This is my second grade report card. While you may wonder why someone who got so many "E" marks would be proud, consider that the Chicago Public School system (at least back then) didn't use the ABCDF system. Instead, they used the EGFU system. This means, Excellent, Good, Fair and Unsatisfactory. (Math and Reading also have grade levels which use an A through I rating... it's easy to confuse that with the grade, however. I think they should have come up with a different lettering scheme to differentiate it more.)
After second grade, I was "double promoted" into fourth grade. I skipped third grade.
I asked a number of my former classmates who had double promoted with me what they thought about being double promoted. Looking back, was it a good idea? It seems only I felt it was. Everyone else didn't.
Skipping third grade put all of us at a disadvantage both academically and also socially. A lot of foundational material in subjects like math and science is covered in third grade. And, being one year younger than everyone else, socially we may not have been ready as well. But for me, I adapted to the situation around the fifth grade. I did struggle in the fourth grade though. My grades dropped and for that I wasn't happy. But by the fifth grade, I think I had caught up. Socially, where others did not feel they fit in, I was ok with it. I didn't mind being a year younger than the other people in my classes, and quite frankly, most never knew either.
Would I do it again if I were given the chance? Yes! All of the others (so far) have said no. Would I allow my own daughter to do it if she had the chance? No. Double standard? Maybe. Although I was ok with it, that doesn't mean everyone would be. Why take the chance? (Be sure to click on the image to get a closer look.)
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