Summer school can be a rich and rewarding experience, not least because it helps form friendships, and perhaps even future business connections. Summer schools often help students broaden their view, of the different cultures of the world, as international students often mix. As well as receiving a world-class education summer school is often a fun experience for students as extracurricular activities and outings are included.
Summer school can help high school students prepare for university life. It also gives them valuable extra experience to put on a personal statement. Furthermore, some summer schools allow students to experience the campus life of prestigious universities, inspiring them to study subjects harder.
Younger students that have perhaps been falling behind at school have a great opportunity to catch up. Elite tutors may even have a better ability to understand and teach children in creative ways, bringing out the best in them. Summer school may even allow failing or middling kids to academically excel beyond the level of classmates.
However, the fact remains that summer school can cost a lot of money. So, are summer schools worth it?
What Is The Purpose Of Summer School?
Summer schools act as booster programmes, to help children enhance their knowledge, and academic proficiency outside of school. In terms of younger students, it allows them to quickly get a grasp of the fundamentals of education. This grounding puts them on a path toward academic success in the future which is ultimately the aim.
Not only does it aim to improve school grades, but helps to enshrine a philosophy of learning and the purpose of learning beyond just achieving good grades. Summer school also allows students to learn subjects outside of the school curriculum. Students may have a particular job or field of study in mind for university. Getting a foothold in the subject helps them decide if it is a path they want to pursue and is an impressive addition to university applications.
Summer schools also allow students wishing to go to university the chance to experience life at illustrious establishments, such as Oxford or Cambridge, offering them the chance to decide whether university life is the right path for them. They might instead decide in the future to commute to university instead or, find another career path.
Another purpose of summer schools is for children to develop better social skills. It can take a student out of their comfort zone teaching them how to adapt and become friends with people from different cultures including international students. Studying abroad also allows a child to explore the world, and the different cultures and practices, of another country. Some summer schools like the Champittet Summer Leadership Camp teach non-academic skills such as leadership and communication skills.
This should answer why parents choose to send their children to summer school, but what are the actual benefits?
What Are The Benefits Of Summer School?
Firstly it is a fun and rewarding experience for children. Lifelong friends and industry connections can be made at summer school, and enjoyable experiences are priceless.
Children will develop their personalities in positive ways, including gaining confidence, communication skills, work ethic, and leadership. Being away from home also develops independence whilst building social skills. Furthermore social and cultural barriers are broken down meaning prejudices are negated. An important trait for many many roles such as politicians.
Top university acceptance
Summer schools greatly increase the chance a student has of obtaining a place at a world-class university. Oxford University and Cambridge are the highest-ranked universities in the world, and understandably for universities of this stature, the competition is fierce. Often good grades are not enough to secure a place. This is where summer schools come in.
Attending a prestigious summer school can greatly enhance a potential university student’s chance of acceptance. Not only does it display your enthusiasm, and commitment to the university, it also shows you have been taught by industry experts. Summer school experience will be highly impressive to top universities.
Career advancement
A summer school is, of course, a great way for a student to transition from high school to university. And, undergraduate courses are often the first step towards greatness – to achieving academic and career success. However, even if a child does not go on to attend classes at university or college classes, summer school is still beneficial.
This is because summer school classes often teach skills, and qualities, that employers are interested in. This includes; leadership, teamwork, communication skills, problem-solving, and organisation skills. Not only will this help them secure a job after high school, but the skills they have been taught, will also help them excel and advance in their career.
Furthermore, summer courses often prepare students to go it alone and start their own business. For example, some summer courses provide entrepreneur mentorship. Some even teach kids how to produce videos and run Youtube channels, including transferable skills such as; SEO, marketing, editing, scriptwriting, and presenting. Youtubing is now a legitimate career path with millionaires as young as nine earning nearly $30 million a year. Even a fraction of this would make summer school worth the price.
Summer Schools post lockdown
The department for education has shown that lockdowns have had adverse effects on students. The lack of in-person classes has cost the UK dearly in terms of education. It has been shown that the lack of classes has delayed the development of students by months. Maths and reading abilities were particularly damaged by the lack of teaching.
The latest thinking in the UK by the DFE is that summer courses can bridge this learning gap for students. It can therefore be surmised that summer courses are more beneficial than ever as teaching has been neglected by lockdowns in the last couple of years.
Summary
Although it is down to the individual to decide how they spend their money, summer sessions are highly valuable. In order to decide whether these summer sessions are worth the cost, a person will have to weigh up how much money they have, and how much they are willing to spend. After all, if they don’t have the finances and their child can’t get a scholarship it is impossible.
However, those that do, will find it a worthwhile investment into their child’s future. Firstly a child’s happiness is priceless, and the extracurricular activities a summer camp provides will ensure they have fun. It also gives students the chance to meet new friends from all across the country and even the world. If they happen to take summer classes abroad it allows them to experience the different cultures of a new country.
Summer courses will also help students develop their personalities in positive ways, developing attributes that will help them in their careers. It also gives them the experience of campus life allowing them to decide if college or university is for them or not.
Summer classes also help learners find their way onto academic courses as summer courses impress admissions lecturers. First-year students are also better prepared by their previous summer course experience. Prestigious summer courses can even help a student land a place at esteemed institutions such as Cambridge or Oxford University.
And, although a summer school program can help students attain acceptance from renowned institutions, this is far from the only benefit. Courses can also help children achieve career progression outside of university. For example, some courses teach classes on entrepreneurship. Other courses have classes teaching pupils how to set up a youtube channel, along with other creative arts pursuits.
Lockdowns have also damaged the learning development of pupils. It has been suggested that summer classes can make up for this lost learning.