Learning loss from educational interruption, such as the dreaded "summer slide", is an understudied but influential phenomenon that plays a part in the widening wealth-related achievement gap seen in U.S. schools. On average, 3rd-8th grade students lose between 2-5 standard points on math and reading skill tests every summer, but there is also wide variability across students that may be tied to cognitive, and environmental protective or risk factors. The investigators focus on the neurobiological and cognitive impact of summer learning loss as a contributor to an education achievement gap, and as a barrier to prosperity for the nation's children. They will test the impact of 4th-5th and 7th-8th grade summer transitions on children's brain activity and behavioral performance in a wide range of students, including English language learners and those qualifying for special education. The primary questions the investigators seek to answer are: 1) Where in the brain are there relations between brain activity and amount of summer learning loss? 2) What factors in a child's environment relate to variability in summer learning loss? 3) How does learning-related loss differ across age, and relate to brain and behavioral maturational changes? This project is an ambitious step forward from previous studies of learning-related change, drawing on techniques from cognitive neuroscience, sociology, and educational psychology.
To assess student changes over the summer period, this research will collect multivariate data (e.g., behavioral test battery, demographic variables, neuropsychological assessments, educational testing on reading and math, MRI datasets). The sample will include 210 behavioral and 90 imaging (MRI) pre- and post-summer datasets over the 3 years of the project, with half collected from rising 5th graders, and half rising 8th graders. To address their primary questions, investigators will 1) Assess summer learning change behaviorally via change in standardized math and reading scores, and in the brain via change on functional MRI tasks of reading, math, and executive function; 2) Assess what factors moderate summer learning change through measures of family socioeconomic status, academic ability, education quality, summer enrichment, and executive function abilities; 3) Identify maturational differences in summer learning loss through comparisons of grade and pubertal stage. This project is co-funded by the Discovery Research preK-12 program (DRK-12), which seeks to enhance preK-12 teaching and learning of science, technology, engineering and mathematics through the research and development of new innovations and approaches.
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
