The Research

Why Tutoring Works

What published studies say about why so many students need extra help right now, and why 1-on-1 and small-group tutoring is one of the best-tested ways to give it. Every number below links to its source.

Many Students Need Extra Help

Largest Drop

In 2022, U.S. math scores at grades 4 and 8 had their largest declines since the national math assessment began in 1990.[1]

−5 And −8

The average 4th-grade math score fell 5 points and the average 8th-grade score fell 8 points compared with 2019.[1]

38%

of 8th graders scored below NAEP Basic in math in 2022, 7 percentage points more than in 2019. For 4th graders it was 25%, up 5 points.[1]

Teachers felt it too: fewer than half of students had teachers who said they were quite or extremely confident they could close pandemic-related learning gaps.[1]

Tutoring Has Some Of The Strongest Evidence In Education

Evidence From 96 Randomized Studies

A 2020 review of the experimental research by Nickow, Oreopoulos and Quan found that tutoring programs have "consistent and substantial positive impacts on learning outcomes," with an overall average effect of 0.37 standard deviations.[2]

J-PAL, the research center at MIT, explains that effect as moving a student from the 50th percentile to nearly the 66th percentile.[3] Across the 96 randomized evaluations, 87% of programs improved academic results, most by about the equivalent of an extra half year of school.[4]

About 5 Extra Months Of Progress

The Education Endowment Foundation's Teaching and Learning Toolkit finds that one-to-one tuition gives about five additional months of progress on average,[5] and small-group tuition about four months.[6]

Low-attaining pupils are particularly likely to benefit.[5]

It's Not Too Late For Teens

In two randomized trials with 9th and 10th graders in Chicago public schools, intensive daily tutoring raised math test scores by 0.16 standard deviations in the first trial and 0.37 in the second, and also raised grades in math and other classes. The effects lasted into later years.[7]

The Benchmark Since 1984

Benjamin Bloom's well-known paper "The 2 Sigma Problem" set one-to-one tutoring as the benchmark that group teaching methods are compared against.[8]

What Makes Tutoring Work Best

  • Trained, consistent tutors. Programs led by teachers or paraprofessionals do better on average than volunteer or parent tutoring.[2] Programs that pair students with consistent, paid, trained tutors are more effective.[9]
  • Frequent sessions. Programs with at least three sessions a week are more effective.[9] The EEF found short, regular sessions (about 30 minutes, three to five times a week) over a set period appear to have the best impact.[5]
  • Linked to schoolwork. Tuition is more likely to make an impact when it is added to, and clearly linked with, normal lessons.[5]
  • Starting from the gaps. Knowing a student's learning gaps and choosing content to match is one of the key ingredients.[5] Diagnostic assessment helps target the support.[6]
  • Starting early helps. Effects tend to be strongest in the earlier grades.[2]

How iTutor Puts This To Work

  • A free assessment first, so lessons start from your child's real gaps.
  • A dedicated tutor who knows their goals, with a bachelor's degree or higher and 5+ years' experience.
  • We follow your child's school calendar and add focus before tests.
  • Online lessons of 30 or 60 minutes, in person 60 minutes, one or more times a week.
  • Progress notes after every session.
Take The Free Assessment
Sources

These are averages from published studies, mostly of school-run programs. They are not a promise for any one student.

  1. National Center for Education Statistics, The Nation's Report Card, "NAEP Mathematics: Mathematics Highlights 2022." nationsreportcard.gov
  2. Nickow, A., Oreopoulos, P. and Quan, V. (2020). "The Impressive Effects of Tutoring on PreK-12 Learning: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of the Experimental Evidence." NBER Working Paper 27476. nber.org/papers/w27476
  3. J-PAL, "The Transformative Potential of Tutoring for PreK-12 Learning Outcomes: Lessons from Randomized Evaluations." povertyactionlab.org
  4. J-PAL, "Tutoring to accelerate learning" (case study). povertyactionlab.org
  5. Education Endowment Foundation, Teaching and Learning Toolkit, "One to one tuition" (updated July 2021). educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk
  6. Education Endowment Foundation, Teaching and Learning Toolkit, "Small group tuition" (updated July 2021). educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk
  7. Guryan, J., Ludwig, J., Bhatt, M. P., Cook, P. J., Davis, J. M. V., Dodge, K., Farkas, G., Fryer, R. G., Mayer, S., Pollack, H. and Steinberg, L. (2021). "Not Too Late: Improving Academic Outcomes Among Adolescents." NBER Working Paper 28531. nber.org/papers/w28531
  8. Bloom, B. S. (1984). "The 2 Sigma Problem: The Search for Methods of Group Instruction as Effective as One-to-One Tutoring." Educational Researcher 13(6). doi.org/10.3102/0013189X013006004
  9. J-PAL, "High-impact tutoring to help students catch up" (Evidence to Policy). povertyactionlab.org