Building on our prior report on state guidance for High-Impact Tutoring (HIT) programs, this publication analyzes a series of interviews with local stakeholders to understand how HIT programs are actually being implemented in six geographically and demographically diverse school districts.
Throughout these interviews, we identified four key themes around implementation of HIT programs: adaptability, coordination & collaboration, tutor recruitment, and data. We highlighted challenges, adjustments, and successes notable across the six districts that we explored.
We’ve learned that as programs navigate the challenges of implementation, it is essential to strive to maintain fidelity with evidence-based guardrails as best as possible. Key lessons we learned are:
- Aligning to evidence-based principles requires extensive time, adaptability, and collaboration.
- It is critical to have designated personnel either externally or internally to manage these moving pieces.
- Many programs are using what seem to be effective platforms for promoting engagement and collaboration among administrators, educators, tutors, and families.
- Requirements that tutors be certified teachers are inconsistent with the evidence base and serve as a major impediment to program reach. Districts that are not limited by these requirements can leverage a variety of strategies to recruit and train tutors.
- Data collection is absolutely critical to guide program implementation, but there needs to be greater focus on the specification of goals for student outcomes.
You can read the report in full here.
Listen to ERN’s EdChats podcast episode wherein “HITs and Misses” author Rianna Saslow goes into detail about the report’s findings and recommendations here.