Quantify Summer Reading Slide and Improve Reading Using Machine Learning for an Education Focused Non-profit Organization

THE BACKGROUND

Most elementary students lose reading ability over the summer while they are out of school. This phenomenon is referred to as the summer slide. The objective of the non-profit organization that we worked with in this engagement is to eliminate the summer reading slide and close the achievement gap. They partner with school districts to provide a reading program to keep children reading all summer and increase family engagement. The students enrolled in the program read books over the summer and when they report the books completed a new book is mailed to the students. The purpose of the engagement was to quantify the factors that impact the summer slide including factors that relate to engagement in the reading program.