The future of a $480 million tutoring program – touted by the state government as the best way to help students whose learning stalled during the pandemic – is uncertain as many tutors are needed to cover absent teachers.
Announcing new funding for the 2022 tutor learning initiative in October last year, Education Minister James Merlino said the program was “the most important and effective initiative this year in our schools”.
Tutor Wendy Martin with students Jasmine and Kokob at Collingwood’s St Joseph’s Primary School.Credit:Eddie Jim
The program put thousands of extra staff in Victorian classrooms, but has been hampered by ongoing teacher shortages caused by COVID-19 and influenza. The state government has yet to recommit funding for it in 2023, and is waiting for a final report on the initiative by consultants Deloitte.
Every government and low-fee private school was to benefit from the tutoring program, with 6400 retired teachers and final-year teaching students deployed to help students who fell behind in their learning or were at risk of disengaging from school.
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Andrew Dalgleish, president of the Victorian Principals Association, said some schools were forced to use their tutors to take whole classes when unable to find casual relief teachers to cover for sick staff.
“This is often as a last resort due to the importance of the tutor learning initiative and wanting to get maximum impact for students,” Dalgleish said.
Tina King, president of the Victorian branch of the Australian Principals Federation, said the tutoring program had been compromised by the need for schools to cover absences.
“This is indeed regrettable as we know the benefits targeted and customised programs, such as the tutor learning initiative, can contribute to student learning and growth,” King said.
The program, costing $480 million in 2021 and 2022, is supposed to provide small-group tutoring for students who needed help after long stints of remote learning during the pandemic.
Students who struggled most during the pandemic included those already with low-level English skills, or at risk of disengaging from school, and those whose home environment was not conducive to online learning, the government said.
An earlier report by Deloitte found a “positive correlation between the tutor learning initiative and improved student outcomes”.
A government spokesperson said the program had been critical in getting students back on track and boosting their confidence as they returned from the past two challenging years.
To help schools deal with staff shortages, the Victorian government established a pool of retired teachers, final-year teaching students, and Education Department staff to work in classrooms.
Rachel Smith, principal of St Joseph’s Primary in Collingwood, said tutor Wendy Martin had helped children with their school work and their social skills.
“Having that extra person really does help,” Smith said. “I think the byproduct of this [tutoring] coming back from COVID and the isolation is helping children learn to work in a group again, face to face.
“While that wasn’t a focus for the groups, that was a natural occurrence as we went along.”
Julie Sonnemann, who led the Grattan Institute’s research on COVID catch-up tutoring, said schools might incorporate small group tuition in classrooms next year, whether or not the program continued.
“Following the big period of innovation in tutoring in 2021-22, an important next step is to identify and rigorously trial the most promising tutoring models for the Australian context,” she said.
“For example, trials can test which types of lesson materials and instructional approaches worked the best, or the conditions that best support trainee teachers to act as tutors, or whether online tutoring can work well for regional and remote students.”
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Wendy Powson, principal of Lilydale High School in Melbourne’s outer-east, said although the program was hit by staffing gaps, she hoped it would continue next year.
“I’m aware that many schools have had to move tutors back into classrooms because of staff shortages. There are often positions that have been advertised three times with no applicants and a shortage of casual relief teachers,” she said.
“However, there is a redeployment of regional staff who can be contacted, which has assisted with the CRT [casual relief teaching] situation.”
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