Title: Summer learning loss and summer schoolDate: July 2011

Question: What does the research say about summer learning loss and the effectiveness of summer school for at-risk students?

Response:

We conducted a search for research reports, policy-oriented briefs, and articles in this area. We also searched for appropriate organizations that may serve as resources on the topic of summer school. We have not done an evaluation of these resources themselves, and offer them to you (with links, where available) for your own review. Abstracts and summaries are provided by the authors or organizations themselves.

We found several publications on summer learning loss and summer school for at-risk students. For example, a new report (McCombs et al. 2011) includes a review of the literature on summer learning loss and summer learning programs as well as data from programs offered by districts and private providers across the United States. A randomized controlled trial of the Building Educated Leaders for Life (BELL) program found that the BELL group students “gained about a month’s worth of reading skills more than their counterparts in the comparison group during the summer” (Chaplin 2006). Another article synthesized findings from studies of several summer programs (for economically disadvantaged children and youth (Terzian 2009). An ERIC Research Digest (Harris 2005) reports that “summer learning loss equaled at least one month of instruction as measured by grade level equivalents on standardized test scores” and suggests three approaches to preventing summer learning loss: extended school year, summer school, and a modified calendar that replaces the long summer break with shorter cycles of attendance and breaks.

This memo also includes information on five relevant organizations. The Education Commission of the States and the National Summer Learning Association, in particular, offer many additional publications and resources to consult.

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Publications

Alexander, K. L., Entwisle D. R., and Olson L. S. (2007). Lasting consequences of the summer learning gap. American Sociological Review, 72, 167–180.

Abstract: Prior research has demonstrated that summer learning rooted in family and community influences widens the achievement gap across social lines, while schooling offsets those family and community influences. In this article, we examine the long-term educational consequences of summer learning differences by family socioeconomic level. Using data from the Baltimore Beginning School Study youth panel, we decompose achievement scores at the start of high school into their developmental precursors, back to the time of school entry in 1st grade. We find that cumulative achievement gains over the first nine years of children’s schooling mainly reflect school-year learning, whereas the high SES-low SES achievement gap at 9th grade mainly traces to differential summer learning over the elementary years. These early out-of-school summer learning differences, in turn, substantially account for achievement-related differences by family SES in high school track placements (college preparatory or not), high school noncompletion, and four-year college attendance. We discuss implications for understanding the bases of educational stratification, as well as educational policy and practice.

Alexander, K. L., Entwisle D. R., and Olson L. S. (2007). Summer learning and its implications: Insights from the Beginning School Study. New Directions for Youth Development, 114, 11–32.

Abstract: There is perhaps no more pressing issue in school policy today than the achievement gap across social lines. Achievement differences between well-to-do children and poor children and between disadvantaged racial and ethnic minorities and majority whites are large when children first begin school, and they increase over time. Despite years of study and an abundance of good intentions, these patterned achievement differences persist, but who is responsible, and how are schools implicated? The increasing gap seems to suggest that schools are unable to equalize educational opportunity or, worse still, that they actively handicap disadvantaged children. But a seasonal perspective on learning yields a rather different impression. Comparing achievement gains separately over the school year and the summer months reveals that much of the achievement gap originates over the summer period, when children are not in school. The authors review Beginning School Study research on differential summer learning across social lines (that is, by family socioeconomic level) and its implications for later schooling outcomes, including high school curriculum placements, high school dropout, and college attendance. These studies document the extent to which these large summer learning differences impede the later educational progress of children of low socioeconomic status. Practical implications are discussed, including the need for early and sustained interventions to prevent the achievement gap from opening wide in the first place and for high-quality summer programming focused on preventing differential summer learning loss.

Alexander, K. L., Entwisle, D. R. and Olson, L. S. (2001). Schools, achievement, and inequality: A seasonal perspective. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 23, 171–191.

Abstract: Are there socioeconomic differences in the seasonality of children’s learning over the school year and summer months? The achievement gap across social lines increases during the primary grades, as much research indicates, but descriptive analyses and HLM within-person growth models for a representative panel of Baltimore school children demonstrate that the increase can be traced mainly to the out-of-school environment (i.e., influences situated in home and community). School-year verbal and quantitative achievement gains are comparable for upper socioeconomic status (SES) and lower SES children, but summer gains, when children are out of school, evidence large disparities. During the summer, upper SES children’s skills continue to advance (albeit at a slower rate than during the school year), but lower SES children’s gains, on

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average, are flat. This seasonal pattern of achievement gains implies that schooling plays an important compensatory role, one that is obscured when achievement is compared on an annual basis, as is typical. Policy implications of the seasonality of learning are discussed, including support for preventive measures over the preschool years and for programs, possibly including calendar reforms and summer school, to support disadvantaged children’s learning year-round.

Borman, G. D., and Dowling, N. M. (2006). Longitudinal achievement effects of multiyear summer school: Evidence from the Teach Baltimore randomized field trial. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 28(1), 25–48.

Abstract: Employing a randomized field trial, this three-year study explored the effects of a multiyear summer school program in preventing the cumulative effect of summer learning losses and promoting longitudinal achievement growth, for a total treatment group of 438 students from high-poverty schools. Longitudinal outcomes for the participants were contrasted to those for 248 children randomized into a no-treatment control condition….Maximum likelihood mixture models, which estimated the effects of the treatment for compliers, revealed statistically significant effects on learning across all three literacy domains tested for those students who attended the Summer Academy at an above average rate across two or more of the three summers that it was offered. Relative to their control-group counterparts, treatment compliers held advantages of 40% to 50% of one grade level on the final posttests.

Borman, G. D., Goetz, M. E., and Dowling, N. M. (2009). Halting the summer achievement slide: A randomized field trial of the KindergARTen Summer Camp. Journal of Education for Students Placed at Risk, 14(2), 133.

Abstract: In this randomized field trial of KindergARTen Camp, a six-week summer enrichment program in literacy and the fine arts, we analyzed the summer learning outcomes of 93 treatment and 35 control students from high-poverty schools in Baltimore, Maryland. This experiment offers evidence concerning the causal effect of the program on five measures of students' literacy achievement. We found treatment effects during the summer months that were of both practical and statistical significance on the Developmental Reading Assessment (DRA) and the Word List A assessments. In addition, results from surveys of KindergARTen Camp students, parents, and teachers revealed strong satisfaction with the program. We conclude by discussing the contextual factors that may have contributed to these results.

Borman, G. D., and Boulay, M. (Eds.) (2004). Summer learning: Research, policies, and programs. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Summary: The purpose of this book is to provide scholars and policymakers with the most current, research-based evidence concerning summer learning and a range of summer school programs. Specifically, we discuss four aspects of the summer learning issue. In Part I we present evidence describing seasonal variations in learning and how these learning differences affect equality of educational opportunity and outcomes in the United States. In Part II we discuss the development, characteristics, and effects of the most recent wave of summer programs, which are designed to play key roles in the recent standards movement and related efforts to end social promotion. In Part III we examine the impact of three of the most widespread, replicable summer school programs serving students across the United States. Finally, in Part IV, we consider the characteristics and effects of alternative programs and practices, which are designed to com- bat the problem of summer learning loss head on.

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Boss, S., and Railsback, J. (2002). Summer school programs: A look at the research, implications for practice, and program sampler. Portland, OR: Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory. Retrieved June 6, 2011, from http://educationnorthwest.org/webfm_send/451

Summary: This booklet is one in a series of “hot topics” reports produced by the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory. Each booklet in the series contains a discussion of research and literature pertinent to the issue, a sampling of how Northwest schools and programs are addressing the issue, selected resources, and contact information.

Chaplin, D., and Capizzano, J. (2006). Impacts of a summer learning program: A random assignment study of Building Educated Leaders for Life (BELL). Washington, DC: The Urban Institute. Retrieved January 27, 2011, from http://www.urban.org/publications/411350.html

Abstract: A growing body of evidence indicates that the test scores of low-income children drop significantly relative to their higher-income counterparts during the summer months. This study finds that a well-implemented summer learning program can improve reading skills and increase the extent to which parents encourage their children to read during the subsequent school year. These findings provide some support for investments in out-of-school time programming for low-income children during the summer, such as those currently coming from the 21st Century Community Learning Centers program and the Supplemental Services provisions of Title I of the No Child Left Behind Act. This study used random assignment, the gold standard of evaluation methods, to evaluate the effectiveness of the Building Educated Leaders for Life (BELL) program—a summer program designed to improve academic skills, parental involvement, academic self-perceptions, and social behaviors among low-income children and families. Over 1,000 elementary school children who applied to BELL summer programs in New York and Boston in 2005 were randomly chosen to be in either a treatment group that was selected to participate in the BELL summer program, or a comparison group that was not. Independent researchers collected student reading tests (Gates-MacGinitie) and student and teacher surveys. The study found that children in the BELL treatment group gained about a month’s worth of reading skills more than their counterparts in the comparison group during the summer. This is a modest, yet notable increase in reading skills for a six-week program. The study also found evidence of positive impacts on the degree to which parents encouraged their children to read. No impacts were found on academic self-perceptions or social behaviors. Overall, this study provides scientifically rigorous evidence regarding the ability of the BELL summer program to improve the reading skills of low-performing elementary school children.

Cooper, H., Nye, B., Charlton, K., Lindsay, J., and Greathouse, S. (1996). The effects of summer vacation on achievement test scores: A narrative and meta-analytic review. Review of Educational Research, 66, 227–268.

Abstract: A review of 39 studies indicated that achievement test scores decline over summer vacation. The results of the 13 most recent studies were combined using meta-analytic procedures. The meta-analysis indicated that the summer loss equaled about one month on a grade-level equivalent scale, or one tenth of a standard deviation relative to spring test scores. The effect of summer break was more detrimental for math than for reading and most detrimental for math computation and spelling. Also, middle-class students appeared to gain on grade-level equivalent reading recognition tests over summer while lower-class students lost on them. There were no moderating effects for student gender or race, but the negative effect of summer did increase with increases in students’ grade levels. Suggested explanations for the findings include the differential availability of opportunities to practice different academic material over summer (with reading practice more available than math practice) and differences in the material’s susceptibility to memory decay (with fact- and procedure-based knowledge more easily forgotten than conceptual knowledge). The income differences also may be related to differences in opportunities to practice

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and learn. The results are examined for implications concerning summer school programs and proposals concerning school calendar changes.

Harris, C. (2005). Summer learning loss: The problem and some solutions. Champaign, IL: ERIC Clearinghouse on Elementary and Early Childhood Education. Retrieved January 27, 2011, from http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICDocs/data/ericdocs2sql/content_storage_01/0000019b/80/29/d4/7a.pdf

Summary: Noting the National Education Commission on Time and Learning report, which reflected a growing concern about the impact of a long summer break on at-risk students, this Digest examines loss of learning over summer and offers suggestions for addressing the problem. The Digest first examines concerns raised by long summer vacations: children learn best when instruction is continuous; the long break affects special needs students; and equity concerns, as higher SES students often return from summer break with considerable educational advantage. The Digest next summarizes research into summer learning loss. Meta-analyses are cited, which found that summer learning loss equaled at least one month of instruction as measured by grade-level equivalents on standardized test scores, that summer loss was more pronounced for math facts and spelling—both factual/procedural rather than conceptual learning; and that individual differences among students may also play a role. Finally, the Digest details three approaches to preventing summer learning loss: extended school year, summer school, and a modified calendar that replaces the long summer break with shorter cycles of attendance and breaks.

McCombs, J. S., Augustine, C. H., Schwartz, H. L., Bodilly, S. J., McInnis, B., Lichter, D. S., and Cross, A. B. (2011). Making summer count: How summer programs can boost children's learning. Santa Monica, CA: The RAND Corporation. Retrieved June 20, 2011, from http://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/monographs/2011/RAND_MG1120.pdf

Abstract: Despite long-term and ongoing efforts to close the achievement gap between disadvantaged and advantaged students, low-income students continue to perform at considerably lower levels than their higher-income peers in reading and mathematics. Research has shown that students’ skills and knowledge often deteriorate during the summer months, with low-income students facing the largest losses. Instruction during the summer has the potential to stop these losses and propel students toward higher achievement. A review of the literature on summer learning loss and summer learning programs, coupled with data from ongoing programs offered by districts and private providers across the United States, demonstrates the potential of summer programs to improve achievement as well as the challenges in creating and maintaining such programs. School districts and summer programming providers can benefit from the existing research and lessons learned by other programs in terms of developing strategies to maximize program effectiveness and quality, student participation, and strategic partnerships and funding. Recommendations for providers and policymakers address ways to mitigate barriers by capitalizing on a range of funding sources, engaging in long-term planning to ensure adequate attendance and hiring, and demonstrating positive student outcomes.

Miller, B. M. (2007). The learning season: The untapped power of summer to advance student achievement. Quincy, MA: The Nellie Mae Education Foundation. Retrieved January 27, 2011, from http://www.nmefdn.org/uploads/Learning_Season_ES.pdf

Summary: Today, leaders looking to improve our education system are again focusing on lengthening the school day, making this an opportune time to explore the links betweenchildren’s summer experiences and school success. This report’s goal is to help readersunderstand the connection between a child’s summer experiences and his or her success inschool and beyond, and to highlight the potential for the summer months to bridge persistenteducational gaps.

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Roderick, M., Engel, M., and Nagaoka, J. (2003). Ending social promotion: Results from Summer Bridge. Chicago: Consortium on Chicago School Research. Retrieved June 27, 2011, from http://ccsr.uchicago.edu/publications/p59.pdf

Abstract: In the 1996-97 school year, the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) began a national trend when it included a required summer program, Summer Bridge, as a central component of its efforts to end social promotion. Over 21,000 students in the third, sixth, and eighth, or promotional gate grades, have attended Summer Bridge each year, making it one of the largest and most sustained summer school programs in the country. This report presents a rigorous and careful evaluation of Chicago’s Summer Bridge program. It is designed to address the following central questions that arise in the use of summer programs to support low-achieving students under high-stakes testing:

To what extent is Summer Bridge effective in increasing students' test scores and allowing more students to be promoted? And, how do the short-term effects of the program vary by whether students have very low skills or are closer to the test scores required for promotion?

To what extent is there evidence that large-scale mandatory summer programs can produce uniform effects across students and schools? To what extent do summer programs like Summer Bridge provide positive learning environments for students?

How did staffing characteristics, teachers' implementation of the curriculum, and classroom learning environments shape the program's impacts?

Can a summer program provide help for low-achieving students that is sustained over time.

Schacter, J., and Jo, B. (2005). Learning when school is not in session: A reading summer day campintervention to improve the achievement of exiting first-grade students who areeconomically disadvantaged. Journal of Research in Reading, 28(2), 158–169.

Abstract: During the summer vacation children who are economically disadvantaged experience declines in reading achievement, while middle- and high-income children improve. Previous research has demonstrated that the most widely implemented intervention – sending economically disadvantaged students to summer school – has not led to increases in reading achievement. In this longitudinal randomized trial, a randomly assigned group of exiting first-grade children who were economically disadvantaged was enrolled in a seven-week summer reading day camp. The intervention students' reading achievement was then compared to control group participants at four time points. Results showed noteworthy differences for intervention students in reading comprehension.

Schearer, M., and Canner, J. (2002). Instructional innovation in summer school: Outcomes for urbanstudents. Research in Middle Level Education Online, 25(2). Retrieved January 27, 2011, from http://www.nmsa.org/portals/0/pdf/publications/RMLE/rmle_vol25_no2_article3.pdf

Abstract: In this paper, we present evaluation findings from a high-stakes summer school program intended to help students failing Grade 8 in June 2000 meet promotion requirements by mid-August. Program components included: teacher professional development, an interdisciplinary curriculum, a Classroom, Inc. computer simulation and a related student workbook, and weekly on-site support visits. Over 300 students and 27 teachers in an urban district’s nine middle schools participated in the program. The district and a not-for-profit organization (Classroom, Inc.) collaborated to offer the program. We used a pre-/post- design with traditional and non-traditional measures to examine student outcomes. The program fostered positive outcomes, including improvements in attendance, disciplinary referrals, and academic engagement. Performance in four core subjects—mathematics, reading, science, and social studies—was enhanced. District students made a greater than average improvement in standardized mathematics test scores, and reading gains comparable to the citywide Grade 8 results. Overall, scores on problem-solving performance assessments improved modestly between the pre- and post-testing; the scores of the lower two-thirds of the sample improved significantly. Students and educators deemed the program valuable;

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they would recommend it to others. Educators would use the program again—for Grade 8 and other levels. Implications for a larger scale implementation are discussed.

Terzian, M., Moore, K. A., and Hamilton, K. (2009). Effective and promising summer learning programs and approaches for economically disadvantaged children and youth: A white paper for the Wallace Foundation. Washington, DC: Child Trends. Retrieved March 10, 2011, from http://www.wallacefoundation.org/KnowledgeCenter/KnowledgeTopics/CurrentAreasofFocus/Out-Of-SchoolLearning/Documents/Effective-and-Promising-Summer-Learning-Programs.pdf

Summary: This White Paper summarizes findings from an extensive literature review that was conducted to identify effective and promising models and approaches for meeting the needs of low-income children, youth, and families during the summer months. Special attention is paid to summer learning programs that serve urban, low-income children and youth. Data on program participation suggest that children and youth who would stand to benefit the most from summer learning programs (i.e., children and youth who are economically disadvantaged, have low school engagement, and/or exhibit problem behavior) are the least likely to participate.

Terzian, M., and Moore, K. A. (2009). What works for summer learning programs for low-income children and youth: Preliminary lessons from experimental evaluations of social interventions. Washington, DC: Child Trends. Retrieved January 27, 2011, from http://www.wallacefoundation.org/KnowledgeCenter/KnowledgeTopics/CurrentAreasofFocus/Out-Of-SchoolLearning/Documents/Effective-and-Promising- Summer -Learning- Programs-Fact-Sheet.pdf

Summary: Children and youth who reside in economically disadvantaged households and in low-resource, urban neighborhoods are more likely to lose ground in math and reading over the summer than their higher-income peers. Although summer learning programs are a promising strategy for narrowing this achievement gap, surveys indicate that only 25 to 36 percent of U.S. children between 6 and 11 years of age attend summer programs (excluding summer school). This Fact Sheet presents some emerging lessons from 11 summer learning programs that were evaluated using experimental research designs. These programs are included in the Child Trends’ online database of experimentally evaluated, out-of school time interventions–LINKS (Lifecourse Interventions to Nurture Kids Successfully; available online at www.childtrends.org/LINKS). All of the programs were implemented with economically disadvantaged children and youth.

Warger, Eavy & Associates (2009). Summer bridge programs. Washington DC: The Center for Comprehensive School Reform and Improvement. Retrieved July 5, 2011, from http://www.centerforcsri.org/files/Center_PB_May09.pdf

Summary: This policy brief focuses on one type of activity that is designed to help eighth-grade students make a successful transition to high school—eighth-grade summer bridge programs. These programs are similar in concept to their counterparts for aspiring college bound students who may benefit from extra support. Students are identified and recruited into a summer program that offers academic remediation, social support, and orientation activities that are designed to enhance their ability to succeed during their freshman year. As part of a comprehensive transition approach, summer bridge programs can be a promising practice for school administrators and policymakers to consider.

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Other resources

Education Commission of the Stateshttp://www.ecs.org/The Education Commission of the States (ECS) is an interstate compact created in 1965 to improve public education by facilitating the exchange of information, ideas and experiences among state policymakers and education leaders. As a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization involving key leaders from all levels of the education system, ECS creates unique opportunities to build partnerships, share information, and promote the development of policy based on available research and strategies. ECS has a Policy Issue Site on summer school, with selected research and readings: http://www.ecs.org/html/issue.asp?issueid=121&subissueid=0

National Center on Time & Learninghttp://www.timeandlearning.org/The National Center on Time & Learning (NCTL) is dedicated to expanding learning time to eliminate the achievement gap and provide a well-rounded education for children in high-poverty schools. NCTL conducts research and advances public policy at the federal, state, and local levels and provides direct technical assistance to states, districts, and schools that add significantly more school time for academic and enrichment opportunities to help children meet the demands of the 21st century.

National Summer Learning Association http://www.summerlearning.orgThe National Summer Learning Association serves as a network hub for thousands of summer learning program providers and stakeholders across the country, providing tools, resources, and expertise to improve program quality, generate support, and increase youth access and participation. We offer professional development, quality assessment and evaluation, best practices dissemination and collaboration, and strategic consulting to states, school districts, community organizations, and funders. Our efforts are focused on achieving the following results:

Increase the number of providers offering high-quality summer learning programs to young people living in poverty;

Increase the number of organizations and policymakers that identify summer learning as a public policy priority; and

Increase funding for high-quality summer learning programs for young people who currently lack choices and opportunities.

Partnership for Children and Youth, Summer Learning and Enrichment Initiativehttp://partnerforchildren.org/The mission of the Partnership for Children and Youth is to ensure that school-age children and youth living in low-income communities have the support and the opportunities they need and deserve to be successful in school and in life. We help schools secure the resources necessary to provide after-school and summer programs, health care, and nutritious meals – the things we know children need to succeed and thrive. Partnership for Children and Youth, along with collaborators such as The David and Lucile Packard Foundation, the National Summer Learning Association, Senator Mark deSaulnier, and State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson, are working to change the landscape of California’s summer learning opportunities through a Summer Learning and Enrichment Initiative (http://partnerforchildren.org/what-we-do/out-of-school-time-initiatives/summer-programs).

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The Partnership works at the local, state and federal levels to strengthen existing summer programs and to advocate for a supportive environment in which to develop new summer opportunities. The Partnership is addressing these issues by helping communities build effective summer programs for children and youth. Our strategies include:

Researching and disseminating information about possible sources of funding for summer programming to schools, community organizations, municipalities and other possible providers;

Supporting providers in strengthening the program quality through planning, partnerships, assessment and continuous improvement; and

Building the tools and capacity of local technical assistance providers to support summer program development and expansion.

The Wallace Foundation, Summer and Extended Learning Time sitehttp://www.wallacefoundation.org/knowledge-center/summer-and-extended-learning-time/Pages/default.aspxLaunched in 2010, the Foundation’s More Time for Learning Initiative supports efforts to engage children in more hours of learning both over the summer and during the school year. A central part of our work is to study these programs, measure their effects on student achievement, and make the findings public. Our summer learning and extended learning efforts are guided by three common strategies:

Inform mayors, school district leaders, parents and others about how more hours for learning could improve student achievement.

Strengthen the few well-established nonprofits with strong summer or extended learning programs so they can serve more children.

Help selected city school districts introduce and test more-learning-time programs on a wide scale, and then evaluate the results.

Beginning in summer 2011, in a major new phase of The Wallace Foundation’s multi-year, $50 million summer learning initiative, children in low-income communities in six cities will take part in improved summer learning programs (http://www.wallacefoundation.org/view-latest-news/PressRelease/Pages/Project-to-Test-Whether-Summer-Learning-Programs-Produce-Lasting-Academic-Gains.aspx). Through 2014, these school district-based programs will provide much-needed experience and evidence on how schools can end the damage from summer learning loss, which leaves many students several years behind by the time they enter high school. The summer learning urban district project seeks to confirm whether intensive summer programming that combines academics and enrichment can boost achievement and narrow the gap, a question of considerable importance to educators, policymakers and parents, especially in a time of tight education budgets. The Wallace initiative also has two other separately-funded parts: support of nonprofits that run successful summer learning programs; and communication efforts to build awareness among policymakers and the public of the value of high-quality summer learning programs.

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Methods

The research summarized here was located by searching Institute of Education Sciences (IES) resources [Regional Educational Laboratory Program (REL); IES Practice Guides; What Works Clearinghouse (WWC); and Doing What Works (DWW)], the Education Resources Information Center (ERIC), and Google/Google Scholar electronic databases for recent publications that referenced the following set of keywords: summer school effectiveness, summer school, summer learning, or academic summer learning.

This memorandum is one in a series of quick-turnaround responses to specific questions posed by educators and policymakers in the western region (Arizona, California, Nevada, Utah), which is served by the Regional Educational Laboratory West (REL West) at WestEd. This memorandum was prepared by REL West under a contract with the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences (IES), Contract ED-06-CO-0014, administered by WestEd. Its content does not necessarily reflect the views or policies of IES or the U.S. Department of Education nor does mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.

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