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The Illinois Board of Higher Education and the Illinois State Board of Education are supporting a statewide tutoring initiative to address the learning needs of students. The Illinois Tutoring Initiative is based on High-Impact Tutoring Practices grounded in research from the National Student Support Accelerator.


Tutoring programs that have these characteristics make the greatest difference, according to research from the National Student Support Accelerator at Brown University.

A few key characteristics define the type of tutoring the program will provide. The tutors get formal training, and they meet with the same students over time to develop trust. Students spend at least three sessions a week with the tutors, on content that aligns with their classes.

Tutoring programs that have these characteristics make the greatest difference, according to research from the National Student Support Accelerator at Brown University.


A group of educators who provide the Accelerator with feedback on our tools, technical assistance, materials, and communications was interviewed by Brent McKim, President of the National Council of Urban Education Associations (NCUEA) regarding their perspective on high-impact tutoring.

During the two years that COVID-19 has upended school for millions of families, education leaders have increasingly touted one tool as a means of compensating for lost learning: personalized tutors. As a growing number of state and federal authorities pledge to make high-quality tutoring available to struggling students, a new study demonstrates positive, if modest, results from an experimental pilot that launched last spring. 


Research shows that tutoring, particularly high dosage tutoring where students receive multiple 30- to 60-minute sessions per week, is effective in helping students who have fallen behind, according to a report from the Annenberg Institute at Brown University.


When considering how schools can best support middle and high schoolers struggling with either the foundational skills of reading or reading comprehension, experts point to a research-backed strategy that can help close academic gaps: high-impact tutoring.

The term refers to an intensive form of tutoring that is offered through a school, is informed by data on individual students’ needs, aligns to classroom work, and can be effective in getting students to grade level faster. Yet few districts have been able to implement that kind of programming prior to the pandemic because of such challenges as cost and staff shortages. New federal relief funds are helping more districts explore the possibility.