‘Back to school’ brings new education laws to Indiana classrooms
Casey Smith - July 31, 2024
Thousands of Hoosier students are headed back to school this week and next — and with the start of a new academic year comes a slew of new policies affecting testing, curriculum and classroom behavior.
More than a dozen K-12 education laws were passed by state lawmakers during the 2024 session and went into effect July 1. Some details — like changes to IREAD tests and high school diplomas — are still being hashed out by state officials and won’t become official for several years.
And although newly-enacted legislation brings minimal changes to schools’ finances, the second year of the current biennial budget does bring some dollar boosts.
Per-student funding increases improved 5.3% in Fiscal Year 2024, and another 1.8% for this fiscal year, which began July 1. That means schools received $8.84 billion for tuition support last fiscal year, and $9.03 billion this year. Private school vouchers and public charter schools also get a portion of this funding, however.
Indiana’s next two-year budget will be crafted in the 2025 session and take effect July 1 of next year.
As kids return to classrooms, these are some of the changes to expect:
IREAD and third grade retention
Among the most debated legislation of the 2024 session, Senate Enrolled Act 1 seeks to remedy Indiana’s literacy “crisis” by requiring schools to administer the statewide IREAD test in second grade — a year earlier than previous requirements — and direct new, targeted support to at-risk students and those struggling to pass the exam.
But if, after three tries, a third grader can’t meet the IREAD standard, legislators want school districts to retain them. That number could reach into the thousands, according to 2023 data. New IREAD results for tests taken in Spring 2024 are expected to be released next month.
Nearly 1,100 schools opted-in to administer IREAD to second grade students during the 2023-2024 school year, according to the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE). All will be required to do so when giving students the test in March 2025.
Students who demonstrate reading proficiency in second grade won’t have to test again, and their passing score will be reflected in the following year’s IREAD results for third grade students.
The summer school course curriculum must be aligned to science of reading and be taught by a teacher, instructor or tutor who is specifically trained in that instructional practice, according to IDOE. A summer retest option will also be available to third grade students who did not reach proficiency in second grade or during regular spring testing.
Students who do not attend or attend less than 90% of the summer reading program will have to participate in an individual reading plan the following school year if they do not pass IREAD during the summer retest.
IDOE guidance indicates that the state agency will verify fourth grade enrollment submissions to ensure students have passed the IREAD or qualify for a “good cause exemption” following the 2025 IREAD summer retest.
Those exemptions exist for certain special education students, certain students on Individualized Education Programs (IEP) and students who are English language learners.
Still, the law carves out a mechanism for parents to appeal a retention decision if they believe their student qualifies for an exemption. It’s up to school boards to establish that process locally before the start of the 2024-2025 school year, according to IDOE.
Also starting this fall, schools will be required to notify kindergarteners’ parents of early literacy screening and intervention that will be available to help their child read by the end of third grade. Families must also be informed of the third grade retention requirement if their student does not pass the IREAD. That communication has to be provided annually, by Oct. 1, under the new law.
Religious instruction
Although an option previously existed for Hoosier students to receive religious instruction during regular school hours, House Enrolled Act 1137 requires schools to approve parental requests for students to leave class during the day.
The change tightens previous Indiana law that permitted students to leave school for up to 120 minutes a week for voluntary religious instruction, as long as it takes place off school property, and private transportation is provided.
Effective July 1, school principals must allow a student to attend religious instruction offered by “a church, an association of churches, or an association that is organized for religious instruction and incorporated under Indiana law, as an excused absence.”
As before, the instruction can’t exceed two hours per week, and the entity offering religious instruction must collaborate with the school principal to ensure the time when the student attends outside instruction is “least disruptive” to the student’s academic instructional time.
IDOE guidance further emphasized that religious instruction can’t be supported by public funds, but the school’s governing body is allowed to adopt a policy to provide elective credits for the instruction.
Cell phones
Schools must also adopt new policies that ban students from using cell phones and some other devices during instructional time, with some exceptions. Senate Enrolled Act 185 applies to cell phones, tablets, laptops and gaming devices that could cause distractions or disruptions during class.
According to IDOE, each school corporation and charter school must post the rules to the school or corporation website.
Even so, a teacher is still permitted to let students use a wireless communication device for educational purposes during instructional time. Students can also access their phone or other device in the event of an emergency or to manage the student’s health care, as outlined in the new law.
The school’s policy also can’t prohibit a student from using a wireless communication device during instructional time if its use is included in an IEP or 504 Plan.
Career Scholarship Accounts
More high school students will have access to work-based learning opportunities through the Career Scholarship Account (CSA) program, a 2023 program that was expanded this spring by House Enrolled Act 1001.
The $5,000 scholarships can be used to pay for apprenticeships or career-related coursework. Starting this year, students can also use annual CSA grants to cover certification exams, and up to $625 can go towards training for a driver’s license as long as their training employer matches at least half of the cost. Grant funds can’t be used to purchase vehicles, however.
The new law also extends eligibility for Education Scholarship Accounts (ESAs) to the siblings of students who have disabilities, even if those siblings do not have disabilities themselves. Before, ESAs were only available for students who require special education services.
Chronic absenteeism
In response to high rates of absenteeism across the state, Senate Enrolled Act 282 introduces stricter truancy prevention and response measures. Lawmakers said the new policy seeks to return students back to classrooms by compelling more parental involvement and responsibility.
Public school districts will be required to report habitually truant students — already defined in state law as those who have missed 10 or more days of school without an excuse or parental notification — to the local prosecuting attorney.
The law also mandates meetings with parents of K-6 students who have been identified as chronically absent to develop improvement plans, emphasizing accountability and proactive intervention.
The latest Indiana data shows that about 40% of students statewide missed 10 or more school days last year, and nearly one in five were “chronically absent” for at least 18 days. Schools have gotten creative to try to combat the growing problem, but many education officials called on lawmakers to do more and pointed to research showing that being absent as few as three days out of the school year affects test scores and overall academic performance.
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