Thousands of children not reading on grade level could face being held back a year if some legislators have their way.

On Wednesday, a bill that would ban social promotion for first- through third-graders who struggle in reading cleared the House Education Standing Committee, its first legislative hurdle, 8-6.

There would be some exceptions, and students now in lower elementary grades wouldn't be affected.

The idea is to help strugglers instead of moving them up — a practice the sponsor, Rep. Karen Morgan, says can doom academic futures.

"I consider it to be a safety net for poor readers," Morgan, D-Cottonwood Heights, said of her bill. "It will change lives."

Reading by third grade is a statewide education initiative. Research has shown children who can't read by grade three may never catch up, said Morgan, a former teacher.

Lawmakers last year gave $15 million to help struggling young readers, and school districts mostly have matched the investment.

Substitute HB84, as Morgan sees it, is that program's accountability piece.

The bill would bar social promotion for young students reading below grade level, as determined through multiple assessments.

Schools would have to notify parents before mid-school year if a child is falling behind, then give that child intense personalized instruction, from one-on-one tutoring to summer school, to pull the child up.

The bill does not apply to children learning English as a second language, special-education students and first- and second-graders who show a full year's growth even if they're not quite meeting the mark.

The state doesn't know how many Utah students are held back each year. The state's two largest school districts say the practice is discouraged.

But last spring, about 20 percent of Utah's first- through third-graders were not reading on grade level, according to state core curriculum test results (CRTs) supplied by the State Office of Education. That's 8,100 first-graders, 7,900 second-graders and 6,500 third-graders not meeting the goal.

It's uncertain, however, whether all would face retention under the bill, as schools could use multiple assessments to determine a child's skills.

Morgan believes the bill will focus schools' efforts on ensuring students aren't held back. In a school in Provo District, which started a similar program in 1999, 150 students were notified midyear they might be held back. By year's end, seven faced retention. And after summer school, all but one could move on.

Rep. John Dougall, R-American Fork, is impressed with the bill's prospects.

"We all have a responsibility to ensure that these kids are meeting the core requirements before they progress," he said. "I've heard too many teachers say they feel pressure to move kids along."

Several addressing the House Education Committee, however, worried about local control, having older students mixed with younger ones, and whether the bill would unduly punish a child who is not at fault if the school system breaks down.

"The decision to retain a child is a painful, complex decision best made by teachers who have worked with that child and . . . parents who need to be involved in that decision," said Sandy Peterson, assistant superintendent of Davis School District.

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