hurt on—A Study of Retarded Children. 
291 
Repeaters. 
Possibly one of the best ways to approach the question of re¬ 
tardation is to ascertain the number of repeaters in the sys¬ 
tem because about them there can be no question as to age at 
entrance or the proper age for each grade. Elimination will 
work confusion here as before; nothing can prevent that. But 
all the time we must bear in mind that the “repeaters” are only 
one year’s contribution to the full army of retarded children. 
In order to ascertain, at first hand, the amount of repeat¬ 
ing in the schools of Minnesota, I sent out a printed question¬ 
naire to all the superintendents in the state. Hinety-six, 
slightly less than one-half, replied promptly and with well- 
arranged data. The returns cover a total of 40,710 children in 
the grades of these schools. The number found to be repeating 
the work of their grade, and the per cent, of the total number 
of repeaters to be found in each grade is as follows:— 
Grades. 
I. 
II. 
III. 
IV. 
V. 
VI. 
VII. 
VIII. 
Number. 
664 
309 
296 
374 
396 
330 
318 
4.43 
Per cent.. 
18.6 
9.8 
9.4 
11.9 
12.6 
10.5 
10.1 
14.1 
Also, 168 others were repeating the work for the second time. 
This is 7.4% of the total grade enrollment in the 96 school 
systems studied, but even this does not adequately measure the 
ground lost by pupils in these schools owing to the pratices, to 
which I have previously called attention, of prompting “on 
trial” and also arbitrarily at the end of the second year, chil¬ 
dren who, measured by the same scale as the others, are realty 
entitled to be repeaters. 
We have some reliable figures from St. Paul upon this point 
for they have been studying the matter there with the practical 
view of modifying their administration and creating new types 
of schools to remove the evil so far as possible. 
Superintendent Heeter, of St. Paul, addressing the general 
session of the Minnesota Educational Association in 1909 said 
“One thousand, nine hundred thirty two children, almost two 
