Introduction
One of the most controversial issues impacting education in America is whether students who haven't passed their classes or standardized tests should be passed on (social promotion) or forced to repeat a grade (retention). Many people believe that a student who does not meet the required grade-level standards should be required to repeat that grade (retained). However, people who believe that retention is detrimental to students in the long-term often argue that holding a student back only increases the chances that he/she will later drop out of high school. They believe that students should be socially promoted to stay with their same-age peers even though they haven't truly met the criteria to go on to the next grade.