Why Summer Learning Matters - to Boston and the Nation

Summer Learning: Bridging the Opportunity and Achievement Gap

April 3, 2013

Will MillerPresident, The Wallace Foundation

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OutlineWhy summer learning matters

What Boston and Wallace are doing about it

The keys to successful collaboration

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The Wallace FoundationAn endowment of $1.4 billion

Stewards of resources created by othersFunding innovationSupporting the creation of credible, useful

knowledgeSharing broadly

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1972 to 1973 1983 to 1984 1994 to 1995 2005 to 20060

2,500

5,000

7,500

10,000

3,536

5,650

6,975

8,872

835 1,264 1,173 1,315

Enrichment Expenditures on Children(in 2008 dollars)

Top Quintile Income Bottom Quintile Income

5Source: Whither Opportunity?, 2011, Greg Duncan and Richard Murnane, ed., p. 11

The growing opportunity gap

Free Lunch Reduced Lunch Not Eligible0

25

50

75

100

Reading Math

Achievement gap: Progress, challengesProgress in math proficiency

More kids succeeding, but achievement gap persists

6Source: NAEP, The RAND Corporation

Percent scoring at or above basic on 2011 4th grade NAEP tests

4th Grade NAEP Math Proficiency 1996 2011

African Americans 4% 17%

Whites 27% 52%

Summer learning loss is part of problem“Over time, the difference between

the summer learning rates of low-income and higher-income students contributes substantially to the achievement gap.”

“Research shows that voluntary summer programs, mandatory summer programs, and at-home reading programs can all have positive effects on student achievement.”

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Making Summer Count, RAND, 2011

A window of opportunityGiven growing interest in summer learning

If together we can generate:Evidence about potential gains from strong programsEvidence about how to implement quality programs

We can simultaneously strengthen your efforts and change the national conversation.

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OutlineWhy summer learning matters

What Boston and Wallace are doing about it

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Summer learning demonstration

Summer2011

Summer2012

Summer2013

Summer2014 2015 2016

Phase 1Strengthen programs

Phase 2Evaluate results (RCT)

3rdGrade

4thGrade

5thGrade

6thGradeRAND assessments of

district summer programs

Continue tracking kids

Boston Summer Learning Project

Boston Summer Learning Project

OutlineWhy summer learning matters

What Boston and Wallace are doing about it

Keys to successful collaboration

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Collaborations are not easy

Problems can stem from:Insufficient resourcesActivities tangential to missionTension between partners

“While collaborative efforts have a long history, the work remains immensely challenging – with a record of many more failures than successes.”

-- White House Council for Community Solutions: Community Collaboratives Whitepaper, 2011, Corporation for National and Community Service 14

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Source: White House Council for Community Solutions, Community Collaboratives Whitepaper, 2011

Collaboratives with:

• Aspiration to needle-moving (e.g. 10%+) change on a community-wide metric

• Long-term investment in success

• Cross-sector engagement

• Use of data to set the agenda and improve over time

• Community members as partners and producers of impact

Successful collaborations

Successful collaborations

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Source: White House Council for Community Solutions, Community Collaboratives Whitepaper, 2011

Collaboratives with:

• Aspiration to needle-moving (e.g. 10%+) change on a community-wide metric

• Long-term investment in success

• Cross-sector engagement

• Use of data to set the agenda and improve over time

• Community members as partners and producers of impact

• Shared vision and agenda

• Effective leadership and governance

• Deliberate alignment of resources, programs and advocacy toward what works

• Dedicated capacity and appropriate structure

• Sufficient resources

Successful collaborations

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Source: White House Council for Community Solutions, Community Collaboratives Whitepaper, 2011

Collaboratives with:

• Aspiration to needle-moving (e.g. 10%+) change on a community-wide metric

• Long-term investment in success

• Cross-sector engagement

• Use of data to set the agenda and improve over time

• Community members as partners and producers of impact

• Shared vision and agenda

• Effective leadership and governance

• Deliberate alignment of resources, programs and advocacy toward what works

• Dedicated capacity and appropriate structure

• Sufficient resources

• Knowledge

• Tools

• Technical assistance from peers/experts

• Policy

• Funding

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Collective impact: Columbus, INTrust: Weak at first, built by working on the facility needs of

the institutions

Shared agenda: Ensure youth have training to get jobs

Metrics: Move focus at community college from enrollment to relevance of coursework and graduation

Team: Community Education Coalition

Persistence: Columbus Learning Center opened in 2005

The human elementCollaborations depend on

establishing and sustaining trust

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