Grade retention won’t help struggling students

In discussions about improving Iowa's schools, the idea of testing all third-graders and retaining those who have not mastered subject matter has been promoted. On the surface, this idea seems to have merit, much as No Child Left Behind “seemed” to some.

I am aghast at this suggestion. I taught for 36 years. During that time, extensive research was done on grade retention and the practice was largely discontinued. Decades of research about retaining low-performing students found no evidence that it was helpful. Some concluded it was highly detrimental to children. Social promotion, alone, was found to be equally detrimental. So what to do?

Two strategies have proved to help children performing below grade level: early intervention, as in Head Start and preschool for all, and promotion to the next grade with additional services to address the learning needs of the low-performing children. Additional services might include special teachers, smaller class sizes, summer school and tutoring. Many of these useful strategies have been cut as budgets have fallen.

Gov. Terry Branstad and Jason Glass say they want to promote better schools and they claim they want to base decisions on research. If that is true, then the idea of failing students based on grade level test scores needs to be abandoned along with the faulty premises that accompanied No Child Left Behind.

Educate yourselves about grade retention before our governor and his education director mandate this failed policy.

Susan Benton

Iowa City