The New Jersey Department of Education recently released a resource to provide information on the benefits and essential design elements of effective, high-impact tutoring programs to support local education agencies’ efforts to meet the increased needs of students, according to an advisory.
The resource – “High-Impact Tutoring: An Evidence-Based Strategy to Accelerate Learning” – was developed in response to the strong interest in designing and implementing tutoring programs through both federal and discretionary funding streams. It aims to assist school districts in designing and planning high-impact tutoring programs.
High-impact tutoring is one of the most well-researched and effective methods LEAs can use to optimize learning acceleration. Leveraging the recent research and resources from the National Student Support Accelerator, this guide offers school districts practical tools and resources for immediate consideration and use.
The NJDOE also noted that school districts may also consider revisiting a complementary resource to support the planning and implementation of high- impact tutoring programs during the school day. Maximizing Schedules to Support Learning Acceleration provides information on the advantages of flexible scheduling, with the purpose of adding time for a learning acceleration block designed to meet students’ needs.
Many local educational agencies have funded high-impact tutoring through their federal American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Funds, also referred to as ARP ESSER or ESSER III. The recent expansion of allowable uses provides opportunities for LEAs to amend ARP ESSER spending plans. LEAs may consider creating and/or sustaining successful high-impact tutoring programs using remaining ARP ESSER funds this year and learn to use federal funds for programs beyond 2024. The “Review. Amend. Spend.” website provides information to help school districts fully exhaust their ARP ESSER funds to meet their current needs.
To support LEAs in unpacking the resource, the NJDOE will be hosting virtual workshops on May 2 and May 7, from 3:15 p.m. to 4:15 p.m. To register for each session, please visit the NJDOE Event Registration Page.
Questions can be sent to the NJDOE via email.