On the Success of Failure: A Reassessment of the Effects of Retention in the Primary School Grades

by Karl L. Alexander, Doris R. Entwisle, Susan L. Dauber

This study is about the practice of grade retention in elementary schools; a particularly vexing problem in urban school systems. The book describes the school context of retention and evaluates its consequences by tracking the experiences of a large, representative sample of Baltimore school children from first grade through high school. It addresses the complex question of whether repeating a grade is helpful or harmful when children are not keeping up with their coursework.

Paperback

First published November 1, 1994

About the author

Karl Len Alexander