March 15, 2021 Phyllis Hillwig Current Events

What Does Research Say About Tutoring’s Impact on Learning Loss?

Biden recently passed the greatest one-time federal investment – $130 billion dollars for K-12 schools over a three-and-a-half year period. The most significant of the cost, is to help students who have lost many months of in-person learning. A Mckinsey & Company study shows children may lose up to 12 months of learning. When asked on which is the best way to catch students up, researchers recommend two things.

Extend the learning time, which could include the school day or school year.
Intensive tutoring which could cost up to hundreds of billions nationwide.

In a recent Hopkins article about the cost-benefit case for tutoring, it reviewed over 96 studies over 40 years and found the following:

Tutoring overall, offers a high return for a relatively low cost compared to all the other education interventions.
Trained professionals – which include teachers and paraprofessionals who are trained yield stronger effects than parents or those who are not trained in the field.
The best outcomes of student gains come from small groups and 1-1 tutoring.

The article ends with this quote, “Given the impressive effect sizes of tutoring in comparison to other educational interventions in the tough economic times that lie ahead, turning towards expanding tutoring may also be the most fiscal sense.

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