3 Pros and Cons of Repeating a Grade!
Repeating a grade is rarely something that a student or their parents would wish. Unfortunately, there is a lot of stigma attached to repeating a year. The student and parents alike experience feelings of shame. Some may even consider changing schools to avoid the embarrassment.
However, there are both ups and downs to repeating a grade. We would deal with some of them below:
- Con: Waste of Time
The main objection, other than embarrassment, that people have towards repeating a year is the waste. Not only does the student fall back a whole year, but he is viewed as having wasted whatever time and effort was put into his studies that year.
As a parent, you may also feel that your efforts in dropping your child off and trying to help him out were wasted. There is no doubt that since your child’s graduation is delayed; you may have to wait for certain milestones. However, this does not mean that everything you or your child did that year was lost.
- Pro: Familiarity with the Material
If your child underperformed this year, repeating the grade could actually set him up better for his future. Since the child already knows the material somewhat, reviewing it wouldn’t be so hard the second time around.
Your child could actually grasp the subject matter more thoroughly, and hence be better prepared for the next year. This would hopefully project on to future grades and make him a better student than before. If the school does agree to promote him before he’s ready, this may negatively affect his academic performance.
- Con: Social Stigma
When your child is detained, he may suffer from being behind his peers. It can be demoralizing to sit in a class of your juniors who are now your equals.
In this case, the parents’ role plays a huge part in bolstering a student’s confidence. They should remind their child or ward that school is a way of getting a good education. How long it takes and who he does it with would not really matter in the long run.
- Pro: Possible Better Adjustment
When your child is in a grade better suited to his abilities, he just may become more social. The stigma of repeating a grade would likely last a few weeks. However, the stigma of being weak in studies is more permanent.
Once your child gets the hang of studying well, he may become one of the smarter kids in his class. This elevation in his academic position would raise both his self-respect and his reputation in the eyes of others. With this newfound confidence, a student may well become and remain one of the best students in college as well.
- Con: Behavioral Issues Related To Classroom
If your child has behavioral issues, it may be worth looking at what the issues stem from. If the negative behavior arises from being in the school or the classroom, repeating is probably not much use.
Repeating a grade, in this case, simply ignores the student’s problem. Instead of repeating the same grade in the same classroom, parents should look into changing school or teachers.
- Pro: Behavioral Issues Related To the School Work
On the other hand, if your child is acting out due to school work, repeating is probably the best action. This would help them get a better grasp on what they already have an inkling of. Providing them with new, more difficult material would only harm them.
Wrap-Up…
It is high time that the stigmas attached to repeating a grade is removed. Students and their parents should realize that repeating has several benefits. While the cons are definitely present, they have more to do with the specific situation than the concept of repeating.
Author Bio
Scarlett Erin is a Professional Teacher and a Student Counselor. Being an educator, she is also active in assisting students with assignment writing. Her articles address the various issues students face in their daily lives. Being a student counselor, she also advice students on making the right moves in their education. In free time, she loves watching motivational speech on TED and reading books.
