Description:

The Summer UP program, piloted in 2018, provided expanded learning opportunities for MCPS students in MCPS focus schools. The program aimed to increase students’ literacy and math skills, increase students’ interest in school, and improve students’ social-emotional skills. The evaluation examined implementation of the program, its impact on students' mathematics and reading achievement, and if that impact varied with student subgroups.

Recommendations:

• With recommended revisions, continue to provide the opportunity for a structured summer learning enrichment program for students in MCPS focus schools, offering a program that combines academic instruction with enrichment.
• Consider expanding the program to five weeks.  Research suggests that the intensity and duration of instruction can impact student outcomes and recommends three hours a day, five days per week, for five to six weeks to observe an impact (Augustine, 2016).
• Engage with MCPS curriculum experts to ensure the Summer UP instructional program aligns with the district’s curriculum, fits within the instructional time of the summer program and differentiates activities (Schwartz, 2018).

File Name: 2018 Summer UP Report.pdf (1.7MB PDF)