Kindergarten retention study

Few lasting benefits to delaying kindergarten
Students held back from kindergarten for a year may score better in the first few months of school, but they lose almost all that advantage by the eighth grade, according to a new study. "If it were true that older kids are able to learn at a faster rate, then the differences in test scores should get bigger as kids progress and the material gets more difficult. But we really see the opposite," said co-author Darren Lubotsky. "Older kids do better at first and younger kids do worse, but they catch up."
Elder, T., & Lubotsky, D. (2008). Journal of Human Resources. [in press]