In 2024, the Indiana General Assembly passed Senate Enrolled Act (SEA) 1 as a means to increase student literacy rates. For all the carrots in the bill, it also shoved a very large stick into the Hoosier education system: retention for students who do not pass IREAD in third grade.

The bill’s original passage created a flurry of coverage and “what-if” prognostications, including on this blog. But that was all long before the rubber hit the road. Now, spring 2025 is approaching, and we’re about to see the bill’s actual impact play out.

Will Thousands of Students Be Retained This Year?

Last year, 82.5% of Indiana’s third graders passed IREAD. Assuming our passing rate remains even or increases slightly (a good bet given post-COVID trends), that ostensibly means about 17% of Hoosier students are eligible for retention. There are what the state call “good cause exemptions,” which I’ll get into in more detail shortly, that mean a good chunk of that 17% won’t be retained. But we’re starting from a place where every student who does not pass IREAD might be retained under the law until other factors are considered.

And while the overall passing rate was 82.5% last year, it’s considerably lower for student subgroups. For instance, the Black student passing rate was 65.6% and the Hispanic student passing rate was 68.6%. So a higher proportion of those students, before considering the exemptions, may be slated for retention.

Now, in a vacuum, 17% of Hoosier students probably doesn’t mean much to you. Why would it? So let’s fill the vacuum with crumbs by making that 17% a bit more tangible. In 2023, 13,840 students failed to pass IREAD. Of that, around 5,500 received an exemption. If you’re keeping up with mental math as you read this, you’re likely noticing there’s over 8,000 students still eligible for retention that year. In the absence of SEA 1’s retention requirement, only 412 students were retained in third grade across the entire state.

So only a tiny fraction of students who could have been retained actually got retained (4.9% to be exact). Had SEA 1 been in effect, it seems realistic to me that the number of students who were retained last year would have been closer to 8,000 since the exemptions in place last year are basically the same as this year. The difference today is that there’s a requirement to retain rather than an option.

Far more than 412 students will be retained this year. Or else a whole bunch of schools will be flouting state law.

If You’re a Parent, Should You Be Worried That Your Student Will Be Retained?

Now, apocalyptic scenarios where third grade retention balloons from 400 students per year to 8,000 students per year aside for the moment, SEA 1 did a lot more than install a retention requirement. It also restructured the testing regimen leading up to and following the typical administration of IREAD in spring of third grade. That restructuring was designed to give schools more opportunities for early intervention as well as students more opportunities to pass IREAD.

By October 1 of each year, schools are now required to notify kindergarteners’ parents of early intervention and support available to help their student learn to read by the end of third grade. This includes taking IREAD in second grade (yes, you read that correctly, students now take the test starting in the previous grade level). (Here’s a snapshot of what your school should have sent you if you are the parent of a current kindergartener. If you did not receive something to that effect, stop reading now and call your school!)

In addition, beyond the typical spring of third grade administration, students who do not pass IREAD per the normal schedule will now have additional retest windows in spring and summer. Ultimately, students get multiple bites at the apple. Outside of biting the apple, they hypothetically get additional support from their school leading up to taking IREAD if they are flagged as in danger of not passing.

In addition, just like previous years, a swath of “good cause exemptions” exist. If a student qualifies for one of these, they can progress to the next grade even if they did not pass IREAD. Exemptions include:

• Special Education – If a student’s individualized education program indicates that retention is not appropriate and the student’s case conference determines promotion is appropriate.
• English Learner – If a student is identified as an English Learner, has received services for less than two years, and has an individual learning plan committee that decides promotion is appropriate.
• Math Exceptionality – If a student passes the math portion of the ILEARN in third grade.
• Twice Retained, Interventions Applied – If a student was already retained twice during K-2 and received intensive interventions during those academic years.
• Previously Retained – If a student was already retained once in third grade.

Whose responsibility is it to tell the state which students qualify for an exemption? Schools. But, parents can appeal their school’s decision to retain their student (here I’m quoting from the IDOE’s website) “if they believe their student qualifies for one of the exceptions.”

So if you’re a parent of a current third grader: Know what the exemptions are and whether or not your student qualifies. If you believe your student does, verify this with your school. Then hound your school starting right now about the following:

• When they plan to administer IREAD (it could be anytime from March 3-14 with the summer retest window happening from May 12-June 27).
• Whether they have any concerns about your student’s ability to pass IREAD.When you will receive your child’s IREAD scores after the test is complete.
• What the plan is if your child does not pass the first time.

In the meantime, if you’re a parent, I’d love to hear what communication has been like from your school around this topic. What has your school told you about the possibility of retention and how are they preparing your student for IREAD this read? Drop a comment or email me at fullcircleindy@gmail.com.