Date of Conferral

8-20-2025

Degree

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)

School

Education

Advisor

Patricia Anderson

Abstract

Evidence shows students who are not reading proficiently by the end of third grade are more likely to eventually drop out of high school or be considered illiterate as adults, making it challenging to function adequately in society. The problem addressed through this study was that as many as 60% of U.S. third-grade students scored below proficiency on annual standardized reading assessments. Guided by faucet theory by Alexander et al., the purpose of this causal-comparative quantitative study was to compare reading standardized test scores of third-grade students who participated in a summer school program (SSP) in the summer following second grade with those of students who did not. Archival data from 223 third-grade students from 3 Title I elementary schools in the southeastern United States included Lexile scores of 46 who attended an SSP and 177 who did not. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) detected no significant difference in reading proficiency levels between students who attended an SSP after second grade and students who did not (p = 0.467). These study findings should be approached with caution, however, because the study was underpowered due to the inadequate sample in the attended SSP group. Future research should explore implementation features of the SSP and use larger samples. Positive social change may be achieved if the results of this study promote awareness of factors of successful SSPs, and changes promote increased reading proficiency. Reading proficiency, and the ability to gain independence through education. Making appropriate changes to the SSP may encourage student persistence through high school and be of benefit to society through increased adult literacy.

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