School's back in session, and for many educators that means reteaching material lost to the "summer slide." The problem may be compounded this year as some districts, faced with minimal increases in state aid and already dealing with layoffs of educators, scaled back their summer offerings. In many other districts, however, summer school was tweaked to curb expenses and still reach as many kids as possible.

The slowly recovering economy and a state aid increase of just under 2 percent this year led many districts to rethink how they approach the extended classroom time. Some districts limited enrollment to help contain costs. In New York City, summer classes were offered at only 369 schools, nearly 200 fewer sites than last year. Other areas looked to consolidation of services.

Eight districts served by the Hamilton-Fulton-Montgomery BOCES participated in a regional summer school program.

The Amsterdam district eliminated its own summer school program to save money, said Richard Peters, president of the Amsterdam Teachers Association. The district did provide transportation to the BOCES program, located about 25 miles away at St. Johnsville High School.

"For many students, summer school is essential to academic success," said NYSUT Vice President Maria Neira. "Even in trying financial times, schools and educators are taking advantage of every opportunity for additional instruction."

Traditional summer school was in session in Schenectady, where about 700 students in grades 7-12 sought to catch up on classes they failed during the school year.

"We have the same offerings (as in previous years)," said Sal Capitummino, a member of the Schenectady Federation of Teachers. "We really try to give the kids the opportunity to get back on track for the following year so they can move on to their next grade level."

The district also offered an enrichment program for elementary grades.

In the Shenendehowa district, Saratoga County, students were allowed to sign up for only two summer courses. The school also limited the number of sections available for each course.

"The sections are much larger," said Ann Conway, an alternative education teacher and member of the Shenendehowa Teachers Association. "We went from three Global 10 sections down to two. Now there are 26 students in one class."

Hits and misses

In Syracuse, the district operated several different summer programs for more than 6,100 students pre-K through 12th grade.

New this year was the Urban Teacher Calendar, adding 20 to 25 days and between 60 and 75 hours of direct student-to-teacher contact to the school calendar.

"Our summer school has increased because of the UTC," said Anne Marie Voutsinas, president of the Syracuse TA. "It really came out of our superintendent thinking in urban schools you can't just go to school for 10 months.

During the school year our kids are maintaining achievement at the levels of kids in suburban schools. (But) over the summer there is a lag in achievement." The UTC also built in at least 25 hours of professional development.

Nearly 11,000 Buffalo students took part in summer school, what the district calls the Extended Learning Opportunities Program.

Unlike some districts, Buffalo's program wasn't drastically reduced. It offered both credit recovery and enrichment programs across the board, but union leaders did have concerns about the district's staffing model.

To cut costs, administrators replaced the traditional full-day teacher with two part-timers.

"It creates a problem," said Phil Rumore, president of the Buffalo Teachers Federation. "Having two different half-time teachers (one a.m. and one p.m.) teach a class provides no continuity of instruction for students." The switch created a shortage of special education teachers, he said.

Rumore was also concerned about the practice of "front-loading."

"If you failed second grade they teach you in a third-grade book," he said. "That's fine for kids who are borderline, but if they really failed, the kids get frustrated and end up dropping out."

Enrollment in the Albany district's elementary enrichment program was limited this year to those students in need of the extra help.

While attendance in most summer programs is not mandatory, Albany went the extra mile to get kids into the schools.

"The program hours were extended and bus transportation helped with attendance," said Karen Chenel, a kindergarten teacher and member of the Albany Public School TA.

"In past years there would be kids above level mixed in with kids who are struggling," she said. "Now they're all kind of on the same level, so it's easier to tune in to what they need and kind of give them a lift."

"It's hard to get to know students in four weeks, she said. "But it's so exciting to see the learning take place."