The private and in-schooling tutoring market in the United States has grown substantially since the COVID-19 pandemic.

It helps that the U.S. Education Department has been offering US$220 million of funding since 2022 to help schools build tutoring programs to assist with pandemic-related learning losses.

Meanwhile, certain school districts have invested in opt-in programs, in which students log into a tutoring service through their school system’s online platform.

These four articles from The Conversation’s archives explore the effectiveness of tutoring programs in the U.S. and the advantages it has created for students from affluent families.

1. The value of in-class tutoring

Susanna Loeb, executive director of the National Student Support Accelerator, explained that the growth in spending on private tutoring is largely driven by wealthy families. This has contributed to wider educational gaps between students from different socioeconomic backgrounds.

Loeb wrote that high-impact in-class tutoring is the most accessible and effective option. She added that it works best when it’s embedded in schools during the day, where a consistent tutoring session takes place for at least 30 minutes at a time and at a minimum of three days a week.

“The most effective way for parents to get free tutoring for their children is through their school,” Loeb wrote. “Students who attend tutoring as part of their regular school education either during or immediately before or after school are shown to have higher attendance rates, which leads to better outcomes, such as stronger math and reading achievement.”

Read more: Does tutoring work? An education economist examines the evidence on whether it’s effective

2. The importance of setting goals

Surani Joshua, Arizona State University Ph.D. candidate in math education, examined the factors parents should consider before hiring a tutor.

Joshua wrote that parents must first identify what they want their child to get from tutoring. She added that learning should be placed above performance and will occur at its own pace.

The Ph.D. candidate added that effective tutoring involves students actively being involved in the process and not just sitting silently while the tutor speaks.

“Students learn the most when they make a mistake and recognize that they made one,” Joshua wrote. “A good tutor will not intervene to prevent the mistake, but rather allows the mistake to happen and then helps the student to identify and fix it. This approach teaches skills the student can use when the tutor is no longer there.”

Read more: 5 things to consider before you hire a tutor for your child

3. Advantages for affluent students

Pawan Dhingra, Amherst College professor of Sociology and American Studies, wrote that he’s concerned that intensive after-school tutoring has provided advantages to children of affluent families.

Dhingra, who interviewed more than 100 Asian American and white families with children in elementary or middle school whose kids attend after-school tutoring centers, wrote that he’s seeing a growing number of families feeling pressured to ensure their kids learn enough to be above their grade level.

“The students who take classes outside of school ‘make other kids feel bad, because they’re brighter, more capable, and they do more, and they can do it faster,’ a Boston-area elementary school principal told me,” Dhingra wrote.

Read more: Tutoring kids who don't need it is a booming business in affluent areas where parents want to stack the deck

4. Using ChatGPT as a tutor

Anne Trumbore, chief digital learning officer at the University of Virginia, explained how ChatGPT can help students excel academically. The new artificial intelligence-powered chatbot with advanced conversational abilities has collected data on a wide range of educational topics and can pass graduate school exams.

Trumbore, who studies how computers can be used to help people learn, wrote that advanced chatbots can be used to encourage students to learn more deeply.

“By 2007, early AI chatbots provided tutoring by talking students through their answers to questions,” Trumbore wrote. “Research showed these chatbots supported learning outcomes similar to the effects of human tutors.”

Read more: ChatGPT could be an effective and affordable tutor

This story is a roundup of articles from The Conversation’s archives.