Within District Transfers and Student Achievement

Abstract Schools are grounded in routine. From following a standard course of study to regularly monitoring progress, schooling requires stability. For many urban schools, the regularity of standard procedures is frequently upset by erratic patterns of student mobility. The purpose of this research was to evaluate relations between within district transfers and achievement among elementary schools in a large metropolitan system. Relations between school transfer rate and achievement were evaluated. Moderate to high negative correlations were indicated with significant differences in reading, mathematics, language and total achievement battery scores favoring schools with little or no student mobility. Implications are discussed with regard to policy changes and concern for reversing the negative effects of within district transfers on the lives of students who can least afford them.