AP News Guide: Michigan third-grade reading, retention bill

(AP) — An early literacy bill cleared the Michigan Legislature on Wednesday, requiring third-graders be held back if they lag in reading, though there are a number of exemptions to let kids still advance for "good cause."

Gov. Rick Snyder, who's expected to sign the measure, supports it in conjunction with spending more on literacy coaches, assessments and instructional time for children who need extra help reading.

Starting in the 2019-20 school year, third-graders wouldn't advance unless their state reading score is less than a grade level behind, they show proficiency through an alternative assessment or they demonstrate mastery through work samples.

Parents could seek a "good cause" exemption, which would apply to kids with disabilities, students for whom English is second language, those previously held back despite receiving intensive reading help for at least two years and newer students who didn't receive an appropriate individualized reading intervention in their old district.

School districts and charter schools would have to assess the reading skills of K-3 students at least three times per academic year, including once in the first 30 days of school.

Advocates of the Republican-sponsored bill say the goal isn't to keep kids back a grade, noting that mandatory retention is necessary so that students don't fall further behind.

The bill leaves it to the state Department of Education to determine when a reading score indicates that students are more than one grade level behind, meaning it's unclear how many more students could be retained, especially given that school officials would have flexibility to decide when to hold a student back.