INTRODUCTION

For a great number of city children, the vacation school is almost the most welcome and attractive feature of the vacation term. With its pleasant lessons, its amusements, and the occasional outings it affords, it holds the interest of children where the ordinary school curriculum simply bores them.

—From the School Board Journal, 1902, as cited in American School Board Journal, 2002

 

Ah, summertime. For many children and their families, the word conjures up images of lazy days, family vacations, camp activities, and freedom from the constraints of school-year schedules.

Of course, summer's not always so idyllic. Many working parents must scramble to find safe, affordable child care or piece together short-term activities for their school-aged children. For adolescents—who may resist being enrolled in structured activities—too much unsupervised time can lead to everything from boredom to risky behaviors.

Increasingly, educators and parents are also looking to summer as an extended learning season, particularly for students who struggle to meet academic goals during the nine-month school year. By 2000, more than a quarter of the nation's school districts were requiring summer school attendance of students who were not meeting standards for promotion (Mathews, 2000). Among the 50 largest districts, almost half now offer summer classes, and many make attendance mandatory for students who are behind grade level (Harrington-Leuker, 2000).

Boosting academic achievement is only one goal of summer programming. Many parents seek summer enrichment opportunities for their children in special interest areas such as art, music, technology, or sports. Some summer programs recruit students from populations traditionally underrepresented in fields such as math and science. For working parents, especially, summer can pose a challenge: Where to find safe, engaging activities for their children that are also affordable? Educational summer programs provide a welcome solution for many working families.

Tapping summer as a season for learning instead of leisure raises many questions, including:

• What are the different types of summer programs?
• What are the potential benefits of summer school?
• What strategies are most effective for delivering summer instruction?
• What challenges does summer school pose?
• Where are the implications for program planners and coordinators?
• What are the implications for parents?
• What are the implications for community partners?

Although summer school has not been a hot topic for study in the past, researchers are taking a fresh look at learning that takes place during the summer months. This booklet provides a summary of recent research on summer school, as well as profiles of summer programs serving students in the Northwest region.