Antonette Minniti

1. Impact of Attending Summer Academy Reading Classes on Students’ Standardized Testing and Academic Grades AntonetteMinniti

2. Abstract • Researchers have explored the reasons behind the achievement gap in students’ reading ability; some of the reasons include summer reading setbacks, lack of access to high interest books, and differences in socioeconomic backgrounds. Most recommendations for trying to close the achievement gap entail some way of extending the learning process during the summer months, including recommended summer reading lists, access to many high-interest reading material for students, summer reading programs that provide some structure, and more structure summer classes. For instance, a public high school district in Illinois, containing 5 high schools, attempts to improve students’ reading achievement by identifying students who are not meeting standards and requiring these students to take a 3 week summer reading academy class prior to their freshmen year. This research proposal will explore the impact that these summer reading academy classes are making on student achievement by comparing their Explore scores before and after, as well as analyzing their academic grades in core classes like English and Science.

3. This study will investigate the effectiveness of the summer academy programs in all 5 high schools within Township District 211. The following questions will be investigated: • Do summer academy classes help improve reading scores on our standardized tests, such as Explore or PLAN? • Do summer academy classes help grades stay above a C in core classes, such as English and Science? • Do summer academy classes help students transition to high school?

4. Hypothesis • My hypothesis is that the Summer Reading Academy classes help to improve Explore reading scores, help students maintain grades above a C in English and Science classes, and help students transition to high school.

5. Literature Review • According to Reschly (2010) in “Reading and School Completion: Critical connections and Matthew Effects,” “As students progress through levels of education, proficiency in reading becomes increasingly important as a means of garnering new knowledge; students who do not have sufficient skills are often unable to keep up with course content and expectations, leaving them to fall further and further behind their peers” (p. 68).

6. Literature Review • Cooper et al. (1996) examined 39 studies that showed a decline in achievement test scores after summer. After a meta-analysis of 13 of those studies, Cooper et al. (1996) also found a decline in test scores, especially for lower-class students. Similarly, Allington et al. (2010) writes that “research on summer learning loss has provided reliable evidence that the reading achievement of economically disadvantaged students slides back a few months every summer” (p. 412).

7. Literature Review • “…disadvantaged children need year-round, supplemental programming to counter the continuing press of family and community conditions that hold them back” (Alexander, Entwisle, & Olson, 2007, p. 176). • “Providing summer programming reinforces prior learning, accelerates learning, and promotes a positive trajectory of learning that facilitates better transitions to the next age level of education” (Edmonds, O’Donoghue, Spano, & Algozzine, 2008, p. 220).

8. Literature Review • Summer curriculum is important in order to make the greatest gains. • In “Anything but Reading,” Krashen (2009) warns that we need to be cautious about programs that promote “reading-like behavior” rather than actually ways to improve reading (p. 19).

9. Research Proposal • Compare Explore scores before and after summer academy • Compare grades in core academic areas • Survey students about transition to high school

10. How do we motivate students to read? And other questions…

11. Further questions… • What other summer programs exist and how do they compare? • How much does socioeconomic status affect students at each of the schools? • What curriculum is implements at each school? • If an out-of-district teacher is teaching the class, what curriculum are they given? • How many years should I track the groups of students? • Does a summer program increase student motivation to read?

12. Next steps • Continue researching all the subtopics in more detail • Familiarize myself with the Summer Reading Academy curriculum at each school • Investigate what statistical procedures will best suit my research, including both quantitative and qualitative • Build a survey to assess whether or not Summer Academy helped with student transitioning to high school

13. Invite for Feedback • There are Summer Academy Reading and Math classes, but I’ve focused on Reading for this project since I come from an English background. In expanding this to a dissertation, is it okay to focus on just reading? Or do you feel like it may be too narrow? • Do you think I should look at all five high schools or would I get strong enough results from 2 or 3? • Do you think that the Summer Reading Academy classes benefit your students?

14. Thank you Essentially, the time spent invested in creating or improving summer programs can pay off in huge dividends, and I am hoping that my research will serve to be beneficial to the profession of educating students.