Sorting out successful failures: Exploratory analyses of factors associated with academic and behavioral outcomes of retained students

This prospective longitudinal study followed a sample of 106 kindergarten s tudents through 11th grade examining the effects of Family characteristics, school readiness, socialization, and student demographics on academic achi evement and behavioral adjustment outcomes. These educational outcomes were contrasted among four groups consisting of: l)early grade retainees; 2) tr ansitionally placed retained students: 3) students recommended for transiti onal placement. bur promoted: and 3) regularly promoted students. While pre vious studies examining the efficacy of early grade retention focus exclusi vely on between-group comparisons, this study examines the family and indiv idual characteristics of successful and unsuccessful retained students by i ncluding both between-group and within-group effects on academic and behavi oral outcomes. The results of this study demonstrate that retained students ' initial school readiness, socioeconomic status, mother's level of educati on, parental value of education. kindergarten personal-social functioning, and chronological age are distinctly associated with subsequent academic or behavioral outcomes. Variables associated with relative educational succes s following early failure are delineated and research implications are disc ussed. (C) 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.