A RESEARCH REPORT FROM EPIC

Read by Grade Three Law Initial Retention Decisions

Prepared for Michigan Department of Education

October 2021

The retention component of the Read by Grade Law was set to take effect at the end of the 2019-20 school year. However, because state testing was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the state waived the retention piece of the Law. When state testing resumed for the 2020-21 school year, students who scored below a state-determined cut-off on the third-grade ELA M-STEP assessment were for the first time eligible for retention under the Read by Grade Three Law. Districts were responsible for determining whether each eligible student would be retained in the third grade or promoted to the fourth grade through a good cause exemption.

EPIC’s Preliminary Read by Grade Three Retention Estimates report provided the first look at retention eligibility for students who took the third-grade ELA M-STEP in 2021. Districts were required to determine which students would be retained and which would be promoted, and to provide this information to CEPI by September 1st, 2021. This follow-up report analyzes districts’ reported retention and exemption decisions.