University of Dayton teacher education students will offer intensive tutoring to local elementary students under an Ohio Department of Education grant aimed at addressing COVID-19’s impact on learning.

“Because of the pandemic, for two years, many students lost a lot of time interacting with teachers in reading and math skills,” said Connie Bowman, associate professor of teacher education and UD’s lead for the grant. “It was difficult, especially if students were already behind.”

The tutoring effort is in partnership with Wright State University and the local nonprofit Learn to Earn and will continue through 2024. UD students will tutor third, fourth and fifth graders in 14 Dayton Public Schools.

“Working with students grades three to five is especially important because they are getting into a more difficult level of content and advanced vocabulary,” Bowman said. “We want to help them improve their reading and math skills so they can continue on in elementary school and beyond in a positive, successful manner.”

The Ohio Department of Education reports the pandemic negatively impacted student learning, resulting in lower scores on math and literacy tests in 2020-21. 

UD students will conduct pre- and post-assessments during each tutoring session to evaluate what reading and math skills they should address in subsequent sessions with each elementary student, Bowman said.

“It’s going to be a great experience for our students to use what they learn in their classes working with students individually or in small groups to help the elementary students improve reading and math skills,” Bowman said.

Read more about the grant on Wright State University’s website.