programs : tutorial program
The June 2009 issue of Phi Delta Kappan journal for education features an article about the BHS Tutorial Program by Julie Joyal Mowschenson and Robert Weintraub. Click here to read "Beyond Special Education: A New Vision of Academic Support."
The Tutorial Program
By Federal and State law, school districts are required to provide children with special educational needs a "free appropriate public education.” Due to advances in medical technology, an increase in the number of children living in poverty, and the requirement to educate children in their local schools rather than in outside institutions, more children with special needs are entering and being served in the public schools. As a result, special education (SPED) expenditures nationally and across Massachusetts have risen dramatically in the last decade. Exemplifying this, Brookline's expenditures on SPED programs have increased about 70% since fiscal year 2001 – the cost of SPED services has grown by close to 30% per year. As a result, SPED now accounts for more than 25% of Brookline’s overall school budget with approximately 20% of enrolled students receiving services (the statewide average in Massachusetts in approximately 17% of enrolled students).
Given constraints on state and local budgets, these mandated increases in SPED spending mean that school districts are increasingly forced to cut other services (e.g., honors programs, arts and music curriculum, athletics, and early childhood programs) in order to sustain balanced budgets.
This exceptional growth in special education expenditures is a national issue. The 21st Century Fund has introduced three programs to address this issue directly: Tutorial (for students in grades 10 – 12), Freshman Tutorial, and Enhanced Tutorial. These programs have not only reduced the cost of special education within Brookline High School by approximately $240,000, but they have also met the needs of students with less serious yet notable learning issues within the mainstream of the school community and without having to provide them with costly SPED services.
The Tutorial Program represents a radical change in the structure and organization of the school. With increasing interest in educating students with disabilities in inclusive settings, and with federal requirements mandating that all students achieve high academic standards, BHS identified an opportunity to restructure its approach to special education.
BHS Tutorial Program
Providing individualized, content-based support to enhance the academic performance of students with mild learning difficulties.
Currently 130 students / 35 teachers
The BHS Tutorial Program began as a pilot program in 2002 involving eight teachers and 40 students to test the theory that individualized academic support would enhance the academic performance of students challenged by mild learning difficulties with the same success as a more expensive special education alternative.
BHS Tutorial now serves students with any of the following academic profiles:
- Students needing assistance to meet the course expectations of an Honors or Advanced Placement class;
- Students with organizational difficulties;
- Students needing additional review of course content to gain mastery of material;
- Students operating “under the radar” who could benefit from individual support.
In collaboration with their Tutorial teachers, students identify specific focus areas for improving academic performance and receive individual content-based tutoring. Class time is divided between personalized consultation in content areas and independent practice (where the student implements recommended strategies).
A two-year evaluation study was completed in 2004, led by Thomas Hehir of the Harvard Graduate School of Education. It concluded that the program was equally as effective as special education services for students with mild learning disabilities with regard to standardized test scores, and slightly more effective in improving course grades. The report praised the 21st Century Fund’s Tutorial Program as an innovative and impressive alternative to traditional special education programs for these students.
In the fall of 2006, the Upper-class Tutorial Program (for grades 10-12) became a permanent part of the High School serving 130 students. The 21st Century Fund still supports the Freshman Center, which is the 9th grade version of the BHS Tutorial.
In 2006, Watertown High School launched its own Tutorial Program based on the BHS 21st Century Fund model. Lexington High School has also reviewed our program and is examining ways to incorporate many of the program elements into their curriculum. Detailing the Tutorial’s support of special needs students, a professional paper authored by BHS Headmaster Dr. Robert Weintraub and Fund Co-Chair Julie Joyal Mowschenson entitled “Beyond Special Education: A New Vision of Academic Support in the 21st Century” will be published in the winter of 2009 by the Phi Delta Kappan, the country’s leading educational journal.
Given the success of BHS Tutorial, the 21st Century Fund is supporting two evolutionary offshoots of the program: Freshman Tutorial and Enhanced Tutorial. Please visit the Freshman Tutorial page to learn more about this program. Read more about Enhanced Tutorial below.
Enhanced Tutorial
Providing a more comprehensive academic network to support an even broader spectrum of students with diverse learning challenges.
In the fall of 2008, the BHS Tutorial Program was “enhanced” by supplementing its staffing with special education teachers. The goal of the “enhanced” model is to provide a more comprehensive academic network to support an even broader spectrum of students. Students with diverse learning challenges, many of whom were once assigned to Learning Centers, can now be more effectively assisted within the regular education environment. Subject-area teachers benefit as well. Provided with the opportunity to work with special education teachers in a mainstream context, the subject-area teaches involved in Tutorial are given an enhanced and highly practical occasion to develop their knowledge of and strategies for helping struggling students within the regular classroom. With this “enhancement,” our school community provides a more inclusive and effective education for a broader range of students.
This program is no longer active.
For further questions, please contact Sally Noteware at 617-713-5178 or sally_noteware@brookline.k12.ma.us.
