Can tutoring improve GCSE results? What the research tells us

What does research on tutoring show?

A 2020 review by Andre Nickow, Philip Oreopoulos and Vincent Quan brought together experimental studies of school-age tutoring. It found substantial positive average effects on learning. The review included both one-to-one and small-group programmes, across ages, subjects and settings, with results varying between programmes.

That supports tutoring as an approach worth considering. It does not establish the effect of one particular tutor or a weekly private lesson. The review is also not a direct comparison between Maurice’s lessons and a child revising independently at home.

Source: The Impressive Effects of Tutoring on PreK-12 Learning: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of the Experimental Evidence, Nickow, Oreopoulos and Quan, NBER Working Paper 27476, July 2020.

Can online tutoring help too?

A 2021 study by Michela Carlana and Eliana La Ferrara evaluated a free online tutoring programme for disadvantaged Italian middle-school pupils during the pandemic. Pupils were randomly assigned to volunteer university tutors providing at least three hours a week. The study reported improvements in academic performance and several wider outcomes.

This is encouraging evidence that individual support can work online. Its pupils, timetable and lockdown setting differ from ordinary UK GCSE tuition, so its result should not be treated as an estimate of what Maurice’s lessons will achieve.

Source: Apart but Connected: Online Tutoring and Student Outcomes during the COVID-19 Pandemic, Carlana and La Ferrara, Harvard Kennedy School Working Paper RWP21-001, February 2021.

Why a learning improvement is not a promised grade

A research average describes the pupils and programmes studied. An individual result depends on many things, including starting knowledge, the teaching, attendance, practice, the time available and the assessment itself.

A gain on a study’s test is not automatically the same as moving up a specified number of GCSE grades. These studies do not justify saying that tuition with Maurice guarantees two extra grades, a pass or a particular exam score.

A more useful starting conversation is: what does the student currently understand, where are they getting stuck, and what would they like to be able to do next? Discuss the school’s feedback and the GCSE exam board and tier alongside those questions.

What useful progress can look like

Marks on comparable school assessments can be one source of information. Look at the learning underneath them too:

• The student can explain a method rather than only repeat its steps.
• A common mistake appears less often in fresh questions.
• They can choose a method when the question looks different.
• They need fewer prompts to start and check their work.
• They know which part to ask about when they need help.

One correct answer is a useful moment, but trying a fresh question later gives a better discussion point about what is still understood. In the straight-line graphs lesson, for example, a student can change the gradient and explain what happens before checking a separate practice question.

What to ask before starting tuition

Ask how the tutor would approach the topics your child finds difficult, how the work will fit their course and what practice might be useful between lessons. Discuss how you will talk about progress; do not assume a particular reporting arrangement without agreeing it.

Maurice offers KS3 Maths, GCSE Maths and GCSE Physics, including GCSE Foundation and Higher tiers and all exam boards. He is a retired professional engineer and STEM Ambassador with over 9 years of tutoring experience. His free first assessment includes the student and parent, giving everyone a chance to discuss needs and suitable lesson times.

Read how one-to-one support can complement school, or how tuition and independent revision can work together, before deciding what to ask him.