Fun fact on why Missisipi, of all the places, improved: they introduced a law that a child cannot be promoted to next year if they do not pass reading proficiency test.
Who knew the shame of repeating a year can be motivator enough for kids and parents.
it’s more than that: they’ve been hiring literacy coaches to sit in on and improve literacy classes across the state and rating schools while double-counting the performance of the bottom 25%. plus lots of testing
If student Numbskull repeats the grade. That means the their low scores affect you in Year 1 and Year 2. That’s funding directly affecting you, your compensation, your ability to remain employed for you, the teacher, and all of the admin staff.
It’s much better (for you) to push them along and make them someone else’s problem.
“Stakeholder” is simply anyone who will be effected by “x”. whether “x” is a policy change, or something as simple as choosing a new brand of peanut butter for your family.
“Who are the people who will be effected by this?”
In Project Management you’re taught that one of the first things you do when implementing a change or starting a new project, etc… Is to Identify the stakeholders.
I’m sure there’s a more concise definition, but I just woke up.
There have been studies done since before I became a teacher. And now that I’m retired, I’m talking about decades of research:
Jimerson looked at 20 studies published between 1990 and 1999, and concluded that they “fail to demonstrate that grade retention provides greater benefits to students with academic or adjustment difficulties than does promotion to the next grade.” In many studies, students who were retained had worse academic achievement and social-emotional outcomes than students who were not.
Another research review from Jimerson and his colleagues, this one published in 2002, found that grade retention was also linked strongly to dropping out of high school.
-source
The source also brings up the racist underpinnings that too often support holding kids back. I said before, but just to reiterate, there is a problem that needs to be addressed, but retention is demonstrably not the answer.
None of these studies account for mental disabilities that impact learning. There are so many people who were kids in the timeframes of those studies who are getting ADHD, ASD, dyslexia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia, dyspraxia, and other diagnoses more recently that would completely change the outcomes of the studies.
There are numerous students who need accommodations that schools aren’t trained for, don’t have the money for, or have staff that don’t believe any accommodations should exist. The very active public attack on schools that’s been happening (funding cuts including funding specifically for disabled students, terrorizing teachers and students, etc) is exacerbating the issue.
The solution is to get the government to actually support students instead of funnelling money to the rich and trying to keep the masses dumb and compliant.
Fun fact on why Missisipi, of all the places, improved: they introduced a law that a child cannot be promoted to next year if they do not pass reading proficiency test.
Who knew the shame of repeating a year can be motivator enough for kids and parents.
it’s more than that: they’ve been hiring literacy coaches to sit in on and improve literacy classes across the state and rating schools while double-counting the performance of the bottom 25%. plus lots of testing
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/10/podcasts/the-daily/mississippi-schools-test-scores.html
To point the problem more clearly.
If student Numbskull repeats the grade. That means the their low scores affect you in Year 1 and Year 2. That’s funding directly affecting you, your compensation, your ability to remain employed for you, the teacher, and all of the admin staff.
It’s much better (for you) to push them along and make them someone else’s problem.
It’s like the Peter Principal in action.
They don’t take the test until grade 4, so repeating grade 3 does not impact funding being student population.
Decades of studies have shown that retention, repeating grades, is not beneficial for any stakeholder.
Well schools have been forcing teachers to pass failing students for at least a decade now, and look at how that’s going.
I never said there’s not a problem, just saying that’s not the answer. Like, factually.
Except the one right here in front of your eyes
Which one is that? I don’t see it.
Clearly
Well, hey. Thanks for the trump-level clarity.
-upset with no evidence
-didn’t provide evidence to their own claim that disputed an interpretation of source material nor offer an alternate explanation
An internet tale as old as shit posting
Does stakeholder here mean shareholder? As in, it’s not good for the capitalists to ensure that students are forced to actually learn things?
Flippant anti-capitalism aside, I’m skeptical of your claim, but I would love to see a source if you have one to share.
“Stakeholder” is simply anyone who will be effected by “x”. whether “x” is a policy change, or something as simple as choosing a new brand of peanut butter for your family.
“Who are the people who will be effected by this?”
In Project Management you’re taught that one of the first things you do when implementing a change or starting a new project, etc… Is to Identify the stakeholders.
I’m sure there’s a more concise definition, but I just woke up.
There have been studies done since before I became a teacher. And now that I’m retired, I’m talking about decades of research:
The source also brings up the racist underpinnings that too often support holding kids back. I said before, but just to reiterate, there is a problem that needs to be addressed, but retention is demonstrably not the answer.
None of these studies account for mental disabilities that impact learning. There are so many people who were kids in the timeframes of those studies who are getting ADHD, ASD, dyslexia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia, dyspraxia, and other diagnoses more recently that would completely change the outcomes of the studies.
There are numerous students who need accommodations that schools aren’t trained for, don’t have the money for, or have staff that don’t believe any accommodations should exist. The very active public attack on schools that’s been happening (funding cuts including funding specifically for disabled students, terrorizing teachers and students, etc) is exacerbating the issue.
The solution is to get the government to actually support students instead of funnelling money to the rich and trying to keep the masses dumb and compliant.
Thanks for responding. Yeah that makes sense.
My state repealed a law a few years ago that required holding kids back who failed the 3rd grade test.
It also looks like the bar started very, very low.
They’re soon going to learn Goodhart’s Law if they don’t already.
Thank you for this. I’ve been saying basically the same thing for years. Didn’t know there was a term for it.