While some research suggests that retention has more negative effects for older students, even retention of kindergarten children appears to be an ineffective intervention. Research indicates that students are more likely to be hurt by retention than helped, regardless of grade level. Furthermore, research suggests that early retainees are most likely to be identified for special education or other remedial services later, making it critical that failing young children are thoroughly evaluated to determine need for specialized instruction rather than merely retained. There simply is no evidence that children will mature faster or adjust better when retained. Students do not benefit emotionally from retention, and many retained students experience more mental health problems later in middle school and high school.
Retained students are more likely to drop out of school.
The drop-out rate among retained students is much greater than for similarly achieving students who have never been retained. The probability of dropping out increases with multiple retentions. Even for single retentions, the most consistent finding from decades of retention research is the high correlation between retention and dropping out. Social promotion by itself is also an ineffective practice. Merely pushing a failing student through the school curriculum has no impact on achievement.