[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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