The Victorian government’s $1.2bn school tutoring program, which started during the pandemic to help students at risk of falling behind to catch up, did not significantly improve the outcomes for those involved, according to the state’s auditor-general.
The auditor-general report into the Tutor Learning Initiative, tabled in parliament on Wednesday, found despite the significant investment, the program “did not significantly improve students’ learning compared to similar non-tutored students”.
The auditor-general came to this conclusion after comparing 2022 and 2023 maths and reading test scores of students between grades 3 and 10 who received tutoring and those who didn’t. The report said:
“When we compared similar students from each group, we found that students who received
tutoring learnt less than those who did not receive tutoring. Among disadvantaged students, there was no difference in learning gains between tutored and non-tutored students. There was also no significant difference in learning gains between tutored students in metropolitan, regional or rural Victoria.
The report also found the program was “not well targeted and not well enough connected to students’ classroom learning and their particular learning needs” and despite the department of education having the information it needs to improve delivery of the initiative, it has failed to do so.
It made three recommendations to the department, which have all been accepted in full or in principle.
The opposition spokesperson for education, Jess Wilson, said the program was “another example of an education investment failing to deliver greater learning outcomes”. She said:
“The Minister for Education must explain the incompetent management of this program and why a $1.2 billion investment in student learning has resulted in no meaningful improvements at a time that learning outcomes are already at record lows.
Labor cannot manage money, cannot manage our education system and Victorian students are paying the price.
