SPRINGFIELD –High-impact tutoring is accelerating learning recovery in 72 Illinois school districts, thanks to a $25 million investment of federal pandemic relief funds by the Illinois State Board of Education.
ISBE has partnered with the Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) and Illinois Community College Board (ICCB) to implement the Illinois Tutoring Initiative, which has trained and matched 490 tutors to provide high-impact tutoring to 1,270 students in
45 school districts statewide. An additional
27 school districts have received grant funds to design and implement their own local high-impact tutoring programs, anticipated to reach up to 2,000 students.
“Over the course of the last two and a half years, our students have sacrificed so much," said Governor JB Pritzker. “In the face of turmoil, they've been brave. We owe it to them to provide every resource possible so that their aspirations can be met and their dreams fulfilled. By investing millions of dollars in high quality tutoring services, we're doing just that."
“Students have already begun rebounding from the pandemic, as we saw from students' accelerated growth last year. The state's high-impact tutoring initiative builds on these strong signs of recovery to provide even more support to students in the highest-need school districts," said
State Superintendent of Education Dr. Carmen I. Ayala. “The initiative also provides tutors with a valuable hands-on learning experience, exposure to the magic of the teaching profession, a stipend, and an opportunity for public service."
The tutoring initiative continues to
recruit tutors. Current and retired teachers, teacher candidates, college and university students, and community members with at least a high school degree can apply to be tutors.
“The Illinois Tutoring Initiative supports partnerships between colleges, universities, and priority school districts, and is part of the state's overall effort to provide academic and social and emotional supports for students most impacted by the pandemic. Higher education students and other dedicated individuals are being trained to provide tutoring in literacy and mathematics in Grades 3-8, helping students stay academically on track. It is an example of how our state's higher education institutions and the Pritzker Administration demonstrate commitment to equity as expressed in our strategic plan,
A Thriving Illinois: Higher Education Paths to Equity, Sustainability, and Growth," said
IBHE Executive Director Ginger Ostro.
“Research indicates that high-impact tutoring, provided individually or in small groups at least three times a week, can support learning recovery. This project is part of the mission of our institutions of higher education to serve communities and partner with school districts in their regions," said
ICCB Executive Director Dr. Brian Durham.
The state's nationally acclaimed
Learning Renewal Resource Guide recommends high-impact tutoring as one of 12 evidence-based strategies to support students' recovery from the pandemic. High-impact tutoring achieves a greater impact than standard tutoring by utilizing best practices, including strong alignment with the academic curriculum used during the school day, low tutor-to-student ratios, and sessions at least three times per week.
Up to 45 additional districts will launch high-impact tutoring in early 2023 as the initiative continues to expand.
The state's high-impact tutoring initiative targets Illinois' highest-need school districts. The state invited districts to participate based on their adequacy of funding, concentration of low-income students, disproportionate COVID-19 impact, lost in-person instructional time during the 2020-21 school year, and current level of academic support resources and programs.
Seven colleges and universities are recruiting, training, and supporting tutors, with Illinois State University providing overall coordination for the project. Those college and universities are:
- Governers State University
- Illinois Central College
- Illinois State University
- Northern Illinois University
- Southeastern Illinois College
- Southern Illinois University Carbondale
- Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
Learn more about the state's high-impact tutoring initiative and ISBE's other learning renewal efforts on the
ISBE Learning Renewal webpage.
