The Uneven Implementation of Universal School Policies: Maternal Education and Florida's Mandatory Grade Retention Policy

2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 383-413 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christina LiCalsi ◽  
Umut Ozek ◽  
David Figlio
Keyword(s):  
Grade Retention ◽  
Maternal Education ◽  
Bachelor's Degree ◽  
Retention Rates ◽  
Third Grade ◽  
Socioeconomic Background ◽  
High School Degree ◽  
Retention Policy ◽  
Early Grade ◽  
Special Circumstances

Educational accountability policies are a popular tool to close the achievement gaps between advantaged and disadvantaged students. However, these policies may exacerbate inequality if families from advantaged backgrounds are better able to advocate for their children and thus circumvent policy. We investigate this possibility in the context of the early grade retention policy in Florida, which requires all students with reading skills below grade level to be retained in the third grade, yet grants exemptions under special circumstances. We find that Florida's third-grade retention policy is in fact enforced differentially depending on children's socioeconomic background, especially maternal education. Holding exemption eligibility constant, scoring right below the promotion cutoff results in an increase in the probability of retention that is 14 percent greater for children whose mothers have less than a high school degree compared with children whose mothers have a bachelor's degree or more. We also find that the discrepancies in retention rates are mainly driven by the fact that students with well-educated mothers are more likely to be promoted based on subjective exemptions, such as teacher portfolios.

Predictors of Early Grade Retention Among Children in the United States

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1994 ◽  
Vol 93 (3) ◽  
pp. 481-487 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert S. Byrd ◽  
Michael L. Weitzman
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Child Health ◽  
Social Factors ◽  
Grade Retention ◽  
Maternal Education ◽  
First Grade ◽  
The United States ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Early Grade ◽  
Early Retention

Background. Despite increasing concerns regarding school readiness, little is known about child health correlates of early school failure among the general child population. The results of this study, conducted to investigate health and social factors associated with early grade retention in a nationally representative sample of children in the United States, are reported here. Design. Analyses of data derived from interviews with parents of 9996 children ages 7 to 17 years who participated in the Child Health Supplement to the 1988 National Health Interview Survey. Main Outcome Measures. History of repeating kindergarten or first grade. Results. Nationally, 7.6% of children repeated kindergarten or first grade. In a logistic regression model, factors independently associated with increased risk of grade retention were: poverty [Odds Ratio (OR) 1.7, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.4, 2.1], male gender (OR 1.5, CI 1.3, 1.9), low maternal education (OR 1.4, CI 1.1, 1.8); deafness (OR 1.9, CI 1.4, 2.6), speech defects (OR 1.7, CI 1.1, 2.6), low birth weight (OR 1.6, CI 1.2, 2.2), enuresis (OR 1.6, CI 1.1, 2.2), and exposure to household smoking (OR 1.4, CI 1.1, 1.7). High maternal education (OR 0.6 CI 0.4, 0.9) and residence with both biological parents at age 6 years (OR 0.7, CI 0.6, 0.9) were independently associated with a decreased risk of retention. Recurrent otitis media, black race, and low maternal age, although associated with early grade retention in bivariate analyses, were not independently associated with grade retention in a model that controls for these other factors and for the age cohort of the child. Although omitted from the above predictive model because of uncertainty about its temporal relation to early grade retention in this dataset, behavior problems at the time of interview have a strong independent association (OR 1.9, CI 1.5, 2.5) with prior early retention. Conclusions. This is the first study that uses national data to investigate how health and social factors individually and collectively contribute to early grade retention. It demonstrates that early retention is common, that a number of extremely common child health problems are independently associated with it, and that the magnitude of the heightened risk associated with these problems is similar to that of many of the well-recognized and difficult to change family and social risk factors for early retention. The successful implementations of Pub L 99-457 (The Education for All Handicapped Children Act Amendments of 1986) services in communities nationwide, and the improvement in the educational performance of large numbers of children will be facilitated by pediatricians' advocacy and surveillance for problems that place children at risk for educational failure, and by effective referral to and collaboration with nonpediatric child and family services.

scholarly journals The Epidemic of Despair and Infant Mortality: A Research Note

Demography ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew P. Forsstrom
Keyword(s):  
Infant Mortality ◽  
Maternal Age ◽  
Maternal Education ◽  
Hispanic Women ◽  
The United States ◽  
Bachelor's Degree ◽  
Research Note ◽  
First Century ◽  
Slow Progress ◽  
Unexpected Infant Death

Abstract This research note documents that progress against infant mortality in the United States has stalled in the twenty-first century among infants born to White non-Hispanic women without a bachelor's degree. In contrast, the mortality rate fell considerably among infants born to White non-Hispanic women with a bachelor's degree, Black non-Hispanic women across levels of education, and Hispanic women with a bachelor's degree. The decline in infant mortality for Hispanic women without a bachelor's degree was small, but still greater than the decline for White non-Hispanic women without a bachelor's after adjusting for changes in the distribution of maternal age within groups. I also document a marked difference in trends for sudden unexpected infant death (SUID) rates by maternal education. The SUID rate increased among those born to women without a bachelor's degree across racial and ethnic groups, while declining or staying constant for those born to women with a bachelor's degree. The lack of progress against infant mortality for White non-Hispanic women without a bachelor's degree was driven by a relatively large increase in SUID rates, coupled with relatively slow progress against other types of infant mortality.

scholarly journals Looking Beyond the Household: The Importance of School Factors in Understanding Elementary Grade Retention in Rural Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

2017 ◽  
Vol 46 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bushra Rahim
Keyword(s):  
Student Performance ◽  
Grade Retention ◽  
Retention Rate ◽  
Retention Rates ◽  
School Level ◽  
School Factors ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Continuous Increase ◽  
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa ◽  
The Impact

This paper contributes to the limited literature on the educational outcomes of children in rural Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Pakistan. It explores the impact of school-level factors such as physical resources, teachers and school characteristics on retention to the last grade of primary in the KP province for the time period 2007-12. Two sources of data were used to measure the retention rates. One of which is an official compilation of institutional data on education known as Education Management Information System (EMIS). The second data source, Annual Status of Education Reports (ASER), is a household data set with a rich set of household covariates, teachers’ characteristics and student performance data on reading and mathematics. The results from regression analyses indicate that children are more likely to complete primary education cycle when they receive instructions in local language and when the pupil-teacher ratio is below a certain threshold. Results also reveal that a continuous increase in school size beyond a certain threshold (> 400 enrollment) is related to a decrease in retention rate. Further, mixed schools (all-boys’ schools having girls enrolled in them) were found to have better retention rates than boys’ schools.

A prospective, longitudinal study of the correlates and consequences of early grade retention

1997 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shane Jimerson ◽  
Elizabeth Carlson ◽  
Monique Rotert ◽  
Byron Egeland ◽  
L.Alan Sroufe
Keyword(s):  
Longitudinal Study ◽  
Grade Retention ◽  
Prospective Longitudinal Study ◽  
Early Grade ◽  
Prospective Longitudinal

scholarly journals Student-Retention and Career-Placement Rates Between Bachelor's and Master's Degree Professional Athletic Training Programs

2015 ◽  
Vol 50 (9) ◽  
pp. 952-957 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas G. Bowman ◽  
Stephanie M. Mazerolle ◽  
William A. Pitney ◽  
Thomas M. Dodge ◽  
Jay Hertel
Keyword(s):  
Athletic Training ◽  
Training Programs ◽  
Master's Degree ◽  
Retention Rate ◽  
Bachelor's Degree ◽  
Retention Rates ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Professional Programs ◽  
Career Placement ◽  
Master’S Degree

Context  The debate over what the entry-level degree should be for athletic training has heightened. A comparison of retention and career-placement rates between bachelor's and master's degree professional athletic training programs may inform the debate. Objective  To compare the retention rates and career-placement rates of students in bachelor's and master's degree professional programs. Design  Cross-sectional study. Setting  Web-based survey. Patients or Other Participants  A total of 192 program directors (PDs) from bachelor's degree (n = 177) and master's degree (n = 15) professional programs. Intervention(s)  The PDs completed a Web-based survey. Main Outcome Measure(s)  We instructed the PDs to provide a retention rate and career-placement rate for the students in the programs they lead for each of the past 5 years. We also asked the PDs if they thought retention of students was a problem currently facing athletic training education. We used independent t tests to compare the responses between bachelor's and master's degree professional programs. Results  We found a higher retention rate for professional master's degree students (88.70% ± 9.02%, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 83.71, 93.69) than bachelor's degree students (80.98% ± 17.86%, 95% CI = 78.30, 83.66) (t25 = −2.86, P = .008, d = 0.55). Similarly, PDs from professional master's degree programs reported higher career-placement percentages (88.50% ± 10.68%, 95% CI = 82.33, 94.67) than bachelor's degree professional PDs (71.32% ± 18.47%, 95% CI = 68.54, 74.10) (t20 = −5.40, P < .001, d = 1.14). Finally, we observed no difference between groups regarding whether retention is a problem facing athletic training (χ21 = 0.720, P = .40, Φ = .061). Conclusions  Professional master's degree education appears to facilitate higher retention rates and greater career-placement rates in athletic training than bachelor's degree education. Professional socialization, program selectivity, and student commitment and motivation levels may help to explain the differences noted.

Predicting Special Needs from Information Available at Birth

1981 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 371-375 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mollie M. Wallick ◽  
Bruce Thompson
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
Discriminant Analysis ◽  
Special Needs ◽  
Grade Retention ◽  
Maternal Education ◽  
Neonatal Care ◽  
Contact Condition ◽  
Regular Classroom ◽  
Mother’S Age

This study investigated relationships between maternal-neonatal contact condition, mother's age and education, and child's sex with child's placement in special education or retention in grade in the regular classroom. Subjects were 76 children born a decade ago at two hospitals with contrasting procedures for maternal-neonatal care. Discriminant analysis indicated that sex of child and maternal-neonatal contact condition best predicted special placement. Maternal education and age were most predictive—and contact condition somewhat less predictive—of grade retention status.

Abstract 15999: Beyond Morbidity and Mortality: Academic Outcomes in Children With Congenital Heart Disease

Circulation ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 132 (suppl_3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew Oster ◽  
Stephanie Watkins ◽  
Kevin Hill ◽  
Robert Meyer
Keyword(s):  
Congenital Heart Disease ◽  
Heart Disease ◽  
Birth Defects ◽  
Grade Retention ◽  
Birth Defect ◽  
Congenital Heart ◽  
Maternal Education ◽  
Standardized Test ◽  
End Of Grade ◽  
3Rd Grade

Introduction: While children with congenital heart disease (CHD) are known to have neurodevelopmental challenges, how these challenges translate to school performance is unknown. The purpose of our study was to compare the academic achievement of children with CHD to that of children without known birth defects. Hypothesis: Children with CHD would have lower standardized test performance scores and greater need for grade retention than their peers without birth defects. Methods: We performed a retrospective cohort study comparing educational outcomes for children born 1998-2003 with CHD, identified from the North Carolina (NC) Birth Defects Registry, vs. those without a known birth defect, randomly sampled from NC birth certificates. All children were linked to 3rd grade public school records from the NC Department of Public Instruction through 2012. We performed logistic regression to compare our outcomes of interest: a) meeting standards on the reading and math portions of 3rd grade End of Grade Testing, and b) 3rd grade retention. Models were adjusted for maternal education, public pre-K enrollment, and race/ethnicity. Results: Of the 5624 subjects with CHD and 10,832 with no birth defect, 51% and 60% were linked, respectively, to 3rd grade standard End of Grade testing records. Compared to children without a birth defect, those with CHD were more likely not to meet proficiency standards in reading (OR 1.4, 95% CI 1.3-1.6), math (OR 1.2, 95% CI 1.1-1.4), or both (OR 1.5, 95% CI 1.3-1.7). (Figure) Similarly, children with CHD were more likely to be retained in 3rd grade (2.8% vs. 1.9%, OR 1.4, 95% CI 1.1-1.9). Conclusions: Children with CHD have poorer educational achievement as compared to their peers without birth defects. History of CHD should be considered an important factor in determining a student’s need for specialized education services.

Fact or Myth? An Overvies of MooCs for their Capacity to Bridge the Skills Gap

2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ayse Kok Arslan
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Graduate Students ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
Bachelor's Degree ◽  
Massive Open Online Courses ◽  
Retention Rates ◽  
Literature Analysis ◽  
Skills Gap ◽  
Job Market ◽  
Massive Open Online

<p align="justify"><em>The increasing costs of higher education (HE), growing numbers of flexible anytime, anywhere learners, and the prevalence of technology as a means to up-skill in a competitive job market, have brought to light a rising concern faced by graduate students and potential graduate employers. Specifically, there is a mismatch of useful skills obtained by students through HE institutions which is evident upon graduation. Faced with this dilemma, "graduate students," or more specifically newly graduated students, with a with bachelor's degree, and a growing number of employers are turning to Massive Open Online Courses, or MOOCs, as a complimentary mechanism through which this skills gap may be bridged.</em><em></em></p><p align="justify"><em>It is found in the literature that MOOCs are often discussed within the capacity of their development, their retention rates, institutional policies regarding their implementation, and other such related areas. Examinations into their broader uses, benefits, and potential pitfalls have been limited to date. Therefore, this paper aims to analyse the literature highlighting the use of MOOCs as a means to reduce the mismatch in graduate skills. As such, this literature analysis reviews the following relevant areas: higher education and graduate skills gap, today's graduates and employability, and MOOCs and graduate skills. Through analysing the literature in these areas, this paper identifies gaps in the existing literature.</em><em></em></p>

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