Effects of social composition and grade repetition on student performance in reading

Abstract

In this article I explore the relationships and effects between the students’ socio-economic background, the social composition of schools and the grade repetition in students’ performances. Using the results of PISA 2009 on reading competence in Peru, I focus on the likely benefits of repetition as a school practice to improve learning. Although it is not possible to establish causal inferences in the data, the analyses suggest that students who repeat in their school career obtain a lower performance than their peers who do not. I have also found that social advantaged schools have a high-performance associated to a low repetition while disadvantaged schools have high repetition and low performances. In addition, I have identified three advantages generated by the students’ socioeconomic background: 1) those coming from socially advantaged homes obtain better scores as their social capital increases, 2) those who attend a school with a social advantaged population also benefit with better scores, and 3) studying in a socially favorable school protects against repetition better than the student’s own social background. This exploration of variables associated with student achievement, as well as the effects of repetition, offer new insights to the debate about the benefit of this school practice.