Old customs die hard, and for generations, people have taken a benign view of the widespread tradition, almost universal in North America, of summer vacation from school.
But some educators aren’t at the beach, or working in their gardens this summer—they’re part of a serious effort to diminish the effect of a phenomenon some label “summer learning loss.”
Former IRA President Richard Allington is among the many experts who have examined the phenomenon. In an article titled “Lost Summers” that appeared in the August 2001 issue of the journal Classroom Leadership, Allington and Anne McGill-Franzen cited research showing that summer vacations, on average, created an annual reading achievement gap of about three months between students from middle-income families and students from lower-income families. The cumulative achievement lag could add up to two years by middle school, even when effective instruction was available in school. Allington and McGill-Franzen said schools could minimize the loss by putting books in students’ hands, especially by making them available at little or no cost for low-income students.
In that same year, the Center for Summer Learning was established. The center is based at the Johns Hopkins School of Professional Studies in Business and Education and collaborates extensively with faculty throughout the institution. It also has a 30-member national advisory board that provides critical leadership and support to the organization.
Among the center’s programs, says Ron Fairchild, its executive director, is Summer Learning Day, held on the second Thursday of July, and meant to promote the idea of making high-quality summer learning opportunities available for children. The center promotes that idea throughout the year, of course, and Fairchild notes that a number of communities and organizations on the local, state, and federal level have responded.
Title I and the No Child Left Behind Act provide funding for summer enrichment programs (NCLB includes the 21st Century Community Learning Centers, which is meant to address low-income children’s needs outside of school). Illinois Senator Barack Obama has introduced the Summer Term Education Programs for Upward Performance Act of 2005, or STEP UP Act of 2005, which would provide funds for summer learning. The bill was cosponsored by Maryland Senator Barbara Mikulski. There are policy initiatives in New Mexico and numerous other places, and 13 state governors have issued proclamations in support of enrichment activities when school is closed, Fairchild says, all evidence of a growing perception that summer learning loss matters and can be prevented.
Among its activities, the center has identified summer program characteristics that may contribute most to making summer productive and enjoyable for young people:
1. Intentional focus on accelerating learning
2. Firm commitment to youth development
3. Proactive approach to summer learning
4. Strong, empowering leadership
5. Advanced, collaborative planning
6. Extensive opportunities for staff development
7. Strategic partnerships
8. Rigorous approach to evaluation and commitment to program improvement
9. Clear focus on sustainability and cost-effectiveness
But the ability to enrich children’s summers is not limited to schools or especially created summer programs. Museums, camps, recreation centers, libraries, and other places children are found in the summer all “play a critical role in getting books into kids’ hands,” Fairchild says. For parents, the tips are simple: Go to the library, have kids attend camps with learning activities included, take educational trips, exploit informal learning opportunities (with hobbies, say, or technology), practice math skills, and limit television and video games to reasonable times.
If teachers want to make summer a time of enrichment, not loss, Fairchild says they should talk to parents about the importance of reading during the summer. During parent conferences near the end of the year, tell them about the types of work their children will do the following year, and how they can get ready. Fairchild also recommends checking with local libraries to coordinate their summer reading programs with the school’s.
For more information about the Center for Summer Learning, visit their website.
Some seek to stem summer learning loss. (August 2006). Reading Today, 24(1), 25.
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