Extend the School Year to Counter Learning Loss
To stem the damage caused by the pandemic, districts need to offer more instruction — and shorten summer vacation.
Reading, ’riting and rigorous summertime curriculum.
Photographer: Scott Olson/Getty Images
After another wave of school closures due to Covid-19, reaching the end of the academic year without further disruptions must be an overriding priority. Yet even if that modest goal is met, America’s youth face learning deficits that could take years to overcome. Preventing further damage will require schools to provide much more instruction for struggling students, even if it means cutting summer short.
The cost of doing so shouldn’t be understated. In 2021, about 13% of public-school students attended district-provided summer school. Considering how many U.S. students are performing below grade level, a minimum goal should be to double that number. Nationwide, that would cost at least $20 billion, with large districts accounting for much of the spending. To ensure that investment is productive, districts need to start planning now — by identifying students in greatest need, developing curricula to reinforce what they’ve already learned, and recruiting teachers willing to work through the summer for bonus pay.