In 2007, about 10 percent of students in kindergarten through grade 8 had ever been retained in a grade during their school career. A greater percentage of Black students than either White or Hispanic students had ever been retained in this year.

Students may be retained in a grade for reasons including a lack of the academic or social skills needed to advance to the next grade. This indicator examines grade retention rates as reported by parents in the National Household Education Surveys Program (NHES). The percentage of students in kindergarten (K) through grade 8 who had ever been retained during their school career has remained between 9 and 11 percent in all survey years between 1996 and 2007 (see table A-18-1). In 2007, about 10 percent of K-8 students had ever been retained.

In each survey year, a greater percentage of male students than female students had ever been retained in a grade. Among K-8 students in 2007, some 12 percent of male students had ever been retained, compared with 8 percent of female students. The percentages of male and female students who had ever been retained in 2007 were not measurably different from the percentages in 1996.

The percentage of K-8 students who had ever been retained differed by race/ethnicity and by region. For example, in 2007, a greater percentage of Black students than either White or Hispanic students had ever been retained. No measurable differences were found between 1996 and 2007 in either the White-Black or the White-Hispanic gap in the percentage of students who had ever been retained. In 2007, the percentages of students in the Northeast and the South who had ever been retained were larger than the percentage of students in the West. Additionally, a larger percentage of students in the South than in the Midwest had ever been retained. The percentages within each racial/ethnic and region category of students who had ever been retained did not measurably differ in 2007 from those in 1996.

In each survey year, the percentage of K-8 students who had ever been retained was greater among students from poor families than among students from near-poor or nonpoor families. In 2007, for example, 23 percent of students from poor families had ever been retained, compared with 11 percent of students from near-poor families and 5 percent of students from nonpoor families. The percentage of students from poor families who had ever been retained was higher in 2007 (23 percent) than in 1996 (17 percent), while the percentage of students from nonpoor families who had ever been retained was lower in 2007 (5 percent) than in 1996 (7 percent).

The percentage of K-8 students who had ever been retained varied by their mothers' education level. Generally, in each survey year, the percentage of students who had ever been retained was greater among students whose mothers had completed lower levels of education, compared with students whose mothers had completed higher levels of education. In 2007, for example, 20 percent of students whose mothers had less than a high school diploma or its equivalent had ever been retained, compared with 3 percent each of students whose mothers' highest level of education was a bachelor's degree or graduate/professional school.

The percentages of K-8 students who had ever been retained did not measurably differ by school type, primary language spoken in the home, or country of birth in 2007. Between 1996 and 2007 (between 1999 and 2007 for country of birth), there were no measurable differences by these characteristics in the percentage of students who had ever been retained.

Technical Notes

All data are based on parent reports. In 2007, administrative record data were also used to establish school type. Estimates exclude homeschooled students. Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic ethnicity. Estimates for mother's education exclude data for students who were reported to have no mother or female guardian. For more information on race/ethnicity, parents' education, poverty thresholds, and a list of the states in each region, see supplemental note 1. For more information on National Household Education Surveys Program (NHES), see supplemental note 3.