A Mandeville state lawmaker says he’ll try again this year to pass a bill that would hold back certain public school students who are way behind in reading. Republican Richard Nelson has filed House Bill 12 again this year, and says this same bill almost crossed the finish line in the 2022 session; passing the House but falling shy of votes in the Senate…:
“Some people weren’t there and it was in the final days of the session. So this year I think I’ll have the votes and I’ll have the support…and I’ll get out in front to maybe educate people more…”
Nelson’s HB 12 would affect third graders who fail a standard federal literacy, then fail again – even after remedial study help. He says the same initiative was done in a neighbor state to great success…:
“It was modeled off legislation that Mississippi passed in 2013. It has really seen them go leaps and bounds in improving their elementary literacy.”
Nelson says parents needn’t worry their kid could be held back a grade for having a “bad day” during a test. He says the system will be much deliberate in determining which children need to receive additional teaching in reading, so they can go on the better learning outcomes…:
“It’s going to be a situation where you actually have failed three consecutive administrations of this literacy test…and you really can’t read. And that the only time you would be held back.”
He says Mississippi went from 49th in the U.S. to 21st in grade school literacy. Nelson says he expects his bill to affect a fairly low percentage of kids, but those children need to receive learning assistance. The regular legislative session starts in early April. Nelson, by the way, is a declared candidate for governor this fall.
Comments