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Board Policy 5117 - PreK – 3 Literacy - Promotion, and Retention

Board Policy 5117 - PreK – 3 Literacy - Promotion, and Retention

I. Policy Statement

  1. The Prince George’s County Board of Education (Board) affirms its commitment to ensuring that every student in PreK through grade 3 receives the strong foundation in literacy necessary for long-term academic success. The Board also believes that students should advance through the early grades only when they have developed the skills needed to be successful at the next level. Research shows that because students learn at different rates and some require longer to master specific academic skills, early intervention is necessary to ensure they master basic literacy skills.
  2. The Board is committed to ensuring all students meet or exceed rigorous performance and achievement standards, with timely identification and provision of appropriate and effective instruction, supports, and interventions to ensure students’ academic  progress and success.

II. Purpose

  1. This policy is designed to promote instructional equity, enhance literacy outcomes, and build a strong foundation for future academic success, regardless of students’ cultural background, linguistic diversity, socioeconomic status, geographical location, or specific learning needs.
  2. The purpose of this policy is to also provide guidelines for consistent promotion, acceleration, intervention, and retention practices to support students in meeting or exceeding grade level standards, with ongoing communication with students and families regarding students’ progress.

III. Definitions

  1. Evidence-based – Programs or practices that have demonstrated a statistically significant effect on improving student outcomes or other relevant outcomes based on well-designed and well-implemented studies, quasi-experimental studies, or correlational studies with statistical control for selection bias.
  2. Individualized Education Program (IEP) - A legal, written plan developed for a student with a disability to ensure they receive specialized instruction and related services in public schools. The IEP is created through a collaborative team effort and reviewed at least once a year.
  3. Intervention(s) - A research-based academic or behavioral support determined by student need. Interventions are targeted to teach a new skill, build fluency in a skill, or support the application of an existing skill to a new situation. Interventions are founded on data-based decision-making protocols and can be applied to support individual students or groups of students. Progress monitoring is an essential component for intervention to ensure that instruction is modified to align with student needs.
  4. Literacy -The ability to use printed and written information to function in society, achieve goals, and develop knowledge and potential. It involves reading, writing, speaking, and listening in ways that allow effective communication and comprehension of the world.
  5. Multi-tiered System of Support (MTSS) - A framework for supporting and increasing academic, behavioral, and social-emotional outcomes for ALL students.
  6. Parents - Any one of the following individuals who is legally responsible for a student:
    1. Biological parent – a natural parent whose parental rights have not been terminated.
    2. Adoptive parent – a person who has legally adopted the student and whose parental rights have not been terminated.
    3. Custodian – a person or agency appointed by a court as the legal custodian of the student and granted parental rights and privileges.
    4. Guardian – a person who has been placed by a court in charge of the affairs of the student and granted parental rights and privileges.
    5. Caregiver – an adult resident of Prince George’s County who exercises care, custody, or control over the student, but who is neither the biological parent nor legal guardian.
    6. Foster parent – an adult approved to care for a child who has been placed in their home by a State agency or a licensed child placement as provided by Section 5-507 of the Family Law Article.
  7. Promotion – The act of advancing a student to the next grade after the current school year’s requirements are met.
  8. Reading Intervention/Supplemental reading instruction – Evidence-based, sequential, systematic, explicit, and cumulative instruction or intervention to mastery of foundational reading skills, including phonological or phonemic awareness and processing phonics and vocabulary to support development of decoding, spelling, fluency, and reading comprehension skills to meet grade level curriculum.
  9. Retention – The act of retaining a student in a particular grade based upon a demonstrated inability to achieve at expected levels of performance. Retention is an intervention that should be used only when all other interventions have been exhausted.

IV. Standards

  1. PreK-3 Literacy - The Superintendent /designee shall be responsible for the implementation of the following:
    1. Equitable access to high-quality, evidence-based literacy instruction for all students in PreK through third grade.
    2. Yearly identification of students, beginning in pre-K, who are at risk of reading difficulties through appropriate screening and assessments multiple times during the school year.
    3. Utilization of program-specific monitoring tools that schools will use to collect and analyze intervention data to make instructional decisions.
    4. The provision of timely supplemental reading instruction aligned to students identified needs and targeted interventions for any student demonstrating reading difficulties.
    5. A process for notifying parents of any Prek-3 student who exhibits difficulty in reading at any time and for engaging parents as active partners in monitoring and supporting their child’s literacy development. These communications must be provided in a language and format that parents can understand.
    6. A clear process for considering promotion and retention in which multiple measures of student learning are utilized to inform promotion and retention decisions, and the decisions are in alignment with Maryland law and regulations.
    7. Parent notification of the decision for promotion or retention and the informed consent process to the student’s parents at the end of 3rd grade.
    8. Ongoing reporting and review of data to ensure practices are implemented consistently and equitably across all schools.
  2. Professional Development
    1. The Superintendent /designee must ensure all general education teachers, special education teachers, teachers of multilingual learners, and administrators in grades PreK-3 have received training in the science of reading each school year.
    2. The Superintendent /designee shall ensure that all general education teachers, special education teachers, teachers of multilingual learners, and administrators in all grades receive training regarding Administrative Procedure 5123.1 promotion and retention requirements.
  3. Promotion and Retention Decisions - The Superintendent/designee shall establish processes that utilize retention only as an intervention after MTSS has been implemented and other interventions have been exhausted. The processes shall include the following:
    1. Promotion and retention decisions for all grade levels, as outlined in Administrative Procedure 5123.2, shall be guided by relevant state law and guidance, progress towards grade level standards, and a student’s path towards college and career readiness.
    2. Parents and staff shall be included in the decision-making process for determining the promotion and retention of students.
    3. Students with an Individualized Education Program (IEP) shall not be retained due to the need for additional special education or compensatory services. Any student with an IEP who is considered for retention shall be first referred to the IEP team to determine whether the student requires revisions to the IEP.
    4. The appeal process for parents who disagree with promotion and retention decisions shall be in accordance with Administrative Procedure 5123.2.
    5. A waiver option that schools may submit for students who have not met promotion requirements shall be provided in accordance with Administrative Procedure 5123.2
  1.  

V. Implementation Responsibilities

  1. The Superintendent is authorized to develop, implement, and update administrative procedures to operationalize this policy in compliance with state mandates and best practices in literacy instruction.
  2. This policy shall be reviewed at least once every three years, or more frequently as required by changes in state law, regulation, or Board priorities.
  3. Reporting
    1. The Superintendent/designee shall report annually to the Board and to MSDE student promotion and retention data, below-grade-level student performance data; the supports and interventions delivered to students, number and percentage of students receiving evidence-based interventions; data regarding the promotion of students in grade 3 for good cause and the promotion of students in grade 3 for sufficient reading skills.
    2. The annual report shall also include a gap analysis of the data disaggregated by students’ race, ethnicity, gender, and disability, and the inclusion of trend data for each student group.
  4. The Superintendent/designee shall submit to MSDE by September 15 of each school year the list of all teachers and administrators who have received training in the science of reading.

VI. References

  1. Legal
    MD. CODE ANN., EDUC. §4-136, §7-202 COMAR 13A.03.08
  2. Other Policies and Administrative Procedures
    Administrative Procedure 5123.2 – General Procedures Pertaining to Promotion, Retention, and Acceleration of Students
    Administrative Procedure 6150 – Educational Requirements and Options in Secondary Schools
  3. Other MSDE Comprehensive PreK-3 Literacy Policy

VII. History

Policy Adopted      03/22/2001
Policy Amended    05/16/2003
Policy Amended    08/25/2005
Policy Reviewed   No Revisions Required 11/27/2006
Policy Amended    04/29/2010
Policy Amended    01/22/2026

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