THE EFFECTIVENESS OF HOME LIBRARIES VS. SUMMER SCHOOL
In a 2010 randomized study of a summer-reading pilot program in 17 high-poverty elementary schools, 842 students were provided with 12 paperback books each summer for three summers. The books were self-selected by the students and sent home with them for the summer. After three years, researchers compared student scores on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test with those of a control group. They found that the reading achievement scores of the students who received the summer books for three years were significantly higher than those of the control-group students.
What’s more, the measurable impact of a home library was equal to or larger than high-cost interventions.
• The score increase over three years was equal to or larger than the achievement effect of attending summer school for the same amount of time. • The score increase was equal to or larger than the achievement effect sizes reported for implementing comprehensive school-reform models (Allington et al., 2010). While home reading during the school year will help to close the achievement gap during those months, it is equally—if not more—essential that young readers have a vibrant, exciting collection of books at home during the summer. With summer break accounting for one-fourth of the year in many districts, books that are engaging and easily accessible are an inexpensive, proven way to reduce summer learning loss .
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