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DOMINICAN UNIVERSITY Graduate School of Library and Information Science (GSLIS) DOMINICAN UNIVERSITY’S Graduate School of Library and Information Science (GSLIS) Do Public Library Summer Reading Programs Impact Student Achievement? A National Leadership Grant funded by the Institute for Museum and Library Science (IMLS) Agenda: December 3, 2009 • Brief overview of research about summer and reading • Brief overview of research about public library summer reading programs and student achievement • Highlights of this new study • Findings • Implications • Questions and Answers Research on Summer and Reading • Learning when school is not in session (Schacter & Jo, 2005) • Teacher and parent scaffolding of voluntary summer reading (White & Kim, 2008) • Impacts of a summer learning program (Chaplin & Capizzano, 2006) • When Schools Close, the Knowledge Gap Grows (Celano & Neuman, 2008) Research on Summer and Public Libraries • Summer learning and the effects of schooling (Heyns, 1978) • Evaluation of the public library summer reading program (Los Angeles County Public Library Foundation, 2001) • Summer reading: “Guys Read” (Hennepin County Public Library, 2007) • Summer reading: Program and evidence (Shin & Krashen, 2008) Public Library Summer Reading Programs • Foster reading enjoyment in children • Prevent loss of reading skills over summer • Cumulative gap in reading achievement between SES groups • Third and fourth grade students most at risk • What is the impact of summer library reading programs? • National Leadership grant from IMLS funded three-year study for evaluation Study Purpose • Do summer reading programs impact student achievement? • Is there a relationship between intensity of service and student achievement? • Focus on partnerships between public libraries and schools. Evaluation Questions 1. Do students entering fourth grade who participate in the library summer reading clubs experience summer learning loss in reading achievement? 2. Do students entering fourth grade who participate in the library summer reading clubs have higher reading assessment scores in the fall, compared to classroom peers who do not participate? 3. Does the level of participation in summer reading programs predict higher levels of reading performance and motivation for students entering fourth grade? Beginnings of Study 1. Received grant funding to start, October 2006 2. Original Partners/Contractors 3. Formed Advisory Board: Dominican University Susan Roman Janice Del Negro Tracie Hall Carole Fiore (Project Manager) Beginnings of Study Formed Advisory Board (continued) Johns Hopkins Center for Summer Learning Ronald Fairchild Susanne Sparks Colorado State Library Eugene Hainer Patricia Froelich Texas State Library and Archives Commission Peggy Rudd Christine McNew Beginnings of Study Formed Advisory Board (continued) American Library Association Penny Markey (ASLC representative) Denise Davis (Office for Research & Statistics) 4. Met at ALA Midwinter Meeting – January 2007 5. Refined plan for conducting research pilot site: El Paso, Texas Public Library (Summer 2007) Beginnings of Study 6. Promoted program/student throughout fall 2007 7. Selected sites and conducted necessary training in spring 2008 8. Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval spring 2008 Study Participant Selection Criteria • Entire school populations had to have 50% or more students qualifying for free or reduced price meals • At least 85% of school population able to take SRI in English • Application did not measure quality • Minimum of six weeks of programming • Accepted eleven school/library pairs Eleven Participating Sites Procedure Study Timeline Spring–Fall, 2007 • Instrument development • Pilot study • Modification of research method Study Timeline Fall-Winter, 2007-08 • • • • • • • Recruitment of sites Study website established Applications submitted online Deadline for submission: October 31, 2007 26 schools and 34 libraries applied 18 complete paired applications received Orientation of participating pairs Study Timeline Spring-Summer, 2008 • • • • Parent consent SRI pretest Public library summer program implementation Study summer reading logs kept by program participants • Public librarian survey and interview Summer 2008: 11 sites, 400 students • Parental Consent • Spring 2008, pre-test 3rd graders SRI • Students participate in summer library program – Student Summer Reading Program Log • Fall 2008, post-test same 4th graders SRI – – – – – Student Survey Parent Survey Teacher Survey Library Staff Survey Structured Library Staff Interview Winter-Spring, 2008-09 • Data analysis • Preliminary data reported at presentations at: – National Conference of Center for Summer Learning (N-CSL); – American Library Association (ALA); – American Educational Research Association (AERA) Method • Participants – Students entering 4th grade • No individualized education plans – Librarians delivering the summer program – Parents teachers (via surveys) • Settings – 11 geographic U.S. sites – Title I schools and library partners Method (continued) • Design – Casual comparative • Analyses – Descriptive Statistics – Inferential Statistics Method (continued) • Instruments and Materials – Scholastic Reading Inventory (SRI) enterprise Edition (only available in English) – Surveys: Student Parents 4th Grade Teacher Library Staff – Summer Library Reading Log – Structured Librarian Interview Summer Library Reading Programs • Nine (9) central city libraries • All public librarians visited schools during spring, 2008 • Authentic programming • 6 to 12 weeks • Student reading log RESULTS Evaluation Question 1: Is there a difference between students completing third grade who choose to participate in a public library summer library reading program and students who do not participate? • Demographic Characteristics • Spring SRI Scores Evaluation Question 2: Does participation in a summer library reading program maintain or improve student reading ability during the summer school break? • Spring to Fall 2008 SRI Scores Evaluation Question 3: Is there a difference between literacy indicators for students who completed third grade and choose to participate in a public library summer reading program and students who do not participate? • Student Surveys • Parent Surveys • Student Reading Logs CONCLUSIONS Evaluation Question 1: Is there a difference between students completing third grade who choose to participate in a public library summer library reading program and students who do not participate? • Difference between groups, PLSRP: – More girls – Less FaRM – More Caucasian • PLSRP students notably higher spring 2008 SRI scores • PLSRP profile Evaluation Question 2: Does participation in a summer library reading program maintain or improve student reading ability during the summer school break? • All students maintained across summer – No significant decline across summer • PLSRP students score higher – Significant only for Spring 2008 Evaluation Question 3: Is there a difference between literacy indicators for students who completed third grade and choose to participate in a public library summer reading program and students who do not participate? YES! • PLSRP students: Active and engaged readers, Utilized libraries • PLSRP parents: higher level of library usage, more books in home, more home literacy activities Factors to Consider • PLSRP participation is self-reported • Children who did not participate in a PLSRP may/will have engaged in other summer learning activities • Formal agreement between libraries and schools • Public libraries had full control over summer programs IMPLICATIONS Implications • Reach out to non-readers and under-performing students • Reach out to lower SES families • Reach out to boys • Market to parents • Reach out to parents of preschoolers • Offer incentives to parents Implications (continued) • Partner with schools – teachers, as well as librarians • Use the money for books • Encourage families to get library cards • Stress strong social aspect of clubs • Expand definition of reading • Reach out to Grandparents as well as caring adults URL https://jicsweb1.dom.edu/ics/Schools/ Graduate_School_of_Library_and_Information_ Science/Summer_Reading.jnz How to Contact Us Susan Roman, Dean Graduate School of Library and Information Science [email protected] Deborah Carran National Center for Summer Learning, Johns Hopkins University [email protected] Carol Fiore, Project Manager [email protected]