While state-level considerations about Tennessee’s controversial third- and fourth-grade retention law continue, so do district-level frustrations as parents and educators prepare students for another stressful year of testing.
A 2021 law requires that third-graders who don’t pass the English language arts portion of the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program receive learning interventions and demonstrate growth in order to advance to the fourth grade. Certain students — such as those with disabilities, English learners or those who have already been retained — are exempt from the law. Families can also appeal retention decisions to the Tennessee Department of Education.
While 1.2 percent of third-graders statewide (898 in total) were retained last year, thousands of students who advanced on the condition they’d receive tutoring in fourth grade are again facing retention if they don’t show enough improvement. The state Board of Education formally defined that measure at a Feb. 16 meeting. Affected students can be promoted to fifth grade if they score “met expectations” or “exceeded expectations” on the ELA portion of the TCAP. Otherwise, their ability to move on will be determined by whether they meet an “adequate growth target,” which is calculated through a complicated individualized formula that factors in aspects like state test scores and their probability of becoming proficient in ELA.
In education, Republicans are likely to focus on vouchers, retention policies and enhanced school security
“Failing a fourth-grader is not the answer,” said former fourth-grade teacher and current state Board of Education representative Krissi McInturff during the February meeting. While McInturff — who represents Tennessee’s 1st Congressional District on the board — voiced support for the intention of the law, she also listed negative effects associated with retaining students, including academic struggles, stress, increased dropout rates among students who have been retained and emotional impact.
Drue Allison is the parent of an MNPS fourth-grade student who, despite having straight A’s and later qualifying for the district’s Gifted and Talented Education program, didn’t score high enough on last year’s TCAP to automatically move to fourth grade. Allison enrolled him in tutoring and administered practice tests at home, but her son didn’t pass the initial TCAP test or the makeup test. Because he scored high enough on a benchmark test, however, Allison successfully applied for an exemption for her son.
Allison says the experience “has absolutely affected his self-esteem — that is really hard to recover from.”
On March 4, the state board convened for a special-called meeting to approve an appeals pathway for third-graders. The board-approved pathway allows students who score in the 40th percentile and higher on a universal reading screener to appeal a retention decision if they also enter an academic remediation plan, if the student’s principal and teacher provide a unanimous promotion recommendation, and if the student receives tutoring in fourth grade.
Members also approved a resolution brought forward by Ryan Holt, who represents Tennessee’s 5th Congressional District on the board. The resolution urges the governor and General Assembly to reconsider the retention law by “maintaining the excellent supports for struggling readers,” but suggesting that kindergarteners through third-graders be considered for retention under the law rather than third- through fourth-graders.
In 2023, the state passed legislation that widens the criteria gap for students to advance to fourth grade if they pass the TCAP or score within the 50th percentile of the last benchmark test before the TCAP, while also receiving tutoring in fourth grade. The law also allows school staff to assist families in appealing retention decisions.
Legislation to adjust the retention law is currently being considered, including one bill that would require schools to hold parent-teacher conferences about retention decisions rather than leaving them fully in the hands of the state. Another item baked into the House’s massive voucher amendment would allow additional off-ramps for fourth-graders facing retention if they receive learning interventions.
