(Associated Press) New research from Michigan State University finds between 2% and 5% of third-graders would be held back if the state’s early literacy law was in effect.

The report written by the East Lansing school’s Education Policy Innovation Collaborative , or EPIC, also estimates between 7% and 11% of black third-graders would be similarly retained if the 2016 law were in place. It goes into full effect in the upcoming school year.

The overall number represents between 2,000 and 2,500 students.

EPIC Co-director Katharine Strunk says the report’s aim is to identify and help struggling students before such actions are necessary. She adds the estimates line up with evidence of inequities in early literacy proficiency.

Strunk is part of the Michigan Education Research Institute, which is studying the law’s rollout and effect.