Board Scraps Summer School: Focus Will Be on Tutors for Students in Grades 3, 5 and 8

By Times-News, Burlington, N.C.

Mar. 1–The Alamance-Burlington Board of Education agreed to let elementary and middle schools scrap summer school for struggling students and spend the money on tutoring instead.

Schools will now “try to make gains with students throughout the course of the academic year,” said Rebecca Smith, director of middle grades instruction.

The school system is required to provide extra help to students who don’t pass tests for grades 3, 5 and 8. But less than a third passed their tests last year when they retook them in summer school.

Principals requested the change because providing a few extra days of reading and math in the summer didn’t make enough of a difference. The change will not affect summer school for middle school students who need to make up a class.

The school board approved the change at a Monday-night meeting.

After a debate over whether parents should have to attend teacher conferences for their children to join in sports or clubs, the school board also agreed to leave that up to principals.

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Copyright (c) 2006, Times-News, Burlington, N.C.

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