Lights Retention Scale

["Allen Flanigan." <Allen.Flanigan@USPTO.GOV>]

I am very intrigued by this Retention Scale.  Can anyone give me more
background and info on this?  How old is it?  I've heard the conventional
wisdom about retention increasing the chances of dropouts, and holding a
student back twice being a virtual guarantee of eventually dropping out of
school.  Are kids held back according to these guidelines doing better in
terms of actual outcomes than the dismal figures commonly cited on
retention?  (I realize of course that other factors will probably figure
into the ultimate outcomes for any given student).

The question lying in the back of my mind, I guess, is if this scale is
meant to limit retention only to those situations where potential for
educational harm is minimized, if it would be a good idea to recommend its
use in place of decisions based primarily on whether a student passes (or is
expected to pass) state assessments.  I like the fact, too, that the scale
bears caveats about using the "scores" as guidelines only.  If only our
Virginia tests had such sensible warnings.

Allen Flanigan

> -----Original Message-----
> From: mkluznik@HOTMAIL.COM [SMTP:mkluznik@HOTMAIL.COM]
> Sent: Tuesday, February 13, 2001 10:03 AM
> To:   ARN-L@listsrva.CUA.EDU
> Subject:      Re: retention
>
> Thank you.  Good old Academic Therapy.  I had forgotten the publisher.
> The edition of the Light's Retention Scale I have is tucked away in a box
> somewhere.  The introduction in the manual provided an excellent summary
> of retention...product of graded schools, product of the Industrial
> Revolution...used more extensively on boys, minorities, kids short in
> stature, etc.  The introduction is good, and the scale itself is very,
> very helpful.
>
> Good luck,
>
> Mike
>
> P.S. The articles in NASP's "Best Practices Manual" (vol. 1 or 2, or both)
> are also helpful.
>
>
> >From: Erwin Morton
> >Reply-To: Assessment Reform Network Mailing List
> >To: ARN-L@LISTS.CUA.EDU
> >Subject: Re: retention
> >Date: Mon, 12 Feb 2001 17:25:53 -0800
> >
> >Mike Kluznick wrote:
> >
> > > Also, there is something called the Light's Retention Scale. I forget
> who
> > > publishes it, but again, you could do a search for it or go through
> the
> > > special ed. catalogs in your district office.
> >
> >First, try this link:
> >
> >http://kinder.cmsd.bc.ca/kinder-l/2000/0002/0615.html
> >
> >Second, go to the publisher:
> >
> >http://www.academictherapy.com/
> >
> >--Erwin Morton
> >emorton@bigfoot.com
> >
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