When reports first broke of the government’s plan to launch the National Tutoring Programme to help pupils to catch up on lost learning following the challenges of COVID-19, there was lots of discussion about the role and potential impact of tutoring to address the problem.
Writing for TES, Elroy Cahill, Headteacher of Kingsley Academy in Hounslow, West London, gave a brilliant account of his experience with using tuition as an intervention method at different schools in the course of his teaching and leadership career.
Reflecting on the role of tuition, Elroy said: “Tutoring is not, and cannot be, a substitute for great quality teaching. However, if used in a targeted way, then it is a powerful supplement. It allows pupils to revisit previous concepts, consolidate what happens in class, and it helps pupils build confidence.”
Looking specifically at his experience of working with MyTutor, Elroy shared a powerful story of one pupil’s progress:
“Mohammed also was part of the fantastic MyTutor programme in maths, an online tutoring programme that uses high-quality undergraduates for online tuition through its secure platform.” Being one-to-one, these sessions were completely tailored to Mohammed’s needs and also allowed him to ask questions in a safe space, to practise concepts demonstrated in class and to address gaps or areas of need from his mock examinations.”
“In both subjects, Mohammed made great progress as tutoring worked side by side with excellent teaching and a well-planned curriculum, allowing him to catch up. By March 2020, Mohammed had moved from a grade 1 in Maths, to a secure grade 5, and from a grade 3 in English to a secure grade 7. And these impressive results played out across the cohort. We were on track to have narrowed our gap between disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged from 13 per cent to 2 per cent.”
To get the whole story, head over to TES to read the full article.
