Abstract
Studies examining seasonal variation in academic skills for children have focused on learning loss or stagnation during the summer, particularly for students from lowincome or minoritized racial and ethnic backgrounds. In this study, we expand the literature to focus on another student population that may be susceptible to summer learning loss: children with disabilities. Using nationally representative data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 2010–2011 (ECLS-K:2011), we examined changes in the academic skills of children with disabilities—defined in terms of having an individualized education plan or receiving special education services— relative to peers without disabilities during the school year and summer months. Results indicate that inequality in learning rates between both groups tends to widen more duringtheearlyschoolyears,particularly in kindergarten, than summer. One policy implication of the findings is schools may need to focus more on kindergarten transition for children with disabilities.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 502-533 |
| Number of pages | 32 |
| Journal | Elementary School Journal |
| Volume | 122 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jun 2022 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:This research was supported by a grant from the American Educational Research Association, which receives funds for its AERA Grants Program from the National Science Foundation under NSF Grant #DRL-0941014. Additional support was received from the University of Texas at Austin’s Faculty Research Grant and the Foundation for Child Development. Opinions reflect those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the granting agencies. North Cooc is an associate professor of special education at the University of Texas at Austin; David M. Quinn is an associate professor of education at the University of California’s Rossier School of Education. Correspondence may be sent to North Cooc at ncooc@austin.utexas.edu.
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