High Impact Tutoring: Strategies and Implementation for Schools and District Leaders

Students in high impact tutoring programs can gain up to 15 months of learning across grade levels. High impact tutoring is one of the most effective strategies to boost student achievement.

For school and district leaders, implementing a high impact tutoring program that makes a meaningful difference requires careful planning, strategic resource allocation, and ongoing evaluation. 

This guide explains high impact tutoring, outlines its key components, and offers strategies for implementation.

What is high impact tutoring?

High impact tutoring is a more intense form of tutoring, providing students with personalized, frequent, and intensive sessions. For tutoring to be classed as high impact, students have 3 or more tutoring sessions per week. Or, 50 hours across 36 weeks.

This form of tutoring is an effective educational strategy designed to boost student learning outcomes. It is particularly successful for struggling students or those falling behind in the traditional school setting.

School leaders and researchers have found high impact tutoring 20 times more effective than standard tutoring models for math. It can improve students’ academic outcomes through personalized learning, increased learning time, and immediate feedback and adjustment to ensure students get exactly what they need.

High impact tutoring strategies differ from other modes of tutoring seen in schools. There are several key features that contribute to its success rate. These key features include: 

• The frequency and duration,
• Student to teacher ratio,
• Use of trained tutors,
• Alignment to state standards and local curriculum,
• High-quality, data-driven instruction and assessment,
• Development of the whole student and their individual needs.

Benefits of high impact tutoring

• A meta-analysis shows that tutoring can increase achievement by 3-15 months of learning across grade levels.
• It’s effective when scaled: many educational programs lose effectiveness when scaled up, but studies of 15 large-scale tutoring programs serving between 500 and 7,000 students showed an increase of 2-10 months of learning.
• High impact tutoring is one of the most effective ways to increase achievement for lower-income students in elementary and middle school and helps promote equity in math education.
• When one-on-one, high impact tutoring is personalized to meet the learning needs of the individual.

What are the key elements of high impact tutoring?

According to the NYC Public Schools Division of Teaching and Learning, the key elements listed above make high impact tutoring a success.

Here’s how to implement each feature in your high impact tutoring sessions. 

1. Frequency and duration

Ensuring that there is enough time allotted for this framework of tutoring to be a success is important. The ideal frequency and time allocated for high-impact tutoring is 2-3 times a week for at least 90 minutes a week. 

While tutoring time should supplement what students learn in class, not replace it, it’s important to find time within the school day for academic support. This removes the barrier of whether a student can stay after school or show up on time before school. 

With Third Space Learning, schools can choose the length and frequency of sessions to suit their schedule. You can amend your online math tutoring schedule at any point.

2. Student to teacher ratio 

For high impact tutoring to be successful, the student to teacher ratio should not exceed 4 students per one tutor. However, the ideal number of students per tutor, or teacher, is 1-2. 

At Third Space Learning, each student has their own dedicated on-on-one tutor for the duration of their online math tutoring sessions to ensure maximum academic success. Last year, 85% of students rated their Third Space Learning math tutoring experience of 4+ out of 5.  

3. Use of highly-trained tutors

It was once thought that only certified teachers were qualified to tutor students. With the proper training and support, paraprofessionals and even college students have stepped in to support schools with their tutoring. 

Regardless of who the tutoring providers are, the most important aspect is that they receive tutor training to help them understand the curriculum and provide high-quality instruction. 

4. Alignment to state standards and local curriculum 

High impact tutoring programs are most effective when they align with the state standards and school curriculum. When state and curriculum-aligned high-quality instructional materials are used and the tutoring sessions address classroom content, it allows the tutoring sessions to be relevant to student’s learning. 

Education services from Third Space Learning provide one-on-one online math tutoring sessions aligned to both elementary and middle school Common Core math standards and specific state standards. 

5. Data-driven instruction and assessment

When instruction and assessments are data-driven, it means that tutors are using assessments to identify students’ strengths and weaknesses to tailor instruction in real time. 

Regular formative instruction allows tutors to assess whether the student is making the academic gains needed, and allows for the adjustment of instruction as needed. 

Tutors constantly formatively assess students during Third Space Learning math tutoring sessions. Ongoing formative assessment opportunities allow tutors to adapt teaching in real time to ensure maximum academic progress for each student. 

Post-session exit tickets help tutors assess whether students have achieved the learning objective or whether they still have learning gaps. So far, students have an 83% average pass rate of their post-session exit tickets. Schools receive reports after every session to track student progress and use the data in school. 

6. Support of students’ needs

High impact tutoring goes beyond academic support, it addresses the overall well-being of all students, including emotional, social and behavioral needs. Building strong tutor-student relationships helps build trust, increase student motivation and create a supportive learning environment. 

Tutors can also help students build a growth mindset and learning strategies to manage stress or anxiety, such as math anxiety or test anxiety. 

Integrating these elements into a tutoring program means students receive the consistent, personalized and supportive instruction needed to thrive academically and emotionally. Often, this leads to increased student progress over a short period. 

Components of high impact tutoring

High impact tutoring leverages the following components together to create a comprehensive support system:

1. Tutor-student relationships foster trust and motivation, creating the conditions for success.
2. Tutor-teacher relationships ensure alignment with classroom goals and enhance the overall educational experience.
3. Small group tutoring combines personalized attention with peer learning, making it both efficient and effective. 
4. Benefits and effectiveness allow for a safe and supportive group setting that allows for student growth.
5. Virtual tutoring allows students across the country to access highly-qualified tutors, regardless of their geographical location. 

Focusing on these elements maximizes the potential of high-impact tutoring to drive significant academic gains while also addressing students’ social and emotional needs.

1. Tutor-student relationship

Building strong connections while learning is essential for creating a supportive learning environment. When students feel comfortable with their tutor, they are more likely to ask questions, engage within the lesson, and take risks with their learning. 

In a small group or one-on-one environment, students are able to receive personalized support, tailored to the student’s individual learning style, needs and pace. Consistent interaction with the same tutor allows students to build trust and feel supported. This can lead to building a student’s motivation and confidence, allowing the tutor and student to celebrate the learning gains.  

Out of all the students who had the tutoring, everyone increased their scores. The kids really enjoy working one-on-one with their tutor on the computer. They all said they felt that they got better at math.

Liz Avery, Renaissance Academy Charter School of the Arts,
New York

2. Tutor-teacher collaboration

The tutor-teacher relationship is an important one, as the tutoring needs to align with the classroom instruction taking place. When tutors and teachers are in regular communication, there is a deeper understanding of the student’s learning needs, areas of struggle, and content that needs reinforcing. 

Maximise the impact of tutoring within the school day with collaborative goal setting for students and a continual feedback loop that allows tutors and teachers to share feedback on the student’s progress during tutoring sessions. 

The collaborative nature of the tutor-teaching relationship means that both invest in the student’s success and share accountability. This shared responsibility enhances the effectiveness of math intervention and keeps both parties monitoring students’ needs and overall progress. 

3. Small group tutoring

Group tutoring that consists of 1-4 students allows for a more interactive and personalized learning experience for students. Small groups promote interaction and communication among students, helping to build social skills. A supportive and safe group setting can reduce anxiety and encourage students to take risks. 

While one-on-one tutoring is considered the ‘most ideal’, group tutoring with 2-4 students allows schools and districts to serve more students and maintain a high level of individualized attention. 

Third Space Learning is committed to making one-on-one high impact tutoring affordable for all schools, especially those with underprivileged students.  That’s why all math tutoring sessions take place online, to allow for flexible scheduling and pricing, allowing schools to implement high-impact tutoring for more of their students. 

4. Benefits and effectiveness

With frequent and consistent tutoring sessions, students can make progress faster than they would in a traditional classroom setting. 

Numerous students have shown that high impact tutoring can greatly improve student achievement. Targeted and personalized support leads to students improving their academic success in not only math, but also early literacy. 

Not only does high impact learning lead to academic improvements, but it also helps students develop study skills, critical thinking, and perseverance. All of these stills lead to long-term academic success for students. 

5. Virtual tutoring

Virtual or online tutoring has many benefits. It allows for accessibility and flexibility, breaking down barriers that may exist due to geography in rural schools and districts that have limited access to in-person tutors. 

With the rise of accessibility to technology in schools and the rise in digital platforms, virtual tutoring now allows for interactive tools, such as video lessons and digital whiteboards, that make the sessions more dynamic and engaging. Schools and school districts can now leverage technology for impactful online tutoring sessions.

Third Space Learning provides one-on-one tutoring with a highly-qualified and trained tutor to support struggling learners or students with learning loss. Online tutoring lessons and math resources are designed to help students better understand each math concept. Last year, 90% of students fully engaged in their online tutoring lessons with Third Space Learning.

With a commitment to making one-on-one tutoring affordable and accessible to schools, Third Space Learning allows schools to choose the length and frequency of support their students need.

Implementing high impact tutoring

Implementing high impact tutoring requires careful planning, collaboration, and strategic use of resources. As mentioned, high dosage tutoring programs require frequent and sustained tutoring sessions with the goal of achieving academic gains.  School leaders play a critical role in ensuring that high impact tutoring programs are effective, sustainable, and address inequities.

Education leaders, including principals, superintendents, and district administrators, are important in the successful implementation of high-impact tutoring. Their role may include advocating for high impact tutoring as the number one component to improve student academic success. 

It is also important that school leaders set clear goals and visions, build buy-in from all stakeholders, and provide necessary training and professional development for teachers and tutors alike. 

The Department of Education and individual state education agencies can also provide guidance, standards and best practices for implementing an effective tutoring program. This also opens up collaboration between networks of school districts to share resources and expertise. 

Securing adequate funding is a key challenge for schools and school districts when implementing high impact tutoring. A few key funding considerations include:

Federal and state grants

Federal funds, similar to those provided through the ESSER Fund, can contribute towards a high impact tutoring program. Individual state education departments may also have grants for learning recovery initiatives, including tutoring interventions. 

Title I Funds

Title I funds are available to public schools with a high percentage of low-income students. Use of these funds must address the needs of disadvantaged students within the school districts. 

Community partnerships

Schools and districts can seek out partnerships with foundations and businesses within their community invested in improving education.

How Third Space Learning provides high impact tutoring for schools

Third Space Learning provides targeted one-on-one math tutoring, personalized for to individual student needs. Students work with one designated tutor, allowing them to develop a tutor-student relationship that will help form a safe and supportive tutoring environment.

After identifying your target students, it’s as easy as putting the student’s personalized learning pathway in place. Tutors monitor the student’s progress through each pathway. 

At the end of each session, schools receive a detailed report showing the topics covered, skills practiced and progress made. These printable reports are available on demand. 

Since we started in 2013, our mission has always been to do everything we can to help close the math opportunity gap and to make teachers’ lives a little bit easier in the process. For the 2023-2024 school year, Third Space Learning had a global impact.

Why choose high impact tutoring?

High-impact tutoring is a powerful tool for addressing learning gaps, improving academic performance, and promoting long-term student success. The benefits of one-on-one tutoring are clear: students receiving high-dosage tutoring can show significant gains in math, especially when tutoring aligns with their classroom curriculum and fosters a strong tutor-student relationship.

For schools and districts ready to implement high impact tutoring, it is essential to implement evidence-based and research-supported tutoring programs. Programs that leverage proven strategies, such as small-group instruction, consistent tutoring schedules, and data-driven decision-making, are more likely to deliver positive outcomes. By committing to research-based methods and ongoing assessment, schools can maximize the effectiveness of their tutoring initiatives and create meaningful, lasting improvements in student learning.

High impact tutoring FAQs

Do you have students who need extra support in math?
Give your students more opportunities to consolidate learning and practice skills through personalized math tutoring with their own dedicated online math tutor.

Each student receives differentiated instruction designed to close their individual learning gaps, and scaffolded learning ensures every student learns at the right pace. Lessons are aligned with your state’s standards and assessments, plus you’ll receive regular reports every step of the way.

Personalized one-on-one math tutoring programs are available for:
– 2nd grade tutoring
– 3rd grade tutoring
– 4th grade tutoring
– 5th grade tutoring
– 6th grade tutoring
– 7th grade tutoring
– 8th grade tutoring

Why not learn more about how it works?