Summer school makes an unlikely candidate for a bright spot in education reform during these difficult economic times. It occupies a long-held negative place in U.S. culture, prompting dread in the hearts of many former and current students. Summer school conjures up images of sitting in hot classrooms and receiving remedial instruction while…

By offering teachers and parents a vision of an alternative structure, an effective summer program can stimulate change during the school year. The Southern Coalition for Educational Equity created such a program in New Orleans, Louisiana, for underachieving minority students. Focus was on effective instruction, increased student participation,…

Data indicate that absolute summer achievement decline is not common. Relative decline, where low achievers do not keep pace over the summer with their peers, is common. Finally, attendance at summer school appears to have no strong ameliorative effect on achievement, either short-term or longer-term. (Author/MLF)

About 1,300 school students in Round Rock (Texas) Independent School District attend redesigned summer school program that provides intensive interventions in reading and math for students functioning below grade-level standards. Most take reading and math on alternate four-hour days for six weeks in classes with 15:1 student/teacher ratio.…