What is High-Impact (High Dosage) Tutoring?

While the research evidence shows that tutoring interventions can have positive impacts on student learning, past efforts to scale tutoring programs have not always been successful. For instance, tutoring incentivized through No Child Left Behind supplementary education services had mixed results. Based on the current research and best practices, high-impact tutoring programs tend to include certain characteristics.

Concept Tutoring’s model of High-Dosage Tutoring has the following characteristics:

Well-trained, consistent tutor who builds a strong relationship with students 

  • Effective tutors can be from a variety of backgrounds. Research indicates that teachers, paraprofessionals, college students, and other types of tutors can all be effective when tutoring one-to-one or small groups.  

  • Our successful tutors are skilled at relationship-building and are responsive to local context 

High-quality instructional material aligned to standards and core classwork 

  • The materials that our tutors use are aligned with research on teaching and learning.  

  • Our tutors focus on addressing missed concepts and skills that are most critical to accessing the upcoming content 

  • Our tutors include certified special education teachers to assist with students receiving special education services in order to collaborate with other tutors and ensure the implementation of the students’ IEP 

One-to-one or small group for individualized support 

  • Our tutors effectively instruct up to three or four students at a time 

  • Students are grouped by skill level which makes for a more effective tutoring session 

Embedded in the school day or immediately before or after, to maximize student access 

  • Embedding tutoring into the school program reduces barriers to attendance and reaches the students who need it most 

  • We coordinate with teachers which creates more consistency for students 

At least two to three sessions per week for sustained support, 30 minutes minimum 

  • Tutoring is most likely to be effective when delivered in high doses, so our tutors meet with students at a minimum of 2-3 times per week.