Retaining Students During a Pandemic: What Should I Do About It?

Dear Lesson Plan Toolbox,

I am in my second year of teaching second grade and although this year was pretty bumpy, I truly feel as though this is my calling. That being said, I do have a problem or maybe tough decision is the better term. You see, I have a student who has been 100% virtual this whole school year and just isn’t meeting the benchmarks in place. Homework has been pretty much nonexistent all year and I really don’t even assign that much of it. Tests are barely passing grades, if passing at all. Attendance is hit or miss as well.

Trust me, I know that I am not the only teacher facing this situation, but I truly do think that this student should not be passed onto the next grade level. How can I justify saying that this second grader is prepared for third grade when I’m not getting anything in return in regards to growth? Attendance is so hit or miss with this student that I don’t know if there is a learning deficit or if it truly is the lack of not being here that causes the low grades. And not knowing this factor is what is causing such anxiety for me as to whether or not this student should be promoted. 

If I do feel that retention is the best option for this student, how do I even go about starting that conversation? Do I call the parent and bring this up or is this something that my principal will handle? Or do I set the expectation that this student needs to participate in a summer tutoring program so that way I know at least there is work that will be happening on break?

So many things to consider and I truly do not know what is the best choice. At the same time I am having all of these thoughts, I am also afraid that maybe I didn’t do enough for this student. I keep thinking if she was an in-person learner this would be so much easier to determine and decide the best course of action. I would appreciate any advice you have to offer.

Attention Retention

Dear Attention Retention,

You are definitely not alone in this predicament. This is something that is coming up in schools across the country and probably will be a conversation for the next few years. When it comes to retaining students there are so many factors to consider beyond just what the grades are on the report card. 

Before we go any further, I should share with you that I am not a big supporter of retaining students unless there is very solid evidence that this is the best service to the student. However, I will share what other factors should be taken into consideration when making this decision.

Documentation/Notifications:

No matter what you decide on for this student, please be sure you have sufficient and appropriate documentation. As you know, this is not a decision to be made lightly. Hopefully you have already reached out to your principal and expressed your concerns about attendance and the impact it is having on the student’s grade. Keep your principal in the loop every couple of weeks on the student’s progress and your continued concern. Provide the concrete evidence of your documentation so your principal can see firsthand. If you haven’t done this step yet, then you need to do so ASAP! 

It is also my hope that you have been in communication with the parent throughout the school year. This is not a decision that you simply wake up one morning and decide to let the family know about. Each time you communicate with the parent you need to log the conversation either digitally or simply in a notebook. If this has all been done and you and your principal are on the same page, then it is time to call the family to invite them in for a conference. 

Prior to having this conference with the parents I strongly recommend that you have a PLAN A and PLAN B in place in case things don’t go according to your plan. If Plan A is to retain the student, again be sure to have solid evidence as to why this is the best option. If the parent chooses not to retain the student, then Plan B might be enrolling the student into summer school and the family must provide documentation of this service.

Age:

Another piece of the puzzle you need to look at is the student’s age. Is this student young/old for second grade or is he/she right where he/she should be for his/her birthday. Age plays a huge part in social emotional coping skills which can be a key factor in student learning. When retaining students, they have to make new friends and explain to some of their other friends why they didn’t move onto the next grade. As you can imagine, this can make quite the impact socially on the student.

Also, please pay attention to if there is a sibling in the direct grade level behind. If this is the case, now not only will this student have to face being with a whole new group of friends but also being in the same grade as a younger sibling. That could be a tough bit to swallow for not only your student, but the younger sibling as well.

Gains:

This might be the MOST important factor when making this decision. What gains will the student make if you decide to retain him/her? What growth in subject areas will occur? Obviously you don’t have a crystal ball to know for sure what will happen, but you really need to think if holding this student back will truly help the student’s learning to improve. If the answer is no, then I think you have your decision.

Considerations:

Another consideration you may want to think about is whether or not this student will have to pass the 3rd Grade Reading Guarantee. If he/she does, then maybe promote the student to third grade and let the results of that test serve as the basis for future retention. I would definitely share your thoughts and concerns with the third grade teachers so they know all that you did to help serve this student.

Finally, before you make any suggestions of retaining a student please try to exhaust all other possibilities such as testing for a learning deficit. Consider if you have six weeks of evidence implementing tier 1 or tier 2 levels of support. If you have this evidence, be sure to share it with your principal or intervention coordinator so the appropriate steps can be taken to get the student tested. 

As I stated earlier, this is definitely going to be an issue facing education for the next few years. While we know that some students aren’t performing up to standards we also have to remember that we are not 7-years-old in a pandemic. Is this pandemic going to be the call to change that the education system so desperately needs? One can only hope!

Please know that you are always welcome to reach out to us on Instagram (@lessonplantoolbox) or email ([email protected]) to help find resources or ideas that will help you in the classroom. We love serving primary teachers!

You may also want to check out our 4 Easy Steps to Successful Parent Communication for Primary Teachers to help build that rapport with families.

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