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Published: June, 2009

Ready – or not? continued ...

“Usually they are going through the same experience, so there isn’t a change. The issue is, what are the interventions and strategies that need to be in place for a student to be successful? The research suggests that what a child needs is intervention, not necessarily being held back and having that stigma,” says Rick Martin, director of Curriculum and Instruction Support Services for the Orange County Department of Education. For older children, retention should be a last resort, the ERIC report notes.
   
Many educators, especially kindergarten teachers, believe future retention can be avoided if parents wait to enroll their children in kindergarten when they are academically, emotionally and socially ready. This generally means keeping 4-year-olds, especially children with late summer or fall birthdays, at home or in preschool for another year.
   
“The standards have been raised in California. There is less play time, and it’s much more academic now,” says Debi Oddi, a 25-year kindergarten teacher
who has dealt with the retention issue repeatedly while teaching in the Ontario-Montclair Unified School District, the Alta Loma Unified School District and, presently, the Temecula Valley Unified School District.
   
Says Oddi: “The problem is not giving them that gift of time, that feeling of empowerment and self-esteem. You have to ask, ‘What do you want for your child? Do you want them to be at the top of the class, in the middle, or at the bottom?’ Wouldn’t everybody want to have the gift of time to do the best they can do?”

Amy Bentley is a regular contributor.


WHAT YOU CAN DO
The National Association of School Psychologists urges parents and schools to seek alternatives to retention early during the school year to address the needs of struggling students.

> Parents should be involved in their child’s school, education and progress through frequent contact with teachers and regular interaction with their child and her studies.

> Send your children to preschool to enhance language and social skills.

> Involve children in tutoring and mentoring programs with peers and adults.

> Learn about your school district’s retention policy and intervention programs.

For more information about retention, retention criteria and parents’ appeal rights, visit the California Department of Education online.


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