The Chicago public school system has been a national leader in the movement against "social promotions." The theory is that if a student is not performing at grade level, that student should not proceed to the next grade. Common sense would seem to suggest that and the Chicago approach has been widely copied, most recently in New York City. Well, a recently completed study in Chicago has found that "retaining" students in grades three through eight does them no good and actually harms their subsequent academic performance. A careful reading of the report's highlights is a bit disheartening. It doesn't say that pushing the kids through the system helps them; it just says holding them back doesn't help them at all. The study seems to suggest that if a child reaches third grade without having a grasp of the basics of math and reading, that child will not catch up without some intensive and expensive remedial measures, measures that no public schools seem able to afford. It's almost like the solution is to get rid of these kids as quickly as possible, because they're never going to get any better. That's truly pathetic.