Abstract

The paper discusses the educational equity issues, particularly for students with Special Educational Needs (SEN), from the results of the only Italian study on Summer Learning Loss. The research sample consisted of 767 students of the second class of the lower secondary school in the Roman area, of which 56 with SEN. The evolution of the performances (SEN students vs other students) reveals that the gap in results between the two groups during the school year expands beyond that already recognized due to the long summer break. The possible effects of other variables are also considered, including the differences between schools and the family background (employment status, level of education, home resources). The schools do not seem to be able to play an effective role as equalizer of initial differences, based on socio-economic factors and increase by the long summer break.