Educational opportunities; Grade repetition; School failure; Teacher expectation; Sociology and Political Science; Social Sciences (miscellaneous)
Résumé :
[en] Grade repetition requires students with poor performance to repeat the same grade for an additional year. Despite it being commonly used, little attention has been paid to its link with inequality of educational opportunities. Based on a new large longitudinal dataset of a cohort of secondary students in Italian high schools, the present paper questions the extent to which less advantaged students (in terms of parents’ educational title and migration background) are retained in grade 9 beyond pre-existing performance differences. The paper also addresses the role of school context (in terms of track and social composition) in determining a grade repetition. This paper provides evidence that, among students with comparable (poor) performance, the risk of repeating a year is substantially higher for those with parents who have less than a high school degree or have a migrant background. Additionally, grade repetition chances for students with highly educated parents are even lower in academic tracks and schools with advantaged social composition. Eventually, the paper critically assesses likely explanations for the observed gap, such as differences in parents’ support and teachers’ expectations.
Disciplines :
Sociologie & sciences sociales
Auteur, co-auteur :
SALZA, Guido ; University of Luxembourg > Faculty of Humanities, Education and Social Sciences (FHSE) > Department of Social Sciences (DSOC) > Centre for Childhood and Youth Research ; University of Trento, Italy
Co-auteurs externes :
no
Langue du document :
Anglais
Titre :
Equally performing, unfairly evaluated: The social determinants of grade repetition in Italian high schools
I would like to show my gratitude to the Italian Ministry of Education and the Italian National Institute of Evaluation for providing the data for this research. I would also like to sincerely thank Dalit Contini for her advice on this paper. Finally, the paper benefited greatly from the comments of the two anonymous referees, to whom I would like to extend my thanks
Agasisti, T., Cordero, J.M., The determinants of repetition rates in Europe: Early skills or subsequent parents’ help?. Journal of Policy Modeling 39:1 (2017), 129–146.
Alet, E., Bonnal, L., Favard, P., Repetition: Medicine for a short-run remission. Annals of Economics and Statistics, 2013, 227–250.
Alexander, K.L., Entwisle, D.R., Dauber, S.L., On the success of failure: A reassessment of the effects of retention in the primary school grades. 2003, Cambridge University Press.
Argentin, G., Pavolini, E., How schools directly contribute to the reproduction of social inequalities. Evidence of tertiary effects, taken from Italian research. Social Policies 7:1 (2020), 149–176.
Argentin, G., Barbieri, G., Barone, C., Origini sociali, consiglio orientativo e iscrizione al liceo: un'analisi basata sui dati dell'Anagrafe Studenti. Social Policies 4:1 (2017), 53–74.
Arrow, K.J., What has economics to say about racial discrimination?. The Journal of Economic Perspectives 12:2 (1998), 91–100.
Autin, F., Batruch, A., Butera, F., The function of selection of assessment leads evaluators to artificially create the social class achievement gap. Journal of Educational Psychology, 111(4), 2019, 717.
Azzolini, D., Mantovani, D., Santagati, M., Italy: Four emerging traditions in immigrant education studies. The Palgrave handbook of Race and ethnic inequalities in education, 2019, Palgrave Macmillan, Cham, 695–745.
Ballarino, G., Panichella, N., Triventi, M., School expansion and uneven modernization. Comparing educational inequality in Northern and Southern Italy. Research in Social Stratification and Mobility 36 (2014), 69–86.
Barban, N., White, M.J., Immigrants’ children's transition to secondary school in Italy. International Migration Review 45:3 (2011), 702–726.
Bell, A., Fairbrother, M., Jones, K., Fixed and random effects models: Making an informed choice. Quality & Quantity 53:2 (2019), 1051–1074.
Belot, M., Vandenberghe, V., Evaluating the ‘threat’ effects of grade repetition: exploiting the 2001 reform by the French-Speaking Community of Belgium. Education Economics 22:1 (2014), 73–89.
Bernardi, F., Compensatory advantage as a mechanism of educational inequality: A regression discontinuity based on month of birth. Sociology of Education 87:2 (2014), 74–88.
Blossfeld, H.P., Buchholz, S., Skopek, J., Triventi, M., (eds.) Models of secondary education and social inequality: An international comparison, 2016, Edward Elgar Publishing.
Bodovski, K., Farkas, G., “Concerted cultivation” and unequal achievement in elementary school. Social Science Research 37:3 (2008), 903–919.
Bonvin, P., Bless, G., Schuepbach, M., Grade retention: Decision-making and effects on learning as well as social and emotional development. School Effectiveness and School Improvement 19:1 (2008), 1–19.
Borgna, C., Multiple paths to inequality. How institutional contexts shape the educational opportunities of second-generation immigrants in Europe. European Societies 18:2 (2016), 180–199.
Borgonovi, F., Montt, G., Parental involvement in selected PISA countries and economies. 2012.
Borodankova, O., Coutinho, A.S.A., Grade retention during compulsory education in Europe: Regulations and statistics. 2011, Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency, European Commission Available from EU Bookshop.
Boudon, R., L'inégalité des Chances. 1974, Colin, Paris.
Bowles, S., Gintis, H., Schooling in capitalist America revisited. Sociology of Education, 2002, 1–18.
Carbonaro, W., Tracking, students’ effort, and academic achievement. Sociology of Education 78:1 (2005), 27–49.
Checchi, D., Fiorio, C.V., Leonardi, M., Intergenerational persistence in educational attainment in Italy (No. 3622). IZA Discussion Papers. 2008.
Cockx, B., Picchio, M., Baert, S., Modeling the effects of grade retention in high school. Journal of Applied Econometrics 34:3 (2019), 403–424.
Contini, D., Scagni, A., Social-origin inequalities in educational careers in Italy. Jackson, M., (eds.) Determined to succeed? Performance versus choice in educational attainment, 2013, Stanford University Press.
Contini, D., Triventi, M., Between formal openness and stratification in secondary education: Implications for social inequalities in Italy. Blossfeld, H.P., Buchholz, S., Skopek, J., Triventi, M., (eds.) Models of secondary education and social inequality: An international comparison, 2016, Edward Elgar Publishing.
Covay, E., Carbonaro, W., After the bell: Participation in extracurricular activities, classroom behavior, and academic achievement. Sociology of Education 83:1 (2010), 20–45.
Darmon, M., Sélectionner, élire, prédire: le recrutement des classes préparatoires. Sociétés contemporaines(2), 2012, 5–29.
Dotti Sani, G.M., Treas, J., Educational gradients in parents’ child‐care time across countries, 1965–2012. Journal of Marriage and Family 78:4 (2016), 1083–1096.
Ehmke, T., Drechsel, B., Carstensen, C.H., Effects of grade retention on achievement and self-concept in science and mathematics. Studies in Educational Evaluation 36:1–2 (2010), 27–35.
Ermisch, J., Jantti, M., Smeeding, T.M., (eds.) From parents to children: The intergenerational transmission of advantage, 2012, Russell Sage Foundation.
Farkas, G., Cognitive skills and noncognitive traits and behaviors in stratification processes. Annual Review of Sociology 29:1 (2003), 541–562.
Duncan, Greg J., and Richard J. Murnane, eds Farkas, G., Middle and high school skills, behaviors, attitudes, and curriculum enrollment, and their consequences. in Duncan, Greg J., and Richard J. Murnane (Eds.) Whither opportunity?: Rising inequality, schools, and children's life chances, 2011, Russell Sage Foundation.
Fertig, M., Shot across the bow, stigma or selection? The effect of repeating a class on educational attainment. 2004.
Fruehwirth, J.C., Navarro, S., Takahashi, Y., How the timing of grade retention affects outcomes: Identification and estimation of time-varying treatment effects. Journal of Labor Economics 34:4 (2016), 979–1021.
Gary‐Bobo, R.J., Goussé, M., Robin, J.M., Grade retention and unobserved heterogeneity. Quantitative Economics 7:3 (2016), 781–820.
Geven, S., Batruch, A., van de Werfhorst, H., Inequality in teacher judgements, expectations and track recommendations: A review study. 2018, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
González-Betancor, S.M., López-Puig, A.J., Grade retention in primary education is associated with quarter of birth and socioeconomic status. PloS One, 11(11), 2016, e0166431.
Goos, M., Pipa, J., Peixoto, F., Effectiveness of grade retention: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Educational Research Review, 34, 2021, 100401.
Goos, M., Schreier, B.M., Knipprath, H.M.E., Fraine, B.D., Damme, J.V., Trautwein, U., How can cross-country differences in the practice of grade retention Be explained? A closer look at national educational policy factors. Comparative Education Review 57:1 (2013), 54–84.
Goos, M., Van Damme, J., Onghena, P., Petry, K., de Bilde, J., First-grade retention in the flemish educational context: Effects on children's academic growth, psychosocial growth, and school career throughout primary education. Journal of School Psychology 51:3 (2013), 323–347.
Grilli, L., Rampichini, C., Multilevel models for ordinal data. Kenett, R., Salini, S., (eds.) Modern analysis of customer surveys: With applications using R, 2012, Wiley Ch. 19.
Guevremont, A., Roos, N.P., Brownell, M., Predictors and consequences of grade retention: Examining data from Manitoba, Canada. Canadian Journal of School Psychology 22:1 (2007), 50–67.
Hallinan, M.T., Bottoms, E., Pallas, A.M., Palla, A.M., Ability grouping and student learning. Brookings Papers on Education Policy(6), 2003, 95–140.
Heckman, J.J., Kautz, T., Hard evidence on soft skills. Labour Economics 19:4 (2012), 451–464.
Holmes, C.T., Matthews, K.M., The effects of nonpromotion on elementary and junior high school pupils: A meta-analysis. Review of Educational Research 54:2 (1984), 225–236.
Ikeda, M., García, E., Grade repetition: A comparative study of academic and non-academic consequences. OECD Journal Economic Studies 2013:1 (2014), 269–315.
ISTAT, Identità e percorsi di integrazione delle seconde generazioni in Italia. ISBN 978-88-458-2010-2016, 2018.
ISTAT, Annuario statistico italiano 2018. ISBN 978-88-458-1966-1967, 2018.
Jackson, G.B., The research evidence on the effects of grade retention. Review of Educational Research 45:4 (1975), 613–635.
Jacob, B.A., Lefgren, L., The effect of grade retention on high school completion. American Economic Journal: Applied Economics 1:3 (2009), 33–58.
Jackson, M., (eds.) Determined to succeed?: Performance versus choice in educational attainment, 2013, Stanford University Press.
Jacob, B.A., Lefgren, L., Remedial education and student achievement: A regression-discontinuity analysis. The Review of Economics and Statistics 86:1 (2004), 226–244.
Jimerson, S.R., Meta-analysis of grade retention research: Implications for practice in the 21st century. School Psychology Review, 30(3), 2001, 420.
Jimerson, S.R., Pletcher, S.M., Graydon, K., Schnurr, B.L., Nickerson, A.B., Kundert, D.K., Beyond grade retention and social promotion: Promoting the social and academic competence of students. Psychology in the Schools 43:1 (2006), 85–97.
Klapproth, F., Schaltz, P., Who is retained in school, and when? Survival analysis of predictors of grade retention in Luxembourgish secondary school. European Journal of Psychology of Education 30:1 (2015), 119–136.
Klapproth, F., Schaltz, P., Brunner, M., Keller, U., Fischbach, A., Ugen, S., et al. Short-term and medium-term effects of grade retention in secondary school on academic achievement and psychosocial outcome variables. Learning and Individual Differences 50 (2016), 182–194.
Kretschmann, J., Vock, M., Lüdtke, O., Jansen, M., Gronostaj, A., Effects of grade retention on students’ motivation: A longitudinal study over 3 years of secondary school. Journal of Educational Psychology, 111(8), 2019, 1432.
Labaree, D., Setting the standard: Alternative policies for student promotion. Harvard Educational Review 54:1 (1984), 67–88.
Lamote, C., Pinxten, M., Van Den Noortgate, W., Van Damme, J., Is the cure worse than the disease? A longitudinal study on the effect of grade retention in secondary education on achievement and academic self-concept. Educational Studies 40:5 (2014), 496–514.
Lareau, A., Unequal childhoods: Class, race, and family life, with an update a decade later. 2011, Tantor Audio.
Lorence, J., Retention and academic achievement research revisited from a united states perspective. International Education Journal 7:5 (2006), 731–777.
Manacorda, M., The cost of grade retention, CEP discussion papers 0878. 2008, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.
Mathys, C., Véronneau, M.H., Lecocq, A., Grade retention at the transition to secondary school: Using propensity score matching to identify consequences on psychosocial adjustment. The Journal of Early Adolescence 39:1 (2019), 97–133.
Meisels, S.J., Liaw, F.-R., Failure in grade: Do retained students catch up?. The Journal of Educational Research 87:2 (1993), 69–77.
MIUR, Gli alunni con cittadinanza non italiana A.S. 2017/2018. Retrieved from, 2019 www.miur.gov.it.
Mood, C., Logistic regression: Why we cannot do what we think we can do, and what we can do about it. European Sociological Review 26:1 (2010), 67–82.
N'tchougan-Sonou, C.H., Automatic promotion or large-scale repetition—Which path to quality?. International Journal of Educational Development 21:2 (2001), 149–162.
Nunes, L.C., Balcão Reis, A., Seabra, C., Is retention beneficial to low-achieving students? Evidence from Portugal. Applied Economics 50:40 (2018), 4306–4317.
Panichella, N., Triventi, M., Social inequalities in the choice of secondary school: Long-term trends during educational expansion and reforms in Italy. European Societies 16:5 (2014), 666–693.
Peixoto, F., Monteiro, V., Mata, L., Sanches, C., Pipa, J., Almeida, L.S., “To be or not to be retained… that's the question!” retention, self-esteem, self-concept, achievement goals, and grades. Frontiers in Psychology, 7, 2016, 1550.
Pereira, M.C., Reis, H., Grade retention during basic education in Portugal: Determinants and impact on student achievement. Economic bulletin and financial stability report articles, 2014, 61–83 Lisbon 1.1.
Raimondi, E., De Luca, S., Barone, C., Origini sociali, risorse culturali familiari e apprendimenti nelle scuole primarie: un'analisi dei dati Pirls 2006. Quaderni di Sociologia(61), 2013, 34–49.
Rodney, L.W., Crafter, B., Rodney, H.E., Mupier, R.M., Variables contributing to grade retention among African American adolescent males. The Journal of Educational Research 92:3 (1999), 185–190.
Romito, M., Governing through guidance: An analysis of educational guidance practices in an Italian lower secondary school. Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education 40:6 (2019), 773–788.
Rosen, J.A., Glennie, E.J., Dalton, B.W., Lennon, J.M., Bozick, R.N., Noncognitive skills in the classroom: New perspectives on educational research. 2010, RTI Press.
Santagati, M., Researching integration in multiethnic Italian schools. A sociological review on educational inequalities. 2015.
Shepard, L.A., Smith, M.L., Flunking grades: Research and policies on retention. Education policy perspectives, 1989, The Falmer Press, Taylor & Francis, Inc.
Triventi, M., Are children of immigrants graded less generously by their teachers than natives, and why? Evidence from student population data in Italy. International Migration Review, 2020, 31.
Triventi, M., Barone, C., Facchini, M., Upper secondary tracks and student competencies: A selection or a causal effect? Evidence from the Italian case. Research in Social Stratification and Mobility, 76, 2021, 100626.
UIS, Opportunities lost: The impact of grade repetition and early school leaving. 2012, Global Institute for Statistics Education Digest 2012 (2012).
Van de Werfhorst, H.G., Mijs, J.J., Achievement inequality and the institutional structure of educational systems: A comparative perspective. Annual Review of Sociology 36 (2010), 407–428.
Van den Bergh, L., Denessen, E., Hornstra, L., Voeten, M., Holland, R.W., The implicit prejudiced attitudes of teachers: Relations to teacher expectations and the ethnic achievement gap. American Educational Research Journal 47:2 (2010), 497–527.
Wang, S., Rubie-Davies, C.M., Meissel, K., A systematic review of the teacher expectation literature over the past 30 years. Educational Research and Evaluation 24:3–5 (2018), 124–179.
Wold, S., Esbensen, K., Geladi, P., Principal component analysis. Chemometrics and Intelligent Laboratory Systems 2:1–3 (1987), 37–52.
