Smart Students, Poor Grades: Factors contributing to lower grades in the transition from first to second year bilingual secondary school

Abstract

This research looked into the factors that cause a drop in performance in second year bilingual students . The combined factors of higher expectations of teachers, student motivation, underestimation of the second year and a lack of study skills play a role. Recommendations were formulated that might be useful for other schools that deal with gifted students as well: increase the difficulty of the first year to make the transition to the second year more gradual, give the students the opportunity to compensate poor grades before the first report card, and train students’ study skills during the first year to better prepare them for the second year.