Educational wastage is like a canker worm that has eaten deep into the fabric of our educational system. Over the years, educational planners, school administrators and educational agencies are concerned about how to reduce this state of educational system inefficiency. This paper investigates wastage rate in some selected public secondary schools…

The goal of a Comprehensive K-3 Reading Policy is to establish intensive reading intervention for K- 3 students who are at risk of reading failure to help ensure they read on grade level by the end of third grade. The policy also requires third grade students to demonstrate sufficient reading skills for promotion to fourth grade. Retention can…

This study examined the retention policies, practices, and interventions in school districts in 4 counties in Southern California. It was based on a study conducted by Olds (2008). A content analysis of retention policies and practices in 9 elementary (K-6) districts found that districts used the state's Pupil Promotion and Retention regulations…

This 14-year prospective study investigated the effect of retention in Grades 1-5 on high school completion (diploma, GED, or drop out). Participants were 734 (52.7% males) ethnically diverse, academically at-risk students recruited from Texas schools into the study when they were in first grade (mean age = 6.57). Propensity score weighting…

A particularly controversial topic in current education policy is the expansion of the charter school sector. This paper analyzes the spillover effects of charter schools on traditional public school (TPS) students in New York City. I exploit variation in both the timing of charter school entry and distance to the nearest charter school to obtain…

This report reviews the characteristics of students who are most likely to drop out of school. Most studies have found that dropping out is related to risk factors in four different domains: individual, academic, family-related, and school-related. Local [Miami-Dade County Public Schools] M-DCPS District data were used to examine certain…

The objective of this retrospective study was to determine if second grade Stanford 10 (SAT10) reading and/or language scale scores were predictive of AIMS reading outcomes in third grade, thereby providing a means to identify third grade students at risk of retention in accordance with Arizona's (MOWR) legislation. Early identification of…

The practice of academic redshirting, or holding children back a year prior to their enrolling in kindergarten, continues to be a controversial practice. Although most studies investigating redshirting have used small statewide samples or older, nationally representative data sets, the current study uses population-level data from one state that…

This paper estimates the treatment effect of grade repetitions in French junior high schools, using a value-added test score as outcome and quarter of birth as instrument. With linear two-stage least squares, local average treatment effect is estimated at around 1.6 times the standard deviation of the achievement gain. With non-linear…

As a result of Universal Primary Education (UPE) and reform efforts, primary school enrollment in Uganda doubled from 2.9 million in 1995 to 5.8 million by 1998. By 2016, enrollment had reached 8.3 million. Although enrollment gains have been dramatic, the completion rate has stalled for at least a decade, with only about 60% of learners…

The effect of composition may be strong in systems where students are systematically sorted based on their socio-economic background. This paper aims to model the differential effect of class composition on pupils' achievement in Belgium (French-speaking Community), France, Spain and Portugal. Multilevel models are consequently tested on the…

Given that the Big-Fish-Little-Pond-Effect, the negative effect of school-average achievement on academic self-concept, is one of the most robust findings in educational psychology (Marsh, Seaton et al., 2007), this research extends the theoretical model, based on social comparison theory, to study relative year in school effects (e.g., being 1…

This paper describes a 2016 pilot study undertaken in Uganda to document the real repetition rate in Primary 1 classes and to examine the relationship between repetition in Primary 1 and attendance in pre-primary education. The study explored knowledge and practice about the age of entry for children into pre-primary education and Primary 1. It…

Early childhood trauma increases the risk of academic difficulties. The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence of early contact with child protection services (CPS) and to determine whether early exposure to maltreatment investigations was associated with important academic outcomes. The authors focused specifically on…

This annual report provides information for the 2018-19 school year on grade-level retention in the Texas public school system. Data on retention are provided by student characteristics, including grade level; race/ethnicity; gender; degree of English proficiency; and economic, at-risk, dyslexia, foster care, homeless, immigrant, migrant,…