A look back at the minutes that moved students forward, at scale.
In a study of 92 schools in 18 school districts, DC students logged 8.4 million minutes of high-impact tutoring (HIT). Each instructional minute builds to months of extra learning, stronger confidence, and faster growth in math, showing that with the right dosage, design, and support, tutoring works.
Start with the right “dosage.”
Consistency matters most.
In CSC-supported programs, students who reached the recommended dosage, 900 minutes of tutoring, made nearly 40% more progress than expected, gaining the equivalent of 59 extra instructional days in math.
Dosage is at least 90 minutes a week for 10 weeks or roughly three, 30-minute tutoring sessions each week. Many of our partners exceeded that, averaging more than 1,300 minutes over 15 weeks.
Support to make tutoring work.
Programs with the strongest support see the biggest gains.
Providers who partnered closely with CSC, through regular check-ins and Communities of Practice (CoP) or Design Sprint participation, saw the most growth. Their students gained nearly 90 extra learning days in math, including 78 days more than the year before.
Reach the students who need it most.
Accessible tutoring accelerates achievement. Tutoring has the greatest impact when it reaches students furthest from opportunity. In CSC-supported programs, students who began with lower assessment scores:
- Gained 50 extra instructional days in math.
- Maintained 83% attendance.
- Exceeded growth expectations by 138%.
Build tutoring into the school day.
Students learn best when tutoring is built into their school day.
Schools that participated in CSC’s Design Sprints, multi-week intensive planning sessions that help schools integrate tutoring into the school day, saw students gain 21 additional days in math. Attendance also rose four points to 87%.
Pair resources with coaching and training.
Strong tools help tutors start. Training, coaching, and ongoing support help them excel.
After using CSC’s standards–aligned curriculum, 100% of tutors reported feeling ready to teach challenging math, and many were inspired to pursue a future as classroom teachers.
Grow through collaboration.
Collaboration multiplies impact.
When schools and providers share resources, capacity, and learning, we create a stronger tutoring ecosystem where growth is consistent and success is sustainable. In 2024–2025, CSC’s network grew by 10%, reaching 92 schools and 24 providers.
The minutes that move students forward
8.4 million minutes of tutoring taught us that time is as important as the support behind it. When partners are supported and tutoring meets dosage and is integrated into the school day, student achievement grows, year after year.
We help schools improve and students succeed through a strong, supported ecosystem committed to continuous improvement and scaling what works. As the minutes add up this year, we’re focused on helping our partners accelerate learning to move DC students even further, faster.
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About the Report
Read more in the Analysis of CitySchools Collaborative Supports for Tutoring Providers and Student Outcomes Report. This rigorous study of CitySchools Collaborative employed a weighted, regression-based approach to compare outcomes between tutored and non-tutored students. Tutored students were first matched to non-tutored students on baseline characteristics and then compared on their outcomes.
EmpowerK12 conducted the study under the auspices of Accelerate, a national nonprofit operating at the nexus of research, policy, and practice to ensure the rapid, widespread adoption of proven strategies.