A new project from the IU School of Education has been hard at work focusing on learning recovery and remediation services for local K-12 students.
The project, funded through a two-year Student Learning Recovery Grant, brings together the Monroe County Community School Corporation with the IU School of Education and three community-based organizations, Adult & Child Health, Boys & Girls Club of Bloomington and Communities in Schools of Indiana, and has been providing targeted support to students experiencing learning loss or falling behind in acquiring grade-level academic skills and social emotional learning. The School of Education also serves as the fiscal agent for the project.
One of the most impactful parts to come out of the project is the IU Pre-Service Teacher Tutoring Program, developed in partnership between MCCSC and the Undergraduate and Teacher Education Office. Because all undergraduates enrolled in a teacher preparation program are required to complete a 3-credit service-learning course during their first year in the program, this course served as recruitment for tutors to the program. The hands-on experience early in the pre-service teachers’ career will also help bolster their academic and personal growth and development.
Tutors were assigned to a specific classroom to tutor students during regular school hours in either one-on-one or small group format. Given the emphasis on the practice-based components of this tutoring program, the classroom teacher was given the ability to select and develop all materials for tutoring sessions. So far, over 700 MCCSC students have received more than 6,000 hours of support through the project.
Associate Dean of Undergraduate Teacher Education Jeff Anderson is principal investigator of the project, while Blaine Garman-McClaine, a doctoral candidate in the Special Education program, is the project director. Daniel Castner, Assistant Professor in Early Childhood Education and Curriculum Studies, supported the project during Summer 2022. Five undergraduate and doctoral students and candidates have also supported the project.