Summer Learning

Discover more about student learning during the summer, including summer school and summer camps
Multi-ethnic preschool boys playing with blocks.
E+ / Getty
Student Well-Being How Districts Can Keep After-School and Summer Learning Alive After ESSER Dries Up
Roughly 8 in 10 school districts spent some of their federal COVID relief funds on after-school or summer learning.
Alyson Klein, December 4, 2023
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4 min read
Adrian Mims
Adrian Mims, courtesy of the Calculus Project
Mathematics Q&A How to Support Black and Latino Students to Tackle Calculus
The founder of the Calculus Project speaks about how high school math pathways shape students’ postsecondary options.
Sarah Schwartz, November 28, 2023
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11 min read
Michael Crowder, 11, right, reads to Tim McNeeley, left, during an after-school literacy program in Atlanta on April 6, 2023. McNeeley, director of the Atlanta based Pure Hope Project, hosts the daily program for children in kindergarten through 5th grade.
Michael Crowder, 11, right, reads to Tim McNeeley, left, during an after-school literacy program in Atlanta on April 6, 2023. McNeeley, director of the Atlanta based Pure Hope Project, hosts the daily program for children in kindergarten through 5th grade.
Alex Slitz/AP
Student Achievement What the Research Says The State of After-School and Summer Programs, in Charts
New federal data show most schools offer extended-time academic programs, but small percentages of students use them.
Sarah D. Sparks, November 8, 2023
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1 min read
Michael Crowder, 11, right, reads to Tim McNeeley, left, during an afterschool literacy program in Atlanta on April 6, 2023. McNeeley, director of the Atlanta based Pure Hope Project, hosts the daily program for children in kindergarten through fifth grade.
Michael Crowder, 11, right, reads to Tim McNeeley, left, during an after-school literacy program in Atlanta on April 6, 2023. McNeeley, director of the Atlanta-based Pure Hope Project, hosts the daily program for children in kindergarten through 5th grade.
Alex Slitz/AP
Student Well-Being Districts Make Tutoring a Top Priority in After-School Programs Funded by COVID Relief Aid
Roughly 8 in 10 school districts spent part of their federal COVID relief funds on afterschool or summer learning.
Alyson Klein, October 25, 2023
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3 min read
Baltimore City School students find worms in the soil while exploring the woods and looking for decomposers during a scavenger hunt at Great Kids Farm and Forest Camp on Tuesday, July 25, 2023, in Catonsville, MD.
Baltimore City School students find worms in the soil while exploring the woods and looking for decomposers during a scavenger hunt at Great Kids Farm and Forest Camp on Tuesday, July 25, 2023, in Catonsville, MD.<br/>
Sam Mallon/Education Week
Student Well-Being Video Where These Urban Students Get To Learn About (and in) the Outdoors
This urban school district gives students the opportunity to learn in and about the outdoors at their district-owned farm.
Sam Mallon, September 5, 2023
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4:17
Third-grade teaching assistant Keione Vance leads a reading session with a small group of students at Boyd Elementary School in Atlanta on Dec. 15, 2022. To address learning loss caused by the pandemic, Atlanta has been one of the only cities in the country to add class time – 30 minutes a day for three years.
Third-grade teaching assistant Keione Vance leads a reading session with a small group of students at Boyd Elementary School in Atlanta on Dec. 15, 2022. Atlanta has been one of the only cities in the country to add class time—30 minutes a day—to help students catch up post-pandemic.
Sharon Johnson/AP
Student Achievement What Two New Studies Reveal About Learning Recovery
Effective programs require putting "a lot of effort into implementation," said one researcher.
Sarah Schwartz, August 10, 2023
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5 min read
Educators at the College Board's AP annual conference learn about various AP program offerings intended to address access and equity to advanced coursework for underrepresented students in Seattle, Wash. on July 20, 2023.
Educators at the College Board's AP annual conference learn about various AP program offerings intended to address access and equity to advanced coursework for underrepresented students in Seattle, Wash. on July 20, 2023.
Ileana Najarro/Education Week
Equity & Diversity How to Make AP Classes Accessible and Equitable: District Leaders Share Strategies
Various presentations at the College Board's AP annual conference this month touched on equity concerns around the AP program.
Ileana Najarro, July 27, 2023
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5 min read
Photo of a caucasian, elementary or middle school aged boy browsing and reading a book in the library.
iStock/Getty
Reading & Literacy Want Kids to Read in the Summer? School Librarians Can Help
A literacy expert breaks down factors that impact students' summer reading—-and they all involve school librarians.
Elizabeth Heubeck, July 21, 2023
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5 min read
Illustration of sun and sea.
Getty
Teaching Opinion Summertime: Relax, Enjoy, and Catch Up on Teaching and Learning Advice
Get research on summer learning, guidance on resetting for the new school year, and maybe a new favorite TV show.
Mary Hendrie, July 17, 2023
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4 min read
Abstract background pattern of painted doodles, marks, and shapes
DigitalVision Vectors/Getty
Student Achievement Opinion 4 Ways to Make Summer and After-School Learning Effective
High-quality expanded learning programs can reverse students' disengagement and fill in missing skills.
Richard W. Riley & Terry K. Peterson, July 12, 2023
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5 min read
Elementary aged girl sitting in a yellow lifesaver in a pool of very blue water reading a red book. Perspective is from above her.
E+/Getty
Reading & Literacy Kids Aren't Reading for Pleasure as Much. Summer Is the Time to Reverse That
When it comes to learning, reading may be the single most important activity a child can do during summer.
Elizabeth Heubeck, June 27, 2023
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4 min read
Chloe Lalone, a University of Iowa student from Storm Lake, works with Yamir Banks, a soon-to-be 2nd grader, while student teaching in a classroom on June 23, 2021, at Storm Lake Middle School. The Storm Lake Community School District and Buena Vista University collaborated to have the Storm Lake university's education students student teach during a summer school program designed to help students make up for any educational time lost due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The student teaching opportunity was also opened up to Storm Lake school alumni who are studying education at other colleges.
Chloe Lalone, a University of Iowa student, works with Yamir Banks, a soon-to-be 2nd grader, as part of a summer school summer school program designed to help students make up for educational time lost due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Summer school programs nationwide typically experience high rates of absenteeism.
Tim Hynds/Sioux City Journal via AP
Student Achievement Summer Schools Can Boost Learning, But Only If Students Attend
A new study finds Tennessee, like many states, has struggles with summer school absenteeism.
Caitlyn Meisner & Elizabeth Heubeck, June 26, 2023
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4 min read
Students, activists and educators gather to listen to Shavon Arline-Bradley, the president and CEO of the National Council of Negro Women speak during the Freedom to Learn rally. Demonstrators gathered in front of the College Board Headquarters in Washington D.C. to protest the College Board’s decision to alter their African American Studies curriculum, as well as to protest book bans and other divisive actions being taken in regard to education, during the Freedom to Learn rally on Wednesday, May 3, 2023.
Students, activists and educators gather to listen to Shavon Arline-Bradley, the president and CEO of the National Council of Negro Women speak during the Freedom to Learn rally. Demonstrators gathered in front of the College Board Headquarters in Washington D.C. to protest the College Board’s decision to alter their African American Studies curriculum, as well as to protest book bans and other divisive actions being taken in regard to education, during the Freedom to Learn rally on Wednesday, May 3, 2023.
Sam Mallon/Education Week
Social Studies Q&A Amid Public School Restrictions, 'Freedom Schools' in Florida Will Teach Black History
In St. Petersburg, Fla., a summer program focuses on the diverse histories of Africans and African Americans.
Ileana Najarro, June 5, 2023
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5 min read
Image shows a multi-tailed arrow hitting the bullseye of a target.
DigitalVision Vectors/Getty
School & District Management Opinion Don’t Bewail Summer Vacation for Students, Rethink It
Students experience summer vacation differently, depending on family resources. We should rethink the tradition with that in mind.
Rick Hess, June 5, 2023
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2 min read
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