Social School

PUBLIC SCHOOL SOCIAL PROMOTION POLICIES:

EXPLORING SOCIALLY PROMOTED STUDENTS’ EXPERIENCES

A Dissertation

Presented to

The Faculty of the School of Education

Liberty University

In Partial Fulfillment

Of the Requirements for the Degree

Doctor of Education

by

Tammy Burrell Knight

Liberty University

May 2014

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PUBLIC SCHOOL SOCIAL PROMOTION POLICIES:

EXPLORING SOCIALLY PROMOTED STUDENTS’ EXPERIENCES

A Dissertation

Presented to

The Faculty of the School of Education

Liberty University

by

Tammy Burrell Knight

Liberty University

May 2014

APPROVED BY:

Dr. James A. Swezey, Ed.D., Committee Chair

Dr. Donna Jones, Ed.D., Committee Member

Dr. Lydia Moyer, Ed.D., Committee Member

Scott Watson, Ph.D., Associate Dean, Advanced Programs

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ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to examine the experiences of public school, general education students, who have not been diagnosed with a learning disability, and who have been socially promoted, meaning that the students academically failed one or more core subjects but were allowed to advance to the next grade level. This study was a transcendental phenomenological qualitative study of students who were socially promoted at least once during their public school career. Questionnaires and individual interviews were used to gain knowledge from the participants regarding the meaning of being a socially promoted student; self-efficacy and motivation, as it pertains to being socially promoted; and how socially promoted students cope socially and academically in social promotion situations. This qualitative data was coded using horizontalization and developed clusters of meaning and from these clusters, textural and structural descriptions provided a snapshot of the lived experiences and personal voices of the participants. Through these means, the essences of the participants’ experiences were brought to light.

Keywords: accountability, behavior modification, classroom environment, classroom discipline, content standards, drop-out rates, grade retention, graduation rates, interventions, motivation, No Child Left Behind (NCLB), parental involvement, resilience, self-determination, self-efficacy, social promotion, strategies, teaching practices, work ethic.

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Dedication

I dedicate this dissertation to my precious children – Caleb and Camryn. Your undying love and support throughout this journey is immeasurable. You have accompanied me every step of the way by being there, helping in many areas of life, and encouraging me throughout this endeavor. Thank you for the sacrifices you have made as I have pursued my dream. My hope is that you will see in me the desire and drive to be a life-long learner and that the drive to excel and achieve will guide you throughout your lives. I love you to the moon and back. To my mother and father who raised me in a loving, Christian home and instilled in me the belief I could accomplish anything if I put my all into it. Mom, thank you for your love and support as I have climbed this mountain. Daddy, I know you have been keeping tabs on me from Heaven. Thank you for providing me an excellent work ethic through example. Also, thank you for giving me the most amazing, loving brother a sister could ever ask for. I love you all. To my Angel who has encouraged me and has shown me what it really means to be loved and cared for. You have been with me since my first doctorate-level class, and your encouragement and your belief in me has never wavered. I am forever indebted. Thank you for being you and loving me. I love you.

To my best friend and “sister,” Mary Griffin, who has been by my side and has selflessly supported my doctorate endeavor since day one. You have endured three, week-long trips to Virginia, a nine-hour drive each way, to keep me company and be my constant encourager, even when I broke down and had feelings of hopelessness. We have come a long way together throughout our teaching careers, and I will always treasure you! LYMI!

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Table of Contents

ABSTRACT 3 Dedication Page 4 Table of Contents 5 List of Tables 7 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 8 Background 8 Situation to Self 10 Problem Statement 11 Purpose Statement 12 Significance of the Study 12 Research Questions 13 Research Plan 14 Limitations and Delimitations 15 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 16 Introduction 16 Theoretical Framework 17 Related Literature 20 Summary 46 CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY 48 Introduction 48 Design 48 Research Questions 49

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Participants 50 Setting 52 Procedures 54 The Researcher's Role 55 Data Collection 56 Trustworthiness 62 Ethical Considerations 62 CHAPTER FOUR: FINDINGS 64 CHAPTER FIVE: DISCUSSION 89 REFERENCES 110 APPENDICIES 116

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List of Tables

Table 1. Description of Participants 52 Table 2. Honea Path Middle School SC State School Report Card 54 Table 3. Questionnaire Responses 58 Table 4. Responses regarding Social Promotion for Participant’s own Child 81 Table 5. Responses regarding Advice Given to a Socially Promoted Friend 81 Table 6. Responses regarding Home Issues 82 Table 7. Responses regarding Reasons for Social Promotion 83 Table 8. Responses regarding the Best and Worst Part of Social Promotion 84 Table 9. Responses regarding if it Helped or Hurt to be Socially Promoted 85 Table 10. Responses regarding the Positive or Negative Effects of Social Promotion 85 Table 11. Responses regarding the Short and Long-Term Effects of Social Promotion ...86 Table 12. Responses regarding Personal Feelings about Social Promotion 87 Table 13. Responses regarding Receiving Something for Free 87 Table 14. Responses regarding Deserving to be Socially Promoted 88

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CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION

Background

With the introduction and implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), (U.S. Department of Education, 2001), school districts, individual schools, and teachers continue to be held highly accountable, now more than ever, for the academic success of every student under their care and instruction. Schools nation-wide have implemented programs to assist students in their academic endeavors in an effort to meet the benchmarks established by NCLB. In addition to after-school programs, 504 plans, and Individualized Education Programs (IEPs), social promotion practices are also being utilized. Social promotion is defined as “the practice of promoting a student from one grade to the next on the basis of age rather than academic achievement” (Social Promotion, 2012, p. 714).

One of the main focuses of NCLB is tackling the ever-growing high school drop-out rate. The Alliance for Excellent Education (2009) stated that “over a million of the students who enter ninth grade each Fall fail to graduate with their peers four years later” (p. 154). Research reveals that students who are retained have a substantially increased chance of dropping out of high school (Carifio, 2010). Therefore, there is an increased awareness of the problem as a result of increased legislative pressure to do whatever is necessary to produce academically successful students. This pressure is evident at all levels of public education. Elementary schools, middle schools, and high schools nation-wide are experiencing the effects. There is an abundance of literature available that exhibits the negative effects students and society as a whole experience as a result of students being retained and students dropping out of high school. However, there is a significant gap in the literature focusing specifically on those students who have been socially promoted. In this study, social promotion is henceforth defined as a student earning a failing score in at least one core subject but allowed to advance to the next

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grade level. The vast expanse of literature attainable regarding promotion policies discuss mostly the detrimental effects of retention and rarely gives mention to social promotion and the effects thereof.

Social promotion has an extensive history. The advancement of social promotion began in the 1930s as an antidote for the negative effects of the practice of retention (Carifio, 2010). By the 1980s, this trend slightly dwindled as a result of the onset of slipping academic performance. In 1982, New York City schools established an end to social promotion completely. Due to the onslaught of problems that rose from the retention policy, social promotion was implemented again in 1987. In 1999, New York City once again eliminated the practice of social promotion, but by 2004, more than 100,000 students joined the “club of retention,” and social promotion was once again implemented (Carifio, 2010, p. 223). The literature demonstrates that there is a divide among scholars in regard to social promotion. Advocates argue that the practice is in place to avoid harming students’ self-esteem or to promote a student who may be weak in one subject area, but strong in other subject areas

(Smirk, 2001). Those that oppose social promotion state that “placing students in grades where they cannot do the work sends the message to all students they can get by without working hard”

(Picklo & Christenson, 2005, p. 262). Mostly, supporters of retention declare that retention is the lesser of the two evils (Jacob & Lefgren, 2009). Some contend that the option of retention will increase the high school drop-out rate and increase negative behaviors, such as alcohol consumption, crime, drug use, teenage pregnancy, depression, and a feeling of being left out

(Stone & Engel, 2007). Other advocates state that being retained establishes and fosters an environment of bullying, having fewer friends socially, and being ridiculed by other students

(Allensworth, 2005; Manacorda, 2008).

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Those who oppose the practice of social promotion argue that ultimately the practice of social promotion deprives students of a quality education. Students are not academically prepared for the next grade level, thus doing much more damage and creating a perception of despair for the student in subsequent grade levels. For example, if a student does not master his or her multiplication facts at an early age, his or her middle school mathematics experience will more than likely be unpleasant and one of many struggles. Virtually all mathematics standards addressed at the middle school level need to be mastered or performance may be hindered at the high school level. Supplementary issues that arise due to social promotion of the student are the frustration that advances the interruption of other students’ educational experiences and sends a loud message to other students that they can advance through the year with putting forth little or no effort. The reality that teachers are required to reteach and address students who possess a severe deficit in the skills necessary for success in their current grade level adds to frustration on the part of the student as well as the teacher. Ultimately, a façade of a false sense of accomplishment is felt by the student and the parents (McCoy & Reynolds, 1999). Situation to Self

As an educator, I desire to see all students excel and be the best that they can possibly be. It is disheartening to see students who are fully academically capable develop a void of intrinsic motivation. I have discovered, analyzed, and understood socially-promoted students’ experiences and their thoughts on social promotion practices, and now have developed a deeper understanding of the socially-promoted student’s mindset. I took an axiological perspective in regard to social promotion. Philosophical values are at the heart of my interest. The Value Theory, which encompasses a range of attempted approaches to understand why, how, and to what degree people value things, also motivates my interest, which is scientifically empirical.

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Problem Statement

There is insufficient research that clearly identifies and analyzes the experiences of students who have been socially promoted within the public school system. Most encountered research relates to retention. “In terms of academic factors, grade retention was a significant

‘negative’ predictor of academic self-concept and homework completion and a significant

‘positive’ predictor of maladaptive motivation and weeks absent from school” (Martin, 2011, p. 739). Data regarding socially promoted students is not readily available, for most information is kept internal at the school level. Once a student is socially promoted, he or she tends to “blend in.” Blending in means that they continue as if they were academically promoted which many times leads to a lack of attention and academic assistance students desperately need. School districts are making some headway in solving the dilemma of students not meeting minimal academic standards. Many districts are beginning to develop and implement test-based readiness guidelines, which is a concerted effort to end the practice of social promotion for those students who fail to meet academic standards for that grade (McCombs, Sloan, Kirby, Natarai, & Mariano, 2009). This implementation of test-based readiness guidelines is also an attempt to intervene before the issue of retention or social promotion arises. Research also suggests that students who are retained possess a substantially increased chance of dropping out of high school (Carifio, 2010). In addition to an increase in the dropout rate, some argue that prescribing retention will also increase negative behaviors, such as alcohol consumption, crime, drug use, teenage pregnancy, depression, and a feeling of being left out

(Stone & Engel, 2007). Students who been retained also experience adverse effects socially, emotionally, and cognitively (Jacob & Lefgren, 2009). In light of the inconsistent research

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findings and unavailable data, it is important to hear the voices of students who experience the phenomenon of being socially promoted.

Purpose Statement

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to examine the experiences of public school general education students who are socially promoted. The setting was Honea Path Middle School, a rural school in upstate South Carolina. The participants were students who were promoted to the next grade level, although the students did not achieve adequate mastery of grade-level, academic standards. This practice is commonly known as social promotion.

Significance of the Study

The significance of this study is the findings could render a substantial impact on the way social promotion is viewed in the educational World, and in turn, impact the lives of the students who are socially promoted. A recent study shows that “nearly two-thirds of jobs in 2014 will require at least some college” (Wakelyn & National Governors Association, 2009, p. 72). Lack of preparation for higher level academia may be a driving force behind future problems with acquiring a job. Students may pass from grade to grade and graduate from high school, but upon entering college many are required to endure remedial college-level classes. Lack of preparation can negatively affect the student causing feelings of failure before he or she can get a foot in that proverbial college door (Smirk, 2001). The student is more likely to drop out of college as a result of not having the academic foundation the student needs (Jacob & Lefgren, 2009). The study took place at Honea Path Middle School, a rural school in upstate South Carolina. The study brought to light the experiences of students who are socially promoted and why and how social promotion affects their academic and personal lives. Data collected could be

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used on a wider scale to help change the views and stigmas that are currently associated with social promotion.

Research Questions

The following questions guided this study:

What does it mean to be a socially promoted student in public education? This question was central because research has shown students who do not meet minimum academic standards create an academic dilemma within the educational system. The dilemma is that a decision must be made whether the student should be socially promoted to the next grade in the hopes that somehow he or she will acquire the skills necessary for continued academic success, or if the student should be retained and repeat his or her current grade level with another chance to achieve mastery (Hughes, West & Wu, 2007). This study attempted to determine how students view their experiences after being socially promoted. How are students’ self-efficacy and motivation affected when students are socially promoted? Research has shown that students who have been retained experience adverse effects socially, emotionally and cognitively, with increased high school dropout rates (Jacob & Lefgren, 2009). Since many students “blend in” once they have been socially promoted, not much attention is paid to them the following year specifically in regard to their experiences with self-efficacy and motivation. Knowing and analyzing the students’ experiences will identify common themes in the students’ mindsets and perceived expectations. How are students coping socially and academically in social promotion situations? Research has shown that there are inconsistent short-term differences in performance between students who are socially promoted and students who are retained (Jacob & Lefgren, 2009).

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The research focused on finding the answer to one central question – question one. Questions two and three are Sub-questions where the current research findings and this study will determine if the participants experiencing the phenomenon of social promotion are impacted in the same manner as the participants in past research or if new themes will emerge in this study.

Research Plan

This study was a qualitative study following the transcendental phenomenology design described by Moustakas in 1994 (Creswell, 2007). Exploring experiences of public school, general education students, who have not been diagnosed with a learning disability, who were socially promoted was the purpose of this study. This type of design was fitting for this study, for it was an attempt to understand the phenomenon and to answer the questions of interest. A phenomenological research approach was best suited for this study because it “describes the meaning for several individuals of their lived experiences of a concept or a phenomenon . . . describing what all participants have in common as they experience a phenomenon” (Creswell, 2007, p. 57). Seeking understanding and forming meaning were the main focuses. Bracketing was implemented to negate any up-front bias in the study (Creswell, 2007). In order to adequately bracket, the researcher set aside any possible preconceptions in regard to the study. Journaling and mind mapping will used to serve this purpose. Questionnaires and individual interviews were utilized to collect the data needed for this research endeavor. Once saturation was achieved, meaning new information was no longer revealing itself, Moustakas’ model

(1994) was used to categorize and analyze the data collected.

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Limitations and Delimitations

Middle school students were selected because of the intricacies of their academic experience. Delimitation for this study intends that only students who were socially promoted as defined by current South Carolina public school district policies were selected to participate in the study. They were students who are currently in the sixth, seventh or eighth grade. The rationale for this selection was to select a purposeful sample of students who were socially promoted to identify reoccurring themes to gain a better understand of the experiences of socially promoted students.

This study presented several limitations that could not be controlled. Gender and ethnicity of the participants were random in nature. Age was only limited because of the necessity to be old enough to participate in middle school education. Students’ ages were between twelve and fifteen. Students who were from a public school background, home school background, and a Christian school background were not excluded from the participant group. Other limitations in the study were the effects that peer pressure, the onset of adolescence, and social relationships have on the students who were socially promoted. Studying the commonalities of these students brought to the forefront an understanding of the common themes and behaviors of socially promoted students.

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CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW

Introduction

This chapter discusses research studies regarding promotion policies of students in our nation’s public school systems. The No Child Left Behind Act (U.S. Department of Education, 2001) puts forth the notion that all children must receive the best education possible, leaving no child behind. What does this mean? Basically, it means that schools need to be improved. The No Child Left Behind Act was based on four principles (U.S. Department of Education, 2001). Stronger accountability for schools leads the way in this endeavor. Schools that have a poor track record in regard to student achievement are required to improve student achievement or risk losing control of their school or at risk of losing funding for their school. School districts are given greater control over the way funds are appropriated. Investing in hiring superior teachers, purchasing technology and implementing innovative programs The Federal government, through NCLB, funds scientific research to help develop and determine best educational practices Lastly, more choices for parents in regard to their children’s school have been afforded. Parents whose children attend low performing schools are given the opportunity to choose other schools that offer supplemental programs to help improve student achievement. Likewise, if a student attends what is deemed as a dangerous school or has been victimized, the parents may transfer their child to another school district to attend a safe school. With these pillars of the law put into place, one could not help but wonder about those students who have not met the criteria for mastery of their current grade level, but are socially promoted, mainly due to the provisions of NCLB? There has been a tremendous amount of research conducted regarding the practice of retention, but very little research is available dealing with social promotion.

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Theoretical Framework

Albert Bandura (1977) developed this learn-by-observation theory known as Social Cognitive Theory. People learn by observing others and interacting with their world. Many times interaction and observation can lead to self-efficacy issues. Bandura (1977) stated, “People must develop skills in regulating the motivational, affective, and social determinant of their intellectual functioning as well as the cognitive aspects” (p. 136). Students at the middle school level watch other middle school students and see they observe how they act, what they do, what they wear, how they cut their hair, and even down to the self-efficacy they portray. In order to

“fit in,” middle school students tend to mimic what they observe in their peers. A good example of this phenomenon can be seen in fashion. When middle school girls start carrying a certain style of handbag, before long, the majority of fashion-conscience girls are carrying the same type of handbag. When middle school boys start carrying a certain type of book bag or wearing a specific type of shoe, again, before long the majority of fashion-conscience boys start carrying the same type of book bag or wearing the same type of shoes. Why would it be much different when observing other students’ behavior in regard to academic work ethic? Many times when students see others being promoted socially rather than academically, they take on a mindset of under-achievement. Students wonder why other students put forth substandard effort or no effort at all in regard to academics, but are able to continue to the next grade level time and time again. Often students begin to exude the same type of behavior. They do not realize that minimal effort usually produces minimal results and although they may have been allowed to experience no consequences as far as being allowed to proceed to the next grade level, those students suffer consequences in the form of their lack of knowledge at the next grade level.

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Resilience

Resilience is “an innate capacity that when facilitated and nurtured empowers children, youth and families to successfully meet life’s challenges with a sense of self-determination, mastery and hope ("Kings County," n.d.). Henry and Milstein (2004) discovered that helping students focus on the task at hand in a positive way can help them persevere through many situations. Many students have a difficult time focusing in the classroom setting. They become distracted over the smallest of things. When a teacher can implement strategies to assist these students in focusing they can persevere through academic struggles. But, focusing is not simply an academic issue; many students have a hard time focusing on situations outside the realm of the classroom as well. To help students focus, positive reinforcement can be utilized and is especially helpful in the public school setting. For example, incentives for displaying positive behavior instead of just behaving to avoid negative punishment, is a great tool to use to maintain a positive learning environment. A treasure chest full of prizes in the classroom is an excellent example of positive reinforcement. Many teachers use this strategy to improve performance by offering a trip to the treasure chest for achieving a pre-determined score on an assignment or being caught being good. Either way, the trip to the treasure chest is a positive reinforcement and something students can work toward and look forward to. People learn by observing others, and this behavior is the basis of social cognitive theory. When students see others with resilience, many times they will “get-on-board” and display this same trait. Typically, students are more likely to engage in behaviors that are modeled by someone in which they can identify. Ultimately, behavior is an individual choice, and resilience takes time to acquire. Self-efficacy is students having the belief that they can achieve on any level whether it is academic or of a more personal nature. Having self-efficacy goes hand-in-hand with resilience. Most students possess

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the luxury of easily acquiring and understanding academic concepts, but many others struggle on a daily basis. When these struggling students receive poor grades or fall behind, it is important that they continue. Students who struggle with academic concepts must have the willingness to try and try again. Teachers must have the ability to motivate students and foster self-efficacy and resilience. Teachers many times are the only support some students ever experience. Instilling a feeling of self-worth into students can help struggling students achieve. Once these struggling students master academic concepts, the feeling of accomplishment will continue to foster their own personal resilience. Students who are retained experience a major setback that can affect different areas of their lives. They are no longer in classes with their peers and many times experience ridicule due to their academic failures. Students who are socially promoted may lose their sense of resilience and become students who expect typically earned accomplishments to be handed to them, such as passing grades. When being passed on to the next grade without acquiring the mastery of academic standards, students may take for granted that they will be given the same pass again the next year and wonder why should they put forth the effort. Parents and teachers have addressed social promotion, and many call for an end of the practice. A Texas survey conducted in 1998 shows that 92 percent of its stakeholders are in favor of developing an

“exit exam” for third grade students. Third grade students must pass the exam in order to continue on to the fourth grade. If this third grade exam were to be implemented, students would be required to know their multiplication facts prior to being promoted to the fourth grade. This one decision to implement the “exit exam” could create a major positive impact regarding the performance of students in their middle school math classes. One of the main reasons for failure in middle school math is that students have not mastered their multiplication facts. Most middle school math standards require students to be proficient in knowing their multiplication facts.

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Implementing these types of benchmarks at various grade levels would go a long way in maintaining resilience throughout the educational process. Self-determination

Self-determination is often a byproduct of resilience. Being resilient often requires self- determination. Wehymer (1999) spent many hours studying related traits such as self-efficacy, self-awareness, and self-knowledge. Researchers and curriculum developers are beginning to create curricular and instructional packages to teach self-determination (Wehmeyer, Agran, & Hughes, 2000). Educator Anita Sakowicz (1996), thinks that self-determination should be a vital part of lessons that are taught in the classroom. “Many teachers and parents have continued to believe that if children who fail to meet grade level standards are retained, they will become stronger students” (Sakowicz, 1996, p. 27). Incorporating self-determination will promote the skills needed to set personal goals, solve problems that act as barriers to achieving these goals, make appropriate choices based on personal preferences and interests, participate in decisions that impact the quality of their lives, advocate for themselves, create action plans to achieve goals, and self-

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