Do School-Based Tutoring Programs Significantly Improve Student Performance on Standardized Tests?

Abstract

This study used a pre-post, nonequivalent control group design to examine the impact of an in-district, after-school tutoring program on eighth grade students’ standardized test scores in language arts and mathematics. Students who had scored in the near-passing range on either the language arts or mathematics aspect of a standardized test at the end of seventh grade were recruited to receive tutoring in either language arts (LA) or mathematics (MA), depending on the area of weakness. An analysis of covariance revealed that both groups of students tutored in LA (n = 23) or MA (n = 20) significantly outperformed a matched control group (p =.02 for LA; p =.04 for MA). Components of effective after-school academic programs are discussed.