Maryland considers policy to hold back third-graders for not meeting reading standards

BALTIMORE – The Maryland State Board of Education is considering a reading intervention policy that would allow third-graders to repeat a year if they do not meet certain reading literacy requirements .

If it is adopted, Maryland would join more than half of states that allow third-graders to be held back.

Students in 2nd through 12th grades can already be held back for not meeting academic standards, but this proposed policy would enforce retention for low-performing students in third grade. State educators have laid out this policy as a way to add extra support to all students who are struggling to read.

Iesha Lee is the proud mother of an 11-year-old boy.

"My son actually gets a summer reading list as well as like a summer math assignment every summer," Lee said

She knows the importance of reading and does what's necessary to make sure her child stays on track even when schools are out.

"I usually try to choose a summer camp that has some sort of enrichment program," said Lee.

When Lee learned of the Maryland State Board of Education's newest proposed policy on reading literacy, she, like other parents– was divided.

"I think it's a catch-22," Lee said. I think that sometimes pushing kids along when they shouldn't be and when they need a little bit of extra help can hurts them in the long run, but I also think that they're third graders."

"I have a 1-year-old, so I'm curious as to how this is going to progress and what it's going to mean for us," said Scott Bass.

"Let's give the kids the support they need in the first place," said Campbell Mclean, a parent and longtime Baltimore City educator. "The key is just finding your instructional level, Finding a reading level that's a little bit challenging, but not too much. And start with something fun. If you like to read it, you've got to keep going."

The proposed policy lays out a plan where third-grade students would be held back for a year if they don't meet certain reading requirements.

"If we expect our children to be college and career-ready they first have to learn how to read," said Dr. Tenette Smith, the executive director of literacy programs and initiatives in the state Department of Education. "We want to ensure that we close these gaps prior to them getting to that pivotal year that the third-grade year is so important."

Smith explained the proposed policy is not about holding children, but about early intervention before retention.

A 2011 research study from Annie E. Casey Foundation says nationally, third graders who do not read pro­fi­cient­ly are four times more like­ly to leave high school with­out a diplo­ma.

Stu­dents who have lived in pover­ty are three times more like­ly to drop out or fail to grad­u­ate on time than their more afflu­ent peers. If they read poor­ly, the rate is six times greater than that for all pro­fi­cient read­ers, the study found.

"That number multiplies. It exacerbates if they don't know how to read and they are Brown or Black," Smith told WJZ. "It's also about developing multiple pathways to help a kiddo become college and career-ready to be college."

Cheryl Bost, is a teacher and the president of the Maryland State Education Association (MSEA), one the state's largest labor unions, said she is not against the proposed policy, but they do believe there's still more work to be done if it is implemented.

"We first have to say, did we do everything that we can as a state and as a district to put together all the support and resources for students to be successful," Bost said. " I don't think we're there yet, and many of our educators don't think we're there yet."

If adopted, the policy would be one of several major changes to early childhood education, a big focus of the state's multi-billion-dollar education reform plan, the Blueprint for Maryland's Future .

"We want to ensure that parents have a say and that they understand what is being offered to their children who are struggling," said Smith.

The department is asking for public feedback on the draft policy until July 19 before it's presented to the state Board of Education on July 23.

Parents, educators, and guardians are invited to review the draft policy and share suggestions by Friday, July 19 through the online Draft Literacy Policy Feedback Survey .

The draft policy will be presented during the State Board of Education meeting on Tuesday, July 23.