INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb has signed a bill into law that tightens policies to hold back and help children who don’t demonstrate reading proficiency by third grade.

Senate Bill 1 to address students’ decline in reading skills was the top priority of the Republican supermajority during this year’s legislative session that ended Friday.

The changes would hold back students unless they meet one of a few exceptions.

Amendments to the bill created a policy for parents to appeal a remediation recommendation.

School are bracing for more students in the third grade as a result of the legislation, according to Chalkbeat Indiana.

The legislative also raised concerns among teachers of English language learners. Those educators say the retention mandate ignores research on language acquisition, and could violate federal law.

More than 4 out of 5 third graders — just under 82% — passed the Indiana reading exam, the IREAD, in 2023. However, that’s approximately the same pass rate as in 2022 and 2021, highlighting concerns about Indiana students’ recovery to pre-pandemic levels.

Chalkbeat Indiana contributed to this report.