It was in these early days of public school education that grade retention first emerged. Almost half of all children were retained during their first eight years of school. In the 1930's psychologists suggested that retention might be damaging to a child's social and emotional development and the practice was used much less. But retention has re-emerged as we have developed global awareness and begun measuring American children against students of the same age in other countries. Your district has apparently chosen fourth grade as the first of these gates.
Test scores become the method for determining which students are promoted.
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