{"id":2277,"date":"2013-01-14T21:49:15","date_gmt":"2013-01-14T21:49:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.speechbuddy.com\/blog\/?p=2277"},"modified":"2023-11-08T10:28:23","modified_gmt":"2023-11-08T18:28:23","slug":"teaching-kids-to-read-in-ohio-or-else","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.speechbuddy.com\/blog\/news\/teaching-kids-to-read-in-ohio-or-else\/","title":{"rendered":"Teaching Kids to Read in Ohio\u2026 Or Else! What the New Law Means for Your Child"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Teaching<\/a>

Image source: Elisabethwdesign.blogspot.com<\/p><\/div>\n

Everyone has tough days at work. It\u2019s inevitable whether you\u2019re a speech therapist hunting down the latest speech therapy techniques<\/a>, or you\u2019re an esthetician fielding requests for crazy spa treatments like bee venom facials. (Yes, they\u2019re a real thing.) But while most of us don\u2019t have to deal with bee venom at work, most of us do have to deal with office politics\u2026 and some of us deal with politicians setting office rules. Teaching kids to read is no longer the sole jurisdiction of teachers, parents, and speech-language pathologists (SLPs).<\/a> Case in point, if you\u2019re a teacher in Ohio, you are now legally required to hold back a child if he cannot meet the state reading requirements. It\u2019s referred to as the reading retention program, and Ohio is the latest in a string of states to implement it. Here\u2019s the lowdown on the law and what it could mean for your child.<\/p>\n

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The Law on Teaching Kids to Read in Ohio & The Controversy<\/strong><\/p>\n

The law is called the Third Grade Reading Guarantee. The basic principles behind the law appear to be sound; when kids learn to read fluently early on, they tend to do better academically. And if a child can\u2019t meet the reading requirements, it should be apparent that he needs extra help. But the consequence of a child not meeting the requirements \u2013 being held back a grade \u2013 is drawing the ire of parents and educators.<\/p>\n

On the one hand, some appreciate the law because promoting a child to the next grade before he\u2019s ready means that he\u2019ll struggle to keep up with his peers in the next year. But on the flip side, a child who is held back is at a greater risk for dropping out of school as a teen.<\/p>\n

Furthermore, there\u2019s the lack of adequate resources to consider. In today\u2019s economy, school districts have had to make cuts and layoffs wherever they could. And while some schools have rushed to hire reading specialists and even recruit high school kids to bolster the efforts for teaching kids to read, it\u2019s clear that these efforts aren\u2019t going to be enough to keep every child in a grade that is on par with his age.<\/p>\n