Math interventions bill would now exempt some Ohio schools from teaching science of reading
A recently added carveout to a math interventions bill would exempt some Ohio schools from teaching the science of reading curriculum — despite a statewide mandate.
Lawmakers in the Ohio House Education Committee recently approved changes to Ohio Senate Bill 19 that would excuse Ohio’s classical schools from having to teach the science of reading, which is based on decades of research that shows how the human brain learns to read and incorporates phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension.
“This legislature and the governor placed a major emphasis … on science of reading to great effect, and now is not the time to start carving out loopholes for certain schools,” said Devin Babcock, senior legislative director for ExcelinEd in Action.
Ohio school districts were required to teach the science of reading curriculum starting with the 2024-25 school year after the law took effect in 2023 through the state’s two-year operating budget.
The budget gave $86 million for educator professional development, $64 million for curriculum and instructional materials, and $18 million for literacy coaches.
“We’ve held the line as a state for the last few years, as have all the other states that have made this move,” Babcock said.
“If you’re a public school taking public money, then let’s do the best thing for kids and use the science of reading that we’ve adopted here as a state.”
Forty-two states and the District of Columbia have passed laws or implemented new policies related to evidence-based instruction since 2013, according to Education Week. Mississippi went from being ranked the second-worst state for fourth-grade reading in 2013 to being ranked 21st in 2022 after implementing science of reading policy.
Ohio has eight classical schools that follow the K-12 curriculum of Hillsdale College, a Christian liberal arts college in Michigan.
Some tenets of classical school curriculum include teaching Latin and a close reading of Western classics, among other things, according to Hillsdale College.
Ohio S.B. 19 — which passed unanimously in the Ohio Senate in November — originated as an academic intervention bill to help students who score below proficient on state assessment tests.
The bill would allow a public school student who scored below proficient in a state assessment test in math or English language arts to receive academic intervention services at no cost.
The Ohio Education Association testified in opposition to the bill in March,
“The bill is well-intentioned, but the details matter,” OEA President Jeff Wensing said in his testimony. “These tests provide useful information, but classroom educators have more information about a student’s knowledge and abilities in the subject.”
The bill would require school districts or individual schools to come up with a math achievement improvement plan if 51% or less of the district or school’s students who took the third grade math achievement assessment scored at least a proficient score on the assessment.
Under the bill, schools would be required to develop math improvement and monitoring plans for each student that qualifies for math intervention services within 60 days after getting the student’s third grade assessment math results.
A math improvement and monitoring plan would identify the student’s “specific math deficiencies,” describe the additional instructional services they will receive, offer a chance for their parent or guardian to be involved, outline a monitoring process and offer high-dosage tutoring at least three days a week.
“From the experience of Reading Improvement and Monitoring Plans (RIMPs), I can tell you that this is an onerous task that will often fall on classroom teachers,” Wensing said in his testimony. “Educators’ time is in too short supply to add more paperwork, administrative tasks, and exercises in compliance.”
Ohio Sen. Andrew Brenner, R-Delaware, introduced the bill, which has had five hearings in the Ohio House Education Committee.