Just when you thought you and your family could return to “normal” for the new school year starting this month, the Delta variant of the COVID-19 virus has become a major disruptor. This will be the THIRD school year that is affected by the pandemic in one way or another.
What’s it going to be like for students returning to school? read more…
Thinking about holding your student back for a year?
Regardless of whether your child is returning to school in person, or may still be doing school remotely, a lot of parents are considering a “do-over” year.
What are the pros and cons of a “Do-Over” year and what options do you have?
We’ve started a new blog category so we can shine the spotlight on our tutors. We’re just getting started, so check out the first few spotlights we’ve published.
TutorUp can provide the one-on-one academic support your child needs to make up for COVID learning loss.
There’s a lot of conversation happening about whether or not parents should be allowed to give kids a “do-over” school year because of the year they lost to the pandemic and remote learning. This is one way parents and schools are hoping to target learning loss due to COVID 19 and the restrictions that were imposed on learning.
Some call it “unfinished learning” but none question the fact that student learning has suffered. The general consensus among parents, students, teachers, and administrators is that course failure rates soared, schoolwork has suffered, motivation has tanked, attendance has bottomed out, and studies have tried to quantify the learning loss students suffered this past school year.
Parents have always had the right to request that their child repeat a grade, or delay starting kindergarten for a year, and every year many choose to do that. The deadlines to make that request vary in each state.
Here are some of the states that are embracing the idea of a do-over:
The state of Pennsylvania passed a bill this summer “that would allow parents to give their kids a do-over extra year of school to make up for the 2020-21 year disrupted by COVID-19 pandemic closings and operating changes”. One parent expressed it like this, “Virtual just did not work, he didn’t really have a kindergarten year – he lost a year of school.”
The state of Kentucky is putting together a bill that would allow high school students to have a do-over year. Senator Max Wise, sponsor of the bill, says “There’s been everything from frustration, to seeing mental health issues, to seeing opportunities taken away from their child. I look at this with a heart for kids and the year lost, and the opportunities that have gone with that.”
In California, students who earned a failing grade are now allowed to retake their grade level and change letter grades to “pass” or “no pass”. Assembly Bill 104 allows students to catch up and avoid penalties for learning loss during the pandemic.
Ohio lawmakers are proposing a measure to allow students to retake classes in order to boost their grades and restore eligibility for sports. While this could present funding and implementation challenges for school districts, if the state senate passes the measure, schools would be forced to allow it.
Washington state created a bill allowing high school juniors and seniors to stay in school for a “bridge year” to catch up on learning and missed extracurricular activities. That bill is currently with the Senate Rules Committee.
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed a bill that permits parents, guardians, and any other person having custody over a child in grades K-8 to repeat last year’s grade.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a bill allowing Florida parents to request to hold their child back for “academic reasons”.
Some of the drawbacks of a “Do-Over” year
Three million students are “held back” per year in the United States and there is a large body of research indicating that holding a child back in school is associated with poorer academic outcomes. Grade retention can be associated with an increased likelihood of dropping out of high school or a decreased likelihood of finishing college. However, other studies found that there were short-term social and academic benefits of grade retention.
These negative impacts have not been studied as related to a COVID do-over year, and the negative impacts are merely “associated” with grade retention. It has not been shown that grade retention causes the negative impacts.
School districts are concerned about the financial impact of large numbers of students repeating a grade, and the staffing requirements to accommodate the change. The American Rescue Plan, however, provides $7 billion in funding, a portion of which is supposed to be devoted to helping students overcome learning loss due to the pandemic. School boards are also proposing budget increases to help pay for the new do-over proposals.
How can Tutoring help?
It’s clear that students improve academically when they are given one-on-one tutoring support. This is even more obvious after a school year like the one we just experienced. The COVID learning loss is real, and the evidence shows that tutoring can help students catch up and excel.
Tutoring may even be the best alternative to keeping a child back in school, or letting them have a “do-over” year. With one-on-one tutoring support, students get the kind of personalized attention they can’t get in a classroom, and that support could make the difference.
Before deciding whether or not your child would benefit from repeating a grade this school year, talk to one of our tutoring specialists to see how our online tutoring with only certified, experienced classroom teachers can help your child succeed.
We recently asked Mary Rose to share some information about herself, and this is what she wants you to know about her:
“Hello, I’m Mary Rose! I have been tutoring for 20 years now and it’s truly been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. I’ve helped so many students achieve their academic goals year after year, and I know that YOU are more than capable of making the same or better progress with the right help. Being able to take part in your development and success is an honor and a privilege.
I graduated from Potsdam University in New York with a Dual Bachelor of Arts Degree in math and education. Four years after receiving my dual diploma, I graduated from The University of Albany with a Master of Science Degree in reading. I specialize in Math and tutor middle grades, high school and college students in Algebra 1, Geometry, and Algebra 2. For the past two years I have tutored SAT and ACT for hundreds of students and helped them achieve significant score gains. Further, I am a certified Health/Life Coach.
I love to stay fit by practicing yoga, rowing, biking and lifting weights.
I am a published author of one children’s book and teacher article, and I am a co-author of three children’s books. I am a mother to two girls. I love animals and would love to own a snake and spider!”
Mary Rose currently calls Georgia home, where she is certified to teach grades 5-12. She’s also certified in the state of New York. Working primarily with students on test preparation for the ACT English, Reading, Math, and Science tests, and the SAT Verbal and SAT Writing tests, Mary Rose also teaches Math, Geometry, and Trigonometry.
Peter is a certified special education teacher who has been teaching Reading, Literacy, Writing, Math, and U.S. History for many years in elementary school and he has experience with many different types of students. His graduate degree is in Psychology.
Peter is certified both in his home state of New York, and in New Jersey and spent 27 years teaching in the Bronx. Most recently, he has been working with students on the Spectrum, teaching reading, reading comprehension and writing.
A tennis enthusiast, and former tennis teacher, Peter spends his free time playing golf, bowling, and playing chess. Here he is on a private tour of the U.S. Open.
Luis is one of our TutorUp tutors who works with seniors in high school, preparing them for college. He has years of experience helping students achieve their highest possible scores on the ACT and SAT tests for English, Reading, and Verbal. In addition, he tutors seniors in Economics, European History, World History, U.S. History, English, Reading, and Writing.
Currently living in New Jersey, Luis is certified to teach in his home state as well as in New York, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania.
Luis incorporates effective mentoring approaches to his tutoring that were acquired from his college years. His greatest challenges have been helping students with book reports, college essays, and research for advanced degrees. Luis has spent a decade in private tutoring and hopes to continue in this field. When Luis is not preoccupied with a lesson, he enjoys reading about history and technology.
