An RFP may be required depending on the scale of your program and the regulations in your district. If so, understanding the approval process is critical. Some districts may require approval from the school board, while others may allow district employees to sign off.
Thousands of organizations identify themselves as tutoring organizations, but few will be a strong match for your district’s needs. Selecting a provider can be straightforward by following the steps outlined in this section and using the provided tools. You can start by identifying potential providers on the National Student Support Accelerator’s website or by using a request for proposal process.
High-Impact Tutoring programs are difficult to design and implement effectively. When possible, relying on an organization with a track record of doing both successfully can increase the likelihood that your own district’s tutoring program will be successful. Your Focus Area for tutoring is largely determined by the unmet needs in your own district; these needs may represent gaps in your district’s expertise or implementation.
Once you have completed initial planning, the next critical task is designing the tutoring program. Districts may choose to partner with a tutoring provider and use the provider’s program design, design and grow their own tutoring program or pursue a hybrid approach. If you have not done so already, learn more about how to choose an approach for your district in Tutoring Approach: Partner with a Provider, Grow Your Own Program or Hybrid?
Tutoring programs rely on diverse groups of stakeholders: not just the students and caregivers the program serves and the tutors, teachers, and administrators who implement it, but also the district superintendents and local government who approve budgets and the other community partners who support the program. If any of these groups are not invested in your program, successful implementation becomes more difficult.
Significant funding is available to fund tutoring programs. This section outlines funding sources district leaders can consider as they determine how to financially support their tutoring program as well as key considerations that can help district leaders decide how to approach funding.
When implemented effectively, tutoring programs can have a significant impact on student outcomes, making these programs well worth the investment of time and funding. It is important for your district to fully understand the costs of running an effective tutoring program and determine how that program will be funded. Costs estimates for high-impact tutoring programs range considerably from $1,000 to over $3,000 per pupil.
Click Here to go to the Accelerator-Designed Tutoring Survey Instruments
Overview: How do data drive improvement?
Collecting and analyzing data lets you make improvements in a targeted, strategic way. It allows your program to:
Regardless of your approach to implementing tutoring, your district must make four main decisions that will impact the level of centralized capacity and staffing needed:
Successful implementation of High-Impact tutoring requires planning the process in detail ahead of time. The tool below includes a series of checklists to keep track of the steps needed to get tutoring up and running in your district. It also includes rough timeline estimates, though these will vary depending on the size of your district, the needs of your community, and the scope of your tutoring program.