Measured Insights, April 2026

The Editor’s Note

Declining math scores are a growing concern. Not only do they erase a decade of gains in math achievement, but they also signal gaps in foundational skills such as problem solving, decision-making, and critical thinking. While many critics blame pandemic learning losses and the rise of phone use in adolescents, studies show these declines began well before then. 

No matter the cause, we must turn these losses around—or risk falling even further behind. That’s why some schools are turning to high-dosage tutoring as a proven way to deliver consistent, targeted support that accelerates learning and closes the gaps, helping students to build the confidence and core skills needed to get back on track. And the initial results are promising. 

Math learning loss won’t fix itself. As a nation, we need to take action now, before these declines leave a lasting mark on a generation.

[Research] It May Not Be “Too Late” for High School Academic Intervention

Developed in collaboration with the School of Education at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Doctoral Student and Graduate Research Assistant, Yuzi Gao, PhD in Education (Culture, Curriculum, and Teacher Education)

As educators and schools work to support students experiencing gaps in prior learning, interventions for adolescents are often seen as harder to implement successfully than those for younger children. High-dosage tutoring has long been viewed as promising, but questions remain about whether it can be effective and scalable for older students, especially when schools face cost and staffing constraints.

This study, “Not Too Late: Improving Academic Outcomes among Adolescents,” authored by Jonathan Guryan et al. and published in the American Economic Review in 2023, examines whether intensive math tutoring can improve outcomes for economically disadvantaged high school students in Chicago.

The study reports findings from two large randomized controlled trials of Saga Education’s high-dosage tutoring model:

• Study 1 tested the effects of offering personalized math tutoring to 2,633 rising ninth- and tenth-grade male students in 12 public high schools, primarily located on the south and west sides of Chicago.
• Study 2 replicated the intervention with 2,710 ninth- and tenth-grade male and female students in 15 Chicago public high schools.

Main finding
The authors found strong evidence that high-dosage tutoring produced meaningful improvements in math outcomes for adolescents. For students who participated in the tutoring, math test scores increased by approximately 0.18 to 0.40 standard deviations. These findings suggest that intensive, personalized tutoring can substantially shift academic trajectories even during the secondary school years.

Two additional highlights from the study include:

• Benefits extended beyond math course performance. In addition to gains on standardized math assessments, students who participated in tutoring earned higher math GPAs and were less likely to fail math classes. Pooled analyses across both studies showed the intervention also led to modest improvements in non-math GPAs and lower failure rates in other core courses, suggesting that the academic benefits transfer to other subjects.
• Effects persisted over time. When students were followed into later grades, gains in math achievement remained detectable through the eleventh grade, suggesting that the intervention’s effects were not limited to the immediate post-treatment period. 

Practical takeaway for teams supporting secondary students
For schools looking to address learning gaps in high school, this study suggests that high-dosage, daily, personalized tutoring, which focuses on “teaching to the level of the student” rather than just the grade-level curriculum, can be an effective intervention. The model is especially notable because it relies on trained paraprofessional tutors rather than certified teachers, making it a potentially more scalable and cost-effective approach for large districts.

Relevance for the Quantile Framework for Mathematics
This article is highly relevant to the Quantile Framework for Mathematics because it emphasizes targeted remediation for students who are behind academically. By focusing on foundational gaps rather than just enrichment, the intervention mirrors the Quantile framework’s goal of enabling educators to predict which mathematical skills and concepts a student is ready to learn and those that will require additional instruction or enrichment. Students can then be matched with the resources that meet their learning needs. Thus, it offers strong empirical evidence that intensive support can successfully move the needle for struggling secondary students.

Important limitations
One limitation is that not all students assigned to tutoring actually participated, often due to school enrollment changes or scheduling conflicts. In addition, although the authors found clear effects on math achievement, evidence for impacts on graduation and behavioral outcomes was limited or not statistically significant. The authors also note that standardized test scores may understate true learning gains for the lowest-performing students because of  “floor effects,” where end-of-grade assessments may fail to capture growth in foundational, below-grade-level knowledge and skills.

Read the study

Citation:
Guryan, J., Ludwig, J., Bhatt, M. P., Cook, P. J., Davis, J. M. V., Dodge, K., Farkas, G., Fryer Jr., R. G., Mayer, S., Pollack, H., Steinberg, L., & Stoddard, G. (2023). Not too late: Improving academic outcomes among adolescents. The American Economic Review, 113(3), 738–765. https://www.jstor.org/stable/27252436

Turn the Page and Press Play: What We’re Reading and Listening To

[Article] High-Dosage Tutoring Should Be Here to Stay, Education Week, Alan Safran & Susanna Loeb, May 14, 2025 (Corrected May 28, 2025)
Very few interventions exist that parents, teachers, and district leaders agree on. Tutoring is one of them. And when done right, it holds the potential to help millions of students. 

[Article] Bellwether: Schools Need to Agree on Math Strategy to Boost Student Performance, The 74, Jo Napolitano, January 15, 2026
Schools need to get back on track. Combining high-quality materials, intentional instructional practices, and strong teacher support is a good place to start. 

[Article] 3 Big Changes My School Is Making to Boost Math Achievement, Education Week, Mark Miller, February 27, 2026
A junior high school in Colorado eliminated remedial math. Instead, they taught all students at or above grade level, supplemented with tutoring. And the initial results are encouraging.

[Working Paper] Can Technology Facilitate Scale? Evidence from a Randomized Evaluation of High Dosage Tutoring, National Bureau of Education Research, Monica P. Bhatt, Jonathan Guryan, Salman A. Khan, Michael LaForest-Tucker & Bhavya Mishra, May 2024
Scaling high-dosage tutoring is a challenge. But can the strategic use of technology help? This study suggests that it can.

[Report] How We Solve America’s Math Crisis: A Systemwide Approach to Evidence-Based Math Learning, Bellwether and K12 Coalition, Jessica Slaton, Ph.D., Kristen Carroll, Ph.D; Emily Shisler; and Hailly T.N. Korman; with Beth Zhang, November 2025
Many students lack basic math skills to thrive in adulthood. It’s a solvable problem…if we’re willing to adopt proven practices widely and consistently. 

[Podcast] The American Math Crisis, Plain English with Derek Thompson, November 21, 2025
More and more students are arriving at college lacking basic math skills, despite earning straight A’s in high school. Which begs the question—why are people getting worse at math?

[Podcast] How High-Impact Tutoring is Reshaping Post-Pandemic Learning Recovery, The Harvard EdCast, November 5, 2025
High-impact tutoring is not only about improving academic performance—it’s about making human connections. And that’s what makes it so successful. 

Did You Know?

Only 39% of fourth graders and 28% of eighth graders scored at or above proficient in math on the nation’s report card

These declines reverse a decade’s worth of progress in math achievement.

42% of U.S. schools now provide high-dosage tutoring

That’s about 2 in every 5 schools. And while high-dosage tutoring isn’t new, it’s finally taking off. And frankly, it’s about time.

In math, high-dosage tutoring is 20 times more effective than standard tutoring

Math scores are plummeting. High-dosage tutoring is one strategy that can reverse the trend. 

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