[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 114 (Thursday, July 14, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5146-S5147]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   THE IMPORTANCE OF SUMMER LEARNING

  Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, I want to take a moment today to stress the 
importance of providing young people with safe places to learn during 
the summer months. Summer is in full swing, and families are deciding 
how their children's time will be spent while school is out. 
Unfortunately, not all families in America can afford enriching 
experiences like summer camps and summer tutors.
  That gap between families who have resources and those that do not is 
expressed clearly in their children. Evidence shows that students who 
lack access to summer learning, informal or structured, start the 
school year behind. When many kids are having to review last year's 
lessons, then all the kids have to spend that time reviewing last 
year's lessons. This puts all our kids behind.
  Simply put, the long summer break should not be a long break from 
learning.
  With Oregon's 4-year high school graduation rate at an alarmingly low 
74 percent, it is long past time we shine a spotlight on summer 
learning loss and its impact on our students' path toward graduation. 
Summer learning loss has consequences that can damage a child's long-
term academic and career success. That is especially important in my 
State where one in four teenagers doesn't make it to graduation on 
time.
  Research by the National Summer Learning Association shows that most 
students lose math and reading skills during summer break. And 
unfortunately, students from low-income families fare even worse. The 
sad truth is that most students lose about 2 months of grade level 
equivalency in math computation skills over the summer months, and low-
income students lose an additional 2 months in reading achievement.
  As parents, community leaders, educators and policymakers, we must 
provide every resource possible to bridge that gap for disadvantaged 
and low income students. I have long fought to close the achievement 
gap and support all students on a path toward high school graduation 
and beyond.
  I know so many great education advocates in Oregon who share these 
goals, and I want to commend Oregon's tremendous educators who work on 
this effort every single day. My good friends at Oregon Afterschool for 
Kids have made a strong commitment to keep kids learning all summer 
long. Their efforts to open up school libraries and school cafeterias 
in Woodburn, Salem, Eugene, and around the State have truly made a 
difference in children's lives by providing them with a safe and 
welcoming learning environment during the summer. I have often seen 
parents bring their children for a free lunch and stay for the free 
books.
  This year, I hope to see even more communities come out and support 
our students by hosting summer learning activities. Even if you cannot 
attend events to serve lunch and read stories to classrooms full of 
children, remember that supporting summer learning is easy. 
Volunteering your time or donating books or crayons to neighbors is 
another way to support young learners. More ideas can be found in the 
``Summer Learning Tip Sheet for Parents'' provided by the National 
Summer Learning Association.

[[Page S5147]]

  As I have traveled around my State having conversations in high 
school auditoriums and school gyms, I have heard so many good ideas on 
how to help students succeed in school. Oregonians agree that we must 
support all aspects of a student's life to improve their outcomes, and 
I will add that this rings true all year long. I have seen firsthand 
that our communities are ready to come together and support students 
who need it. This is truly the Oregon way.
  I am committed to helping more of our students get their high school 
diplomas and increase the rate at which our students are graduating 
from high school. Fighting summer learning loss is one way we can keep 
all students on a path toward a bright future.

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