MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) - After the COVID-19 pandemic interrupted classrooms, Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey faces a decision whether to delay next year's high-stakes requirement to hold back third-graders who aren't reading on grade level.
Ivey has through Thursday to sign legislation by Sen. Rodger Smitherman, D-Birmingham, that would push back the promotion requirement from the 2021-22 school year to the 2023-24 school year. If she does not sign the bill, the legislation will die by what is known as a pocket veto.
Ivey spokeswoman Gina Maiola said the bill is under review.
The high-stakes promotion requirement is set to take effect at the end of next year, but supporters argued it would be unfair to force the requirement on students who were out of the traditional classroom for long stretches during the pandemic.
But opponents have argued it would be a disservice to students to delay the promotion requirement - a part of a broader state program to boost literacy- or that the state should wait until latest test scores are available to decide.
Republican Rep. Terri Collins of Decatur, who sponsored the original measure in 2019, has argued lawmakers should wait and see the latest test scores before deciding if a delay is needed.
Alabama lawmakers in 2019 approved several initiatives to try to boost reading scores. It included that beginning in the 2021-22 school year, third graders would be required to meet reading benchmarks before moving to the fourth grade. Students would have to make a minimum score on a reading assessment or demonstrate mastery of all third-grade state reading standards as evidenced by a student reading portfolio.