In response to new tutoring legislation aimed at addressing COVID-19 learning loss, the Region One Education Service Center (ESC) TutorHub Program held an all-day symposium on Wednesday, July 26 to support school system administrators in understanding and analyzing updated state requirements and tutoring best practices.

In June, the Texas Legislature passed House Bill (HB) 1416 to update tutoring requirements, formerly set by HB 4545, for students who do not pass the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) test.

HB 1416 allows flexibility for schools implementing Supplemental Accelerated Instruction, which is defined as educational strategies used by educators to help students who have academic delays perform at their grade level by the end of the school year, according to the Texas Education Agency (TEA).

TEA Director of Texas Tutoring Supports Dr. Colby Self, a presenter at the symposium, said HB 1416 is a culmination of feedback on HB 4545 from school systems and regional education service centers.

“The overarching goal is to move students forward and get them to perform satisfactorily on state exams,” Dr. Self said. “We appreciate the Region One ESC TutorHub Program’s efforts in putting the conference together, and we’re happy to hear schools are implementing best practices that we know are effective for students.”

In addition to legislative updates, the symposium highlighted how to best implement High Impact Tutoring, a national model that leads to substantial learning gains for students by supplementing, but not replacing, students’ classroom experiences, according to the National Student Support Accelerator.

“Region One ESC tutors are dedicated to closing gaps caused by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Leticia Robles, Region One ESC TutorHub Program Instructional Support Lead. “We’re proud to have helped inform district leaders and Region One tutors of best practices and updates in regard to the transition to HB 1416.”

Region One ESC Tutor Carlos De Léon said he is excited to implement the strategies he learned during the symposium.

“I learned that tutoring is more than just instruction,” De Léon said. “The relationship between a tutor and a student is critical in ensuring student success.” 

The Region One ESC TutorHub Program is provided by Region One ESC SubHub Department to assist Local Education Agencies in the recruitment and placement of high-quality trained tutors that will provide supplemental targeted instruction to address students’ needs. TutorHub provides trained tutors to implement Accelerated Instruction through High Impact Tutoring. The TutorHub tutor initiative is to support LEAs in addressing learning loss by meeting the requirements for HB 1416.

For more information about the program, visit www.esc1.net/tutorhub.