Enhancing Educational Outcomes Through Community-Based Learning Support Programs

1. Count us in!The growing role of learning support programs in achieving education outcomes for disadvantaged studentsAnne PateResearch Officer, Research & Social Policy UnitAugust 2007

2. What are Learning Support Programs? • Out-of-school hours homework or tutoring assistance • May be school provided or managed by community organisations • Offer group learning and/or one-to-one tutoring • Aim to improve educational outcomes for students of all ages/backgrounds • May include social and recreational activities to build confidence and attachment to learning

3. Evaluation of Learning Support Programs Objective: To measure the outcomes of out-of-school hours community-based tutoring and homework assistance provided by 4 of 7 MCM learning support programs in 2007 Methodology: • Mapping survey in late 2006 by phone interview with LSP providers in North & West regions of metropolitan Melbourne • Primary data collection of student participants during 2007 • Interviews with school principals and specialist staff • Outcomes measurement with feedback from class teachers, tutors and students through 2007

4. Mapping Survey Findings - Overview • 33 community based programs in N&W metro region, delivered by 20 auspice agencies • over 1,300 students enrolled in 2006 and 800 regular attendees (weekly) • coverage across 26 suburbs (CBD, inner to outer areas) • 74% include primary school aged children • 52% target students from refugee or CALD backgrounds • 43 staff employed • over 1,270 volunteers

5. Key Findings – Community managed LSP’s in NW Melbourne: Year of commencement (n=33)

6. Key Findings – Community managed LSP’s in NW Melbourne: Student focus in 2006

7. Key Findings – Community managed LSP’s in NW Melbourne: Student participation in 2006 • Over 1300 enrolments in operating programs • 52% of LSP’s catered for up to 20 students • 10% have over 100 enrolled students • Over 800 regular (weekly) attendees • Average attendance rate of 62% of enrolments • High attendance rate (92%) at programs targeting primary school students

8. Key Findings – Community managed LSP’s in NW Melbourne: Growth in student participation Comparison of enrolments between first year and 2006 For the 25 programs with documented first year enrolment data: fourfold increase since start-up

9. Key Findings – Community managed LSP’s in NW Melbourne: Program operations • 74% offer one session of tuition/support per week • 1:1 tutor-student ratio ideal, but group activities and shared tutors common • Focus on homework assistance, exam preparation for older secondary students • Emphasis on general learning, literacy, numeracy and building commitment to learning for primary age students • Venues include community halls/neighbourhood houses (25%); school premises (22%), libraries (19%) and community agencies (19%) • 80% of LSP’s used volunteers as tutors • Over 1,270 volunteers assisted programs in 2006 • 38% are university students; 26% have a teaching qualification and 15% are high school students

10. Key Findings – Community managed LSP’s in NW Melbourne: Program operations (2) • 81% have developed a relationship with local school(s) • 75% accepted referrals from schools • No program in receipt of ongoing DoE funding, but 30% received grants from State Government sources (eg. SFYS) • 40% funded by internal agency resources • 15% funded by local government • Respondents highlighted the lack of recurrent funds and reliance on donations to continue

11. Key Learnings • Growth: • Community based LSP’s are emerging to fill a real local need for learning support in Melbourne • Broad coverage across all ages and backgrounds, including primary ages, new migrants and disadvantaged children • Sustainability: • Resource constraints impact on sustainability despite provider confidence (79%) • Lack of infrastructure poses risks to quality and outcomes • Challenges in recruiting volunteers ongoing • Coordination with schools is critical

12. Key Learnings (2) • Program Outcomes: • Little evaluation undertaken to date • Literature indicates substantial improvement in student learning outcomes (eg UK and Aust) • Perception of respondents that programs improve education outcomes and strengthen student commitment/interest in learning • Schools gain benefits through building relationships with community support organisations

13. Policy Implications • LSP’s in Melbourne appear to be playing an important role in improving education outcomes for children in disadvantaged circumstances • Governments have recognised the critical importance of education as both an economic and social investment (eg. education targets and strategies), but need to focus more on the 10-15% at most risk • Policy reforms and program developments need to take into full account the factors leading to poor outcomes for ‘at risk’ groups, such as: - new migrant, asylum seeker, refugee children - lack of parental support or incapacity - homeless families and young adults

14. Policy Implications Community based approaches appear to offer a valuable option that: - links schools with local community organisations - provides an alternative external option to schools to enable individual student catch-up - exposes students to alternative positive learning settings and role models - engages parents in their child’s learning - opens up access to other community resources (IT, libraries)

15. Thank you Copies of our report A Profile of Learning Support Programs in North-West Melbourne may be obtained from: Melbourne Citymission website: www.melbournecitymission.org.au or phone (03) 8625-4468