Despite Our Best Intention: Students Relate How Social Promotion Hurt Them and What Changes They Believe will Help Them

Abstract

The paper researches the practice of social promotion, where students who fail due to a lack of comprehension of grade level material are promoted along with their classmates who passed. Student and parent interviews, student surveys, and data from students’ graduation records are used to determine that social promotion does not improve the students’ education, instead students who are socially promoted are more likely to dropout of high school, less likely to graduate high school on time or at all, and the alternative practices are needed if students are to be successful and graduate high school.

Appendix: Survey Results

Freshman	64.6% 104
Sophomore	23.6% 38
Junior	118% 19
Senior	0.0% 0
Male	47.2% 76
Female	52.3% 85

	Strongly agree	Agree	Undecided	Disagree	Strongly disagree
(1) The possibility of failing motivates students to work harder	23.6% (38)	64.6% (104)	5.6% (9)	0.0% (0)	6.2% (10)
(2) Holding students who fail back a grade improves their long term chance for success	11.8% (19)	17.4% (28)	35.4% (57)	23.6% (38)	14.9% (24)
(3) Students who are retained are more likely to drop out of high school	6.2% (10)	42.9% (69)	29.8% (48)	19.2% (31)	1.8% (3)
(4) Home life affects how a student does at school	53.4% (86)	36.6% (59)	7.4% (12)	2.5% (4)	0.0% (0)
(5) After school tutoring helps students who are failing	44.7% (72)	28.0% (45)	27.3% (44)	0.0% (0)	0.0% (0)
(6) Summer school helps students who are failing	42.2% (68)	33.5% (54)	16.1% (26)	0.0% (0)	0.0% (0)
(7) Parent’s attitude towards school affects how a student does	54.1% (87)	39.1% (63)	6.8% (11)	0.0% (0)	0.0% (0)
(8) When a student fails one year, they are more likely to fail in the future	7.4% (12)	13.0% (21)	25.4% (41)	33.5% (54)	20.5% (33)
(9) When a student fails one year and is promoted, they expect to pass regardless of grade	21.7% (35)	44.7% (66)	30.4% (49)	6.8% (11)	0.0% (0)
(10) The switch from middle school to high school is difficult	0.0% (0)	24.8% (40)	11.8% (19)	37.9 (61)	25.4% (41)
(11) Promoting students who fail lessens the value of education	51.6% (83)	27.3% (44)	5.0% (8)	16.1% (26)	0.0% (0)
(12) Students who fail freshman year usually do not graduate	3.7% (6)	13.0% (21)	19.2% (31)	47.8% (77)	16.1% (26)
(13) It is better to promote a failing student than retain them	0.0% (0)	11.8% (19)	26.7% (43)	48.4% (78)	13.0% (13)
(14) Promoting a student who failed a class helps the student	6.2% (10)	19.9% (32)	18.0% (29)	47.2% (76)	8.7% (1)
(15) Failing hurts students’ self-esteem	34.8% (56)	31.7% (51)	33.5% (54)	0.0% (0)	0.0% (0)
(16) Poor students are more likely to fail	8.7% (14)	14.9% (24)	3.7% (4)	36.0%(58)	37.9% (61)
(17) Students who fail classes should be made to retake them	30.4% (49)	28.0% (45)	34.7 (56)	6.8% (11)	0.0% (0)
(18) Students who fail state tests (EOGs or EOCs) should retake the class	31.7% (51)	41.0% (66)	24.2% (39)	0.0% (0)	3.1% (5)
(19) When a student fails, the teacher is to blame	0.0% (0)	15.5% (25)	11.8% (19)	50.9% (82)	21.7% (35)
(20) When a student fails, the parent is to blame	0.0% (0)	10.6% (17)	13.7% (22)	31.7% (51)	44.1% (71)
(21) When a student fails, it is their fault	24.2% (39)	47.8% (77)	16.1% (26)	11.1% (18)	0.7% (1)
(22) Elementary school prepared me for Middle School	21.7% (35)	20.4% (33)	29.8% (48)	28.0% (45)	0.0% (0)
(23) Middle school prepared me for High School	64.6% (104)	27.3% (44)	8.1% (13)	0.0% (0)	0.0% (0)
(24) High school is doing a good job preparing me for college and obtaining a job	58.4% (94)	41.6% (67)	0.0% (0)	0.0% (0)	0.0% (0)

Answers to the questions “What can a school system do to help students who fail a class?”

Give them tutoring for the things that they are failing in. Offer them to take the class again.

They can require students to attend morning and after class tutoring.

Help and tutor them as much as possible.

I truly can’t say but I think they should provide as much as they can. And take more none corporation look at education and center it on the job they want in the future.

Continue doing what they’re doing already. I don’t think anything is wrong with the method that is being used. I think after school tutoring, summer school, and retaking classes are a very effective ways of helping failing students.

The school system can help by motivating the students in ways that they will want to succeed and pass the class. The school system should also only allow teachers with better expertise to teach the students that are struggling.

A school system can locate their weaknesses and try to better them before taking the whole subject on them as a whole.

First in forcing the school rules, and have high expectations for students and not giving petty points. Raise the bar more!!! Punish them and hold them responsible.

Don’t promote them because by doing so, the student becomes content with failing. if he/she didn’t put in the work to pass the class, they should be made aware of the failure.

Figure out more about the person’s home life. The school needs to be educated about the student’s home life so they have the best possible understanding of the child and the best possible way to teach them. It is important the child receives the proper teaching style. What works for one child or a majority of children may not work for others.

When a student fails a class there should be no psychological punishment from a teacher or parent. The student should be worked with and encouraged to do their best, but they should be expected to retake the fail course and acquire a passing grade. There should be remedial courses if it is felt the student needs them.

Pay more attention to that student motivating him to pass the class providing informational help needed.

They could give them a study hall for the subject if they only failed by a little bit, but if it was no effort what so ever they should sit in the class the next year.

Figure out why they failed the class and work from there.

They can offer credit recovery, where instead of having to take the entire class over again they only have to go after school and for a couple weeks and learn it again and retake the test.

They could make them take a shorter version of that class during after-school hours in order to fully understand the subject better.

Hold the failing student back. The real damage comes from a false image; if they are allowed to continue after failing a class, they may believe their abilities are sufficient, when those abilities are really not.

This idea is kinda long and complicated. The idea is to retain the students who fail to have a counselor meeting. Then the student and counselor sit down and seriously discuss how the student feels and what they feel would help them to excel. Then the counselor and student’s parents should be talked to and evaluated to understand the kids’ home life the help they want and are not just given.

Give them more days for tutoring.

They can offer programs that can help them to obtain the knowledge they need in order to pass the class. Offer more one on one time with the student would also better help the student to pass, even though most school systems offer this, it’s up to the student to take these opportunities.

Do more tutoring lessons and get more teachers involved with helping their students pass.

I think they should help more than what they’re doing, because some students don’t have a way back home if they stay after school to get help, and don’t have a way to get to school earlier for morning tutoring.

The school system can be more positive about it and try even harder to build their self-esteem. Instead of just failing them and making them take the class over again without even figuring out what the problem was, they should talk to them about why the failed and how the student can make sure they don’t fail next time. Then make sure they get the extra help they need in the class.

I think they should start making tutoring a mandatory thing for any student who’s grade is an certain average. Retain them. Don’t promote them.

The school system can offer extra tutoring and the school system should allow the student to retake the class they failed.

Answers to the question “What can a school do to prevent students from failing a class?”

Give them extra time and help.

Pay more attention to individuals instead of group studies.

Be more social to them, let them know that they are here to help in any way.

I think all that could possibly be provided has already been provided. Most of the time it’s the students fault why they are failing, simply because we as individuals have a hard time paying attention. But sometimes in some cases teachers can also be at fault for not explaining enough and moving too fast for students that don’t comprehend at a fast paste.

I feel the school do as much as they can to help prevent a student from failing.

Use more incentives and try to motivate them.

A school should have better incentives for passing a class, so students understand how important it is to pass a class and eventually graduate. The school should also make sure that the teachers they hire are competent in teaching a range of different types of students, from struggling students to successful students.

Bring back the paddle.

Provide extra work, such as, tutoring and motivators like rewards that motivates people to better.

Make the student aware and also contact parents and have meetings with the guardian, student, and the principal. Make sure the student understands that education is free, and he/she should take the opportunity seriously. Express how hard it is to do anything if you don’t have an education.

* Rewards for passing * Punishment for failing. Largely, the failure or success is based on the attitude of the student alone. A school will not necessarily change the attitude of the child. They can only help….

Extra credit should be given to students who are doing their best in the class and wants the extra credit. The teacher should speak with the student and their parents to come up with a plan to help the student succeed and to whatever it is that is decided whether it is extra tutoring or removal from the class during tests. If the student sincerely wants to pass the class and is willing to work and put effort towards it, everyone around them should do the same or at least aid them in their attempt.

To encourage the teachers to teach only the information that will be useful depending on the student’s major. a lot a times the students fail classes is because they aren’t interested in it.

If they put forth an effort teachers should offer extra credit, and before school and after school tutoring. Make them take summer classes.

Offer extra credit. More time to make up assignments. Let students make up work that they just didn’t turn in for whatever reason. Offer tutoring during school hours.

The school should offer an hour study hall per day for students and make it mandatory that they go to it. It could be during the school day.

Offer as much after-school tutoring as possible and motivate students to come by offering extra credit to those who attend.

Find methods to teach new learning styles, as the jump taken from normal to honors to AP may frustrated some students. The work excepted varies highly between the different classes.

The school could offer more tutoring after school. The school could also offer to hire older students who are proven to know the material to help the failing kids. This would offer a job to the kids and would cause those who need money to study and learn the material to help teach.

Try to inspire them individually to do a good job.

As mentioned in the above statement, they can offer more one on one help with the student, which can sometimes be difficult because of the number of students in a class, but it’s also up to the student to do their work, so they can pass the class.

Motivate students to do good in school as far as the school as a whole and do hands-on skills to help them pass.

Make sure you have good teachers who care about their students inside of class and outside of class because your home life can be a big reflection of your grades. If there are problems at home then you will more than likely have problems in school. Then just work with your students and keep them updated regularly about their grades and not just a progress report every 3 weeks because by the time you get that first progress report you will only get one more before you receive your final grade, so if you are updated like once a week then you can know what you’re missing and be able to make it up quicker and it won’t build up on you over 3 weeks then you would have to do all your normal work plus a lot of makeup work.

They should make the classes smaller because some students aren’t getting the attention that they need to learn. Offer tutoring. Study halls set aside as a class.