High-dosage tutoring to make up for COVID learning loss

[Anonymous]

HS here. We have before school and after school tutoring, but we had that before the pandemic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No one at my school signed up to teach it.

Classroom teacher who did not sign up but saw about 10 out of 50 staff sign up. Almost all teachers who are tutoring ARE NOT classroom teachers. They are Sped or ELL or instructional coaches. From what I have seen, it has been a regular twice a week one hour small group session of anywhere between 5 to 10 students. I think it has to help. It all depends on the students, their attendance, Their willingness to work and do more. It definitely can't hurt.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wish my school had this! My kid is so far behind and I’m tired of the movie and TV time in aftercare. C’mon already! They seem to be struggling with basics due to staffing issues, much less helping kids who need it in extra hours. I have found offsite support and paying a ton.

NP here. If your child is in aftercare, there should be a dedicated time for homework. Your child should be doing homework and then one of the many online programs for support. You kid should be doing Zearn or iReady every day. You should demand it of aftercare. It's not show a movie care. Speak to the teacher in charge, the person managing the aftercare, and the principal. If your child is there every day for at least an hour, results can be easily achieved even without direct help from a teacher. Some kids just need more time to practice and complete the work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m curious where the $40/hr is coming in. I thought that intensive tutoring was supposed to be one of the major components of the American Recovery Plan funding.

I think the $40 is the going rate for teachers as admin premium. I think schools got money as covid relief to set up these tutoring programs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wish my school had this! My kid is so far behind and I’m tired of the movie and TV time in aftercare. C’mon already! They seem to be struggling with basics due to staffing issues, much less helping kids who need it in extra hours. I have found offsite support and paying a ton.

NP here. If your child is in aftercare, there should be a dedicated time for homework. Your child should be doing homework and then one of the many online programs for support. You kid should be doing Zearn or iReady every day. You should demand it of aftercare. It's not show a movie care. Speak to the teacher in charge, the person managing the aftercare, and the principal. If your child is there every day for at least an hour, results can be easily achieved even without direct help from a teacher. Some kids just need more time to practice and complete the work.

Yeah pile more on to people who are already tapped out and stressed out. How much are you paying for aftercare at school? Why not bring your kid home and make them do screen time at home?

Are they in aftercare for socialization or babysitting?

But yeah keep pushing people who are losing it at then all you will get are 18 year old non felons to teach your kids

[Anonymous]

Isn’t it on Saturdays at some schools?

[Anonymous]

It seems very well done at our school. Afterschool Tuesdays-Thursdays. Run by the teacher that should have been our AP and lot of very highly regarded classroom teachers staff it.

[Anonymous]

^^ My kid is on the other end of the spectrum academically and I’m sometimes frustrated how much the teachers seem to prioritize the below grade level students. That said, I’m pleased to see them carry that through to their off time, especially if — per PP teachers in this thread — the pay isn’t great. These are teachers who could (and do) make more than double per hour via private tutoring.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Based on the responses, it looks like the large-scale program of intensive tutoring that Ferebee and Paul Kihn promised to make up for a year of learning loss caused by school closures has hardly happened at all. Correct?

https://osse.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/osse/page_content/attachments/HighDosageTutoringGuidance.pdf
https://dcist.com/story/21/11/16/a-new-report-shows-how-drastically-the-pandemic-affected-learning-in-dc/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Based on the responses, it looks like the large-scale program of intensive tutoring that Ferebee and Paul Kihn promised to make up for a year of learning loss caused by school closures has hardly happened at all. Correct?

https://osse.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/osse/page_content/attachments/HighDosageTutoringGuidance.pdf
https://dcist.com/story/21/11/16/a-new-report-shows-how-drastically-the-pandemic-affected-learning-in-dc/

That's my read. OP, I'm glad you're probing on this and keep asking. The announcing of new initiatives + failed follow-through is one of the (many) things that drives me crazy about DC schools. (And, quite frankly, thinking that classroom teachers and school staff would have any bandwidth for this was absolutely folly and doomed the plan from the start.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Based on the responses, it looks like the large-scale program of intensive tutoring that Ferebee and Paul Kihn promised to make up for a year of learning loss caused by school closures has hardly happened at all. Correct?

https://osse.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/osse/page_content/attachments/HighDosageTutoringGuidance.pdf
https://dcist.com/story/21/11/16/a-new-report-shows-how-drastically-the-pandemic-affected-learning-in-dc/

Yes. They gave absolutely zero support to schools, who were supposed to just figure it out on their own. Which, was, on top of all the other things that were going on at the start of this year, a bridge too far.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Based on the responses, it looks like the large-scale program of intensive tutoring that Ferebee and Paul Kihn promised to make up for a year of learning loss caused by school closures has hardly happened at all. Correct?

https://osse.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/osse/page_content/attachments/HighDosageTutoringGuidance.pdf
https://dcist.com/story/21/11/16/a-new-report-shows-how-drastically-the-pandemic-affected-learning-in-dc/

Yes. They gave absolutely zero support to schools, who were supposed to just figure it out on their own. Which, was, on top of all the other things that were going on at the start of this year, a bridge too far.

Is anyone surprised by this? Typical DCPS with top down mandates which sound good but absolutely no plan or support where the burden is on the schools where the principal and staff are already overwhelmed in normal times let alone a pandemic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Based on the responses, it looks like the large-scale program of intensive tutoring that Ferebee and Paul Kihn promised to make up for a year of learning loss caused by school closures has hardly happened at all. Correct?

https://osse.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/osse/page_content/attachments/HighDosageTutoringGuidance.pdf
https://dcist.com/story/21/11/16/a-new-report-shows-how-drastically-the-pandemic-affected-learning-in-dc/

Yes. They gave absolutely zero support to schools, who were supposed to just figure it out on their own. Which, was, on top of all the other things that were going on at the start of this year, a bridge too far.

Is anyone surprised by this? Typical DCPS with top down mandates which sound good but absolutely no plan or support where the burden is on the schools where the principal and staff are already overwhelmed in normal times let alone a pandemic.

+1

It was totally based on teacher participation. It’s a lot any year to teach call day and then do an after school tutoring session. But this year it seemed really daunting and would be a lot of work. Only five teachers out of 40 signed up.

[Anonymous]

At an elementary charter - my lower elementary student has had pull out support in two subjects (during the school day), and my upper elementary has had after school tutoring offered once a week to the whole cohort.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Based on the responses, it looks like the large-scale program of intensive tutoring that Ferebee and Paul Kihn promised to make up for a year of learning loss caused by school closures has hardly happened at all. Correct?

https://osse.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/osse/page_content/attachments/HighDosageTutoringGuidance.pdf
https://dcist.com/story/21/11/16/a-new-report-shows-how-drastically-the-pandemic-affected-learning-in-dc/

That's my read. OP, I'm glad you're probing on this and keep asking. The announcing of new initiatives + failed follow-through is one of the (many) things that drives me crazy about DC schools. (And, quite frankly, thinking that classroom teachers and school staff would have any bandwidth for this was absolutely folly and doomed the plan from the start.)

It 100% happened at our school. Afterschool 3 days a week. By invitation (same kids as who got summer program invitations by and large). Program seems very well subscribed. This must be very much a school by school thing... like a lot of things in DCPS.