Impact of ABCmouse on Summer Slide in Reading and Mathematics for Rising First Graders

• In Event: Crown Plaza Roundtable Session 6
  In Roundtable Session: Early Childhood Math Learning

Abstract

The study tested the impact of an online curriculum, ABCmouse.com Early Learning Academy, on “summer slide” or loss of previously learned skills in reading and mathematics in a sample of rising first graders in a large urban school district. A randomized control design was used. Children whose parents consented (N = 1,176) were randomly assigned to treatment or control condition at the beginning of summer. Multilevel regression models revealed positive impacts for ABCmouse on summer slide in standardized tests of reading. Impacts were dependent on the amount of usage and on initial level of proficiency, with children in the treatment group who scored below the district median score in reading showing greater benefits. Implications and future directions will be discussed.

Authors

• Rebecca Jane Shearer, University of Miami

• Krystal Bichay, American Institutes for Research

• Leslie Ponciano, California State University Chancellor's Office

• KP Thai, Age of Learning, Inc.