A follow-up study of high school students with a history of grade retention

Abstract

The present study examines high school students with a prior history of grade retention (N = 38) compared to a matched control group of nonretained students. The retained students were lower on a number of scholastic variables (i.e., achievement, intelligence, grades), more often absent from school, and lower on three subscales of a self-esteem measure (the Self-perception Profile for Adolescents). The authors explored the correlates of grade retained with the measured variables and found that the later a student was retained was associated with lower grades, less-positive school attitudes, less time on homework, lower educational expectations, more discipline problems, lower self-control, and a more external locus of control.

Grade Retention of Students During Grades K–8 Predicts Reading Achievement and Progress During Secondary Schooling

“…Previous studies have found poor outcomes for retained students and have discouraged the use of retention as an intervention for low-achieving and socially and emotionally maladjusted children and adolescents (see Hagborg et al, 1991;Jimerson, 1999;Jimerson et al, 1997;Meisels & Liaw, 1993;Niklason, 1987;Pagani et al, 2001;Sandoval & Fitzgerald, 1985;Silberglitt et al, 2006). Results from the present study show that retained students had lower reading achievement in eighth grade and slower reading growth rates in secondary school compared to similar promoted peers.…”

“…Alexander et al, 2003;Silberglitt, Jimerson, Burns, & Appleton, 2006). Longitudinal studies usually report negative findings for the effects of grade retention on retained students' academic achievement and social-emotional health in middle or high school (Hagborg, Masella, & Palladino, 1991;Jimerson, 1999;Jimerson et al, 1997;Meisels & Liaw, 1993;Pagani, Tremblay, & Vitaro, 2001;Sandoval & Fitzgerald, 1985), and there is a strong relationship between grade retention and dropping out of school (Jimerson, Anderson, & Whipple, 2002). Jimerson's (2001) meta-analysis, which included the studies examined by Holmes (1989;Holmes & Matthews, 1984), found negative effects for academic achievement (effect size ¼ À.39) and social adjustment (effect size ¼ À.22) measures; the effect of retention on reading (effect size ¼ À.54) was only exceeded by an effect on attendance (effect size ¼ À.65; based on only two effects).…”

“…Matched not-retained students were used because other researchers have reported the need to compare groups of retained and matched not-retained students (see Ferguson, Jimerson, & Dalton, 2001;Hagborg et al, 1991;Jimerson, 2001;Jimerson et al, 1997;Johnson, Merrell, & Stover, 1990). …”

Effect of grade retention in first grade on psychosocial outcomes.

“…A finding of no effect is most common for behavioral engagement (Ferguson, 1991; Gottfredson et al, 1994; Pierson & Connell, 1992), liking for or interest in school (Alexander et al, 1994; Hagborg et al, 1991), and academic self-efficacy (Alexander et al 1994; McCoy & Reynolds, 1999; Phelps, Dowdell, Rizzo, Ehrlich, & Wilczenski, 1992). The few findings of negative effects tend to come from studies with poor controls for preselection differences (Hagborg et al, 1991; Pianta et al, 1997). Importantly, a study using strong controls for preretention vulnerabilities reported positive effects of retention in the kindergarten grades on academic self-efficacy 2 and 4 years later (Hong & Yu, 2008).…”

Relationship of perceived parenting styles, locus of control orientation, and self-concept among junior high age students

“…In a number of studies, an external locus of control orientation has been found to be associated with factors such as low achievement in school, depression, and delinquency (Hagborg, Masella, Palladino, & Shepardson, 1991;McCauley, Mitchell, Burke, & Moss, 1988;Parrott & Strongman, 1984;Shaw & Scott, 1991;Sohlberg, 1989;Van-Boxtel & Monks, 1992). Findings such as these suggest the importance of developing of a more internal locus of control orientation, which has been associated with academic achievement, positive emotional status, and lower rates of delinquency.…”