Analysing grade retention beliefs within teachers’ psycho-pedagogic beliefs system

Second grade retention: Beliefs, decision‐making styles, and factors involved in the decision process

“…Confirming other studies made with Portuguese teachers (Rodrigues et al, 2017; Santana, 2019; Santos & Monteiro, 2021; Santos et al, 2023), most teachers agreed that second‐grade retention can effectively prevent failure and did not think retention may have socioaffective risks for students. They just were not sure about the effectiveness of retention as an external regulator of students' behavior and motivation.…”

“…Teachers' beliefs were inconsistent with the research evidence about grade retention effectiveness (Goos et al, 2021). As Santos et al (2023) observed in a previous study with Portuguese primary teachers, teachers' beliefs about the effectiveness of grade retention may be more supported by their beliefs about learning and development than by their knowledge of the research evidence. Teachers tend to believe retention in the first grades effectively prevents failure because students need a solid foundation in fundamental skills to avoid failure in the highest levels of education (Cameron‐Minard, 1993; Ede, 2006; Martinez‐Hicks et al, 2015; Tomchin & Impara, 1992).…”

“…In Portugal, Santos and Monteiro (2021) observed that teachers who retained more students in the second grade had more positive beliefs regarding the effectiveness of retention (Santos & Monteiro, 2021). In fact, research have shown that teacher beliefs about grade retention predict their their grade retention practices (Bonvin, 2003), particularly when their colleagues share their beliefs (Santos et al, 2023). Additionally, Bonvin (2003) found that teachers who valued performance as the best decision‐making criterion tended to have more positive attitudes toward retention.…”

“…The online questionnaire included a scale to assess teachers' beliefs about grade retention effectiveness based on the Portuguese translation of the Développement Apprentissage et Intervention en Situation Scolaire team's retention beliefs questionnaire(Ribeiro et al, 2018) Santos and Monteiro (2021). andSantos et al (2023) tested this scale in the Portuguese population, observing good structural validity and reliability indicators. In Table 2, we present scale characteristics, reliability indicators (omega index, ω), and structural validity (chi-square [χ 2 ],…”

Effects of grade retention in lower secondary education on students' self‐concept, self‐esteem, goal orientations, and school career

“…Considering the international context, recent data shows that Portuguese retention rates are still among the In summary, despite the exceptional measure ascribed to grade retention and the downward trend, schools and teachers continue to rely on grade retention as a tool to address students' heterogeneity and low achievement. In addition, these rates may also reflect a positive belief shared by educators in the benefits of grade retention, on the one hand, and the difficulty in finding alternative tools and measures to avoid grade retention, on the other (European Commission, 2020;Goos et al, 2021;Santos et al, 2023).…”