It being summer, the press is full of stories about the vast number of kids attending summer school, which many districts require for students who would otherwise be held back a grade. But how effective are remedial summer programs? A meta-analysis of 99 studies found that about 85% of summer programs produced measurable results; that reading skills of participating students improve three months beyond those of the control group; that mandatory and voluntary programs are about equally effective; and that summer school is more helpful to middle-class students than to the disadvantaged. For more, see "Summer Seen as Critical to Improving Schools," by Martin Kasindorf and Debbie Howlett, USA Today, July 17, 2001. http://www.usatoday.com/news/acovtue.htm
