Data: Comparing Reading Performance in Ohio to Florida in Third Grade Reading Guarantee Debate

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Some Ohio policy makers want Ohio to follow Florida's lead on third grade reading.

On Monday at 9 a.m., our partners at WCPN’s Sound of Ideas take on the issue of the third grade reading guarantee and how that policy has played out in Florida. (Listen online here.)

For nearly ten years now, Florida has required third graders to score above a certain level on the state reading test in order to move on to the fourth grade.

Our partners at StateImpact Florida say that when the third grade reading requirement took effect in 2003, it caused an uproar:

More than 30 percent of Florida’s third graders were at risk of being held back.

But:

Within two years the number of third graders at risk of being held back was cut in half. The rate remained constant until this year, when the state raised the requirements to pass.

And Florida’s scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress have improved faster than the national average.

Since the state approved the third grade reading requirement in 2002, fourth grade NAEP reading scores have increased by 11 points — the equivalent of a year’s worth of improvement. Florida scores now exceed the national average.

So how does Florida compare to Ohio?

• Looking at the percentage of all fourth graders who are proficient in reading, Florida was significantly behind both Ohio and the nation in 2002.
• By 2011, Florida had caught up to — but not outperformed — Ohio and the nation.
• Over the same period, the percentage of Ohio fourth graders proficient in reading didn’t change significantly.

Percent of Fourth Graders Proficient in Reading

Source: National Assessment of Educational Progress. Because the NAEP is conducted using a sample of schools, small differences in the percentage of student at or above the “proficient” level are not necessarily significant. We have noted the significant differences between years and between Ohio and other juridictions in these charts.

Florida officials also say that their third grade reading guarantee policy had led to even greater improvements in how many low-income and non-white fourth graders are proficient in reading.  When we compare the performance of low-income fourth graders (those eligible for free/reduced-price lunch) to non-low income fourth graders in Florida and Ohio, Florida also comes out ahead.

• A greater percentage of low-income Florida fourth graders were proficient in reading in 2011 than in 2002. In Ohio, that figure didn’t change significantly.
• In 2002, Ohio and Florida were roughly on par in terms of the percentage of low-income fourth graders proficient in reading. By 2011, Florida had surpassed Ohio.
• But, like many other states, the performance of Florida’s non-low income students improved significantly more than the performance of low-income students.

Percent of Low-Income Fourth Graders Proficient in Reading

Here’s the obvious catch: It’s not clear that holding back third graders who can’t read was the sole reason for its improvements. In fact, even those pushing Ohio to follow Florida’s lead aren’t saying that a third grade reading guarantee on its own is a magic bullet. They say things like funding tied to student success and policies like a school grading system that heavily weights much the bottom tier of students improve have also led to Florida’s improved educational performance.

And according to the non-partisan Education Commission of the States, the states and school districts that have seen the most success in requiring students to pass a reading test to advance to the next grade level generally pair that requirement with close monitoring of small class sizes and intensive, personalized help.

But the commission does say that retention policies may generate “a sense of urgency for improving early reading proficiency, similar improvements in student achievement might well be achieved through identification and intervention — without the need for retention.”