The Arizona Department of Education has launched an "interest form" for parents and guardians who are interested in a free tutoring program for students impacted by learning loss from the COVID-19 pandemic.
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne announced earlier this month a $40-million project to help minimize the impacts of learning loss in math, writing and reading.
The Department of Education has now posted online an interest form, where you can fill out your information and your child’s school.
The Department of Education has also announced who is eligible: "This program utilizes funds from the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER III) program to provide tutoring services to those students who may have been impacted during the pandemic and is free to qualifying Arizona public school students in grades 3-8."
The Achievement Tutoring program will consist of:
- Six-week tutoring blocks with 60-minute sessions up to four days per week.
- Students complete a pre- and post-test to determine tutoring needs during each tutoring block.
- Tutoring sessions aligned to the Arizona Standards in reading, writing, and math.
- Communication between the parents and the tutor.
Existing Tutoring Programs:
- State Tutoring - If your student is enrolled in a D or F school, a tutoring program already exists for your student. To enroll your student and learn more, please visit the State Tutoring website.
- Title I Schools - If your student is enrolled in a Title I school, there are already student supports available and ready to use. To find out more information about Title I assistance, please visit the Targeted Assistance website.
- Exceptional Student Services - If your student is receiving special educational services, there are already supports available to use. To find out more about ADE Exceptional Student Services, please visit the Special Education Services for Parents and Families website.
Officials estimate the $40-million program will pay for 1.3 million hours of tutoring for anywhere from 54,000 to 162,000 students. Classes will be four days a week.
Tutoring sessions will be done by public school teachers who choose to participate. For teachers to do so, they can make $30 per hour and can earn a $200 stipend for each student that shows a half-year gain from the tutoring. The benefits would max out at $8,000.
Here in Arizona, there are approximately 800,000 grade school and middle school students in public and charter schools. According to Arizona officials, approximately 60% are suffering from learning loss due to COVID-19.
The department has not posted tutoring applications for teachers yet, but the website indicates a section is coming soon.
