Summer learning loss

Summer learning loss or summer slide, is the loss of academic skills and knowledge over the course of <a href="/facts/Summer_vacation/MzjLsFAn">summer vacation</a> in countries that have lengthy breaks in the school year, such as the US and Canada. Schools see evidence of this because students are often given a <a href="/facts/Standardized_test/PkunTjfB">standardised test</a> prior to the summer break and again when they return to school in the autumn.
Research studies produce different results as to the extent of the loss, however they all appear to agree that the loss in learning varies across age and grade, subject matter, and family income and <a href="/facts/Socioeconomic_status/5rVhvE8b">socioeconomic status</a>. In 2017, one review of the research in the U.S.A. concluded that a) on average students lost one month of learning over the summer months, b) students lost more of their math ability than their reading ability, c) students in higher grades lost more of their learning in general than those in lower grades, d) students from low income households lost reading ability, but students in middle and high income households gained some, and e) there was no difference in loss or gain based on gender or race in either math or reading.

Summer learning loss open-in-new

Summer learning loss