives to both retention and social promotion. In-grade retention has been a recurrent theme in education over the last 30 years, and it is currently linked to calls for higher…