{"id":573702,"date":"2021-06-22T07:15:00","date_gmt":"2021-06-22T11:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.the74million.org\/?post_type=article&p=573702"},"modified":"2021-06-29T17:39:54","modified_gmt":"2021-06-29T21:39:54","slug":"neitzel-tutoring-during-the-summer-is-a-great-first-step-toward-fixing-pandemic-learning-loss-it-must-continue-into-the-fall","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/www.the74million.org\/article\/neitzel-tutoring-during-the-summer-is-a-great-first-step-toward-fixing-pandemic-learning-loss-it-must-continue-into-the-fall\/","title":{"rendered":"Neitzel: Tutoring During the Summer Is a Great First Step Toward Fixing Pandemic Learning Loss. It Must Continue into the Fall"},"content":{"rendered":"

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T<\/span>here\u2019s a lot riding on this summer. Schools are reopening their doors to in-person learning in the fall, and many see this summer as a chance to address the unfinished learning the pandemic leaves in its wake. But no matter how successful summer programs are, schools can\u2019t expect to operate business as usual this fall. Tutoring must be a part of summer learning strategies \u2014 and of plans for the 2021-22 school year.<\/p>\n

While the U.S. Department of Education declared summer programs key in efforts to address lost instructional time, school leaders can\u2019t stop trying to accelerate learning at the end of this summer. Research on summer school programs with intensive reading supports for kindergartners and first-graders showed substantial improvements \u2014 but these had all but dissipated by the time those students reached the spring semester. It makes good sense to build on success over the summer and replicate those efforts as traditional school begins in the fall.<\/p>\n

The urgent need for solutions to address pandemic-related unfinished learning is clear, but students falling behind is nothing new. Prior to the pandemic, many children in the U.S. already struggled to meet grade-level expectations. The pandemic only exacerbated this issue. An analysis<\/a> by McKinsey & Co. in December shows that students on average started the 2020-21 school year about three months behind grade level in mathematics. This trend didn\u2019t play out equally across demographics, however. White students were about one to three months behind, while students of color were three to five months behind. A solution that reaches large numbers of the neediest students is critical to close these widening achievement gaps.<\/p>\n