IMPLICATIONS FOR PROGRAM PLANNERS AND COORDINATORS

Setting clear goals for summer school and allowing adequate planning time can help to alleviate the most common program challenges.

Funding Challenge

Funding is a major roadblock to creating and sustaining summer school programs in many communities. Communities may be able to overcome this challenge by drawing on a variety of funding sources for summer school. Districts may be able to tap funding streams for programs such as Title I, 21st Century Community Learning Center grants, Safe and Drug-Free Schools grants, migrant education funds, and private foundation support. See the Resources section for links to grant opportunities.

In addition, the No Child Left Behind Act requires districts to fund supplemental educational services for students in low-income families attending Title I schools that are in their second year of improvement (USDOE, 2002). These services can include academic assistance such as tutoring, remediation, and other educational interventions, and must occur outside the regular school day. For more information about these services, see the Supplemental Educational Services Draft Non-Regulatory Guidance, Title I, Section 1116(e) at www.ed.gov/offices/OESE/SASA/suppsvcsguid.doc.

Other Implications

Research on summer school suggests other implications for program planners and coordinators, including these:

• Define summer learning goals. If policymakers are most concerned about stemming summer learning losses, especially for less-advantaged children, they must consider research findings carefully. Summer learning losses in math do not mean that summer programs focusing on literacy are without value; summer school can have positive effects on reading as well as math (Cooper, 2001).
• Consider ways to integrate summer offerings with the regular school year curriculum (Borman, 2000). Hiring teachers from the regular program to teach summer school can be an effective strategy for maintaining continuity.
• Connect children with community resources for expanding their summer learning opportunities. A number of organizations offer positive, well-designed summer experiences for school-aged children; many offer scholarships based on family need. Consider organizing a summer program fair to help families become aware of the summer options and help program providers connect with local families. Don't overlook local libraries as resources for boosting children's summer interest in reading.
• Encourage parent involvement in summer school. Research shows parent involvement to be a factor in children's success (Cooper et al., 2000). Because many parents work during the day, consider holding an evening open house to outline program expectations. Provide opportunities for parents to be involved in their children's summer learning.
• Encourage participation by students from less-advantaged families; provide transportation to and from summer programs and food service at the program site. Some programs make arrangements for siblings to attend summer programs at the same location to ease logistics for families.
• Provide culturally appropriate programming that meets local needs and fits the community context.
• Involve students in program planning. Consider recruiting a student advisory committee to provide feedback about program offerings that students consider to be of interest.
• Plan for evaluation of program outcomes, and draw from evaluation results to adjust future programming and provide continuity from year to year.
• Integrate staff development activities into summer instruction. Small classes and the more relaxed atmosphere of summer sessions make it an opportune setting for teachers to experiment with new teaching strategies and course materials (Cooper, 2001).