4.	GRADE LEVEL RETENTION

Grade level retention is the practice of having a student repeat a grade. Although expensive, grade level retention has traditionally been the chief remedy for academic failure and remains today a nearly universal practice. In Texas, 128,369 students were retained in 1994-95. At an average per-pupil cost of $4,504, Texas spends an estimated $578 million for each extra year of schooling for retained students.

The primary goal of student retention is to give students a year to grow and to master the academic tasks of their current grade level before advancing to the next level. However, a large body of research draws strong and almost unanimous conclusions that retention does not help students on either personal adjustment or academic success. (see note 1)

Number of Students Retained

Of the total number of Texas public school students reported in kindergarten through Grade 12 in the 1992-93 school year, 136,754, or 4.4 percent were retained in grade (see note 2) (Table 4.1). The total retained decreased to 125,959, or 4.0 percent in the 1993-94 school year and remained steady in the 1994-95 school year with 4.0 percent.

Table 4.1
Historical Review of Grade Level Retention

Grade Level Retention by Grade

The percentage of students retained varied markedly by grade. The highest percentage of students retained was in the ninth grade and this trend showed little variation over the three year period (Figure 4.1). The retention rates for all high school grades were also well above the average retention rate for all students. In the elementary grades, students in the first grade have been most frequently retained at their grade.

Figure 4.1
Trend in Retention Rates by Grade

Grade Level Retention in Grade 1

The greatest decrease in the percentage retained between 1992-93 and 1993-94 occurred at Grade 1. In 1993-94, the retention rate dropped to 6.0 percent from 7.7 percent the prior year (Table 4.2). In 1994-95, the retention rate for Grade 1 was 5.8 percent, which was still the highest rate among elementary grades.

Table 4.2
Students Retained in First Grade

The significant decrease (1.7 percentage points) in the 1993-94 school year can be partly attributed to the Retention Reduction Pilot Programs established by law. A $5 million appropriation allowed 54 Texas school districts to pilot extended instructional programs to eliminate retentions in the first grade during the 1993-94 school year. These programs allowed first grade students who had not been successful in mastering the curriculum up to 30 additional days to acquire the essential elements needed for promotion. The pilots were extended to the second grade in 1994-95.

The TEA evaluated the Retention Reduction Programs during the first year of implementation to determine the effectiveness of these programs in providing a cohort of students with the essential elements needed for promotion to the second grade. Of the 9,672 first-grade participants, 92 percent were promoted to the second grade at the end of the program. According to the report, Retention Reduction Programs are cost-efficient and a more viable alternative to the practice of retaining students for a full year. The average per-pupil cost to implement the Retention Reduction Pilot Program was $517. Such programs can also offer potential for future savings and a lower dropout rate for older students, especially ninth graders.

Other programs designed to reduce the probability for later school failure for at-risk children include prekindergarten programs. In 1984, House Bill 72 mandated prekindergarten education for high-risk four-year-old children in Texas public schools. In 1989, TEA piloted prekindergarten programs for limited English proficient three-year-olds or those from low-income families. Based on an evaluation of public school prekindergarten programs in Texas, conducted by TEA, children who attend prekindergarten programs are less likely to be retained in grade than children who are eligible but do not attend prekindergarten.

Of the 274,320 first graders in 1994-95, 117,741 attended public school prekindergarten programs in 1992-93. The retention rate of first graders who had attended public school prekindergarten was 6.9 percent, compared to 7.4 percent for children who were eligible but did not attend. First graders not eligible for public school prekindergarten had a retention rate of 4.0 percent.

Grade Level Retention in Grade 9

The highest retention rates for the secondary grades are found in the ninth grade. The total number of students repeating Grade 9 was 41,334 (16.7 percent) during the 1992-93 school year, 42,004 (16.5 percent) during the 1993-94 school year, and 45,432 (16.8 percent) during 1994-95 school year (Table 4.3). Approximately one out of six ninth grade students was repeating the grade each year. The number of Hispanic and African American students retained in ninth grade was disproportionately larger than White students and students in other ethnic groups. Approximately one-fourth of all students in these ethnic groups were retained in ninth grade.

Table 4.3
Students Retained in Ninth Grade

Grade Level Retention by Gender

Males were more likely to be retained than females, as the percentage retained for males was consistently higher than that for females at every grade level and for each ethnic group. About 3.6 percent of female students were retained in the 1992-93 school year, compared to 5.3 percent of males in the same period. During the 1993-94 and 1994-95 school years, 3.2 percent of female and 4.8 percent of male students were retained. Though the overall retention rates generally have decreased since the 1992-93 school year, the gender gap continued to exist over the years. Male students made up 61 percent of total retained students over the three-year period.

Grade Level Retention by Ethnicity

Historically, minority students have been overrepresented in the population of students being retained. Hispanic and African American students were, on average, retained more than twice as often as White or other ethnic group students (Figure 4.2). The retention rates for Hispanic students were 6.4 percent during the 1992-93 school year, 5.7 percent in 1993-94, and 5.6 percent in 1994-95. In 1992-93, the retention rate for African American students was less than the rate for Hispanic students with 6.1 percent and was identical to Hispanic students in the 1993-94 and 1994-95 school years. The retention rates for White and other ethnic group students were the same with 2.7 percent in the 1992-93 school year and 2.3 percent in 1994-95. In the 1993-94 school year, the retention rates for White and other ethnic group students varied slightly. Hispanic and African American students retained across all grade levels constitute approximately 68 percent of all students retained each year during the three-year period. That is, almost 7 out of 10 of all retained students were either Hispanic or African American.

The largest decline in the percentage retained occurred for Hispanic students between the 1992-93 and 1993-94 school years, from 6.4 percent down to 5.7 percent. However, Hispanic students still make up the largest group of those retained across all grade levels except for kindergarten where White students make up the largest percentage of students retained.

Figure 4.2
Grade Level Retention by Ethnicity

Grade Level Retention by Student Characteristics

Overage Students

Research has consistently shown that being overage for grade is one of the primary predictors of dropping out of school in later years. One consequence of being retained in the same grade is being overage for grade; being overage doubles the likelihood of students being retained, which in turn makes them yet another year older than their classmates. Being overage for grade is a better predictor of dropping out than underachievement.

The results for Texas indicate that overage students were retained more than twice as often as their at-age counterparts. The percent retained for overage students were 7.8, 7.5, and 7.6 in the 1992-93, 1993-94, and 1994-95 school years, respectively, compared to 3.4, 3.1, and 3.1 percent for at-age students for the same period.

Special Education Students

Students in special education programs have individual education plans with goals and objectives they must meet on a yearly basis. If these goals are met the student progresses to the next grade level. A disproportionately larger number of special education students were retained each year compared to their non-special education counterparts (Table 4.4).

Table 4.4
Grade Level Retention of Students in Special Education

Limited English Proficient Students

In 1994-95, 82.5 percent of limited English proficiency (LEP) students were in bilingual/English as a second language (ESL) programs. LEP students in the elementary grades had slightly higher retention rates than non-LEP students in 1994-95 (Table 4.5). The rates for LEP students have decreased every year since 1992-93. The retention rates for secondary students receiving ESL services and LEP students not receiving services were almost twice as high as non-LEP students for the three years shown.

Table 4.5
Grade Level Retention of Students With Limited English Proficiency (LEP)

Economically Disadvantaged Students

The retention rates for students identified as economically disadvantaged have decreased slightly over the three-year period; however, the retention rates for economically disadvantaged students are consistently higher than those for other students. The percentages of students in Texas public schools identified as economically disadvantaged have increased slightly, from 39.5 percent in 1992-93, to 41.5 percent in 1993-94, and 42.8 percent in 1994-95 (Table 4.6). Further, the percentages of retained students identified as economically disadvantaged have increased over the three-year period; 48.9, 50.8, and 51.6 percent for the 1992-93, 1993-94, and 1994-95 school years, respectively.

Table 4.6
Grade Level Retention of Economically Disadvantaged Students

Grade Level Retention by District/Campus Characteristics

District Characteristics

Texas school districts differ greatly based on characteristics such as community type, size, student performance, and expenditures. The retention rates among these categories differ as well.

Districts in urban areas had the highest retention rates in 1994-95. Higher retention rates were generally associated with districts with higher percentages of minority students, higher percentages of economically disadvantaged students, higher than average teacher salaries, larger percentages of minority teachers, and lower percentages of students passing the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS). Districts with these characteristics are typically found in the urban areas.

Campus Characteristics

As with districts, higher retention rates were also generally associated with campuses in urban areas. Campuses with higher percentages of minority students, higher than average teacher salaries, larger percentages of minority teachers, and lower percentages of students passing the TAAS tended to have higher retention rates. Campuses with a higher percentage of students dropping out also had higher retention rates. The relationship between retention rates and percentage of economically disadvantaged students seen at the district level was not seen in the campus-level data.

Agency Contact Persons

For information on student retention data, Maria Whitsett, Senior Director of Research and Evaluation, (512) 463-9701.

For information on Retention Reduction Programs, B.J. Gibson, Division Director of Accelerated Instruction, (512) 463-9374.

Other Sources of Information

For a summary of the literature on the effects of grade level retention and the results of grade level retention in Texas, see 1994-95 Report on Grade Level Retention of Texas Students, published by the Division of Research and Evaluation.

For additional information on the Texas Retention Reduction Programs, see Retention Reduction Grants 1993-94: Evaluation, published by the Division of Accelerated Instruction.