Attendance

Packing an impact punch! The rationale for our approach to curriculum

Creating a tutoring curriculum that makes a genuine difference in pupils’ lives requires much more than simply aligning sessions with national standards. At Action Tutoring, we have carefully developed a curriculum that is evidence-based, inclusive, and designed to address the unique barriers faced by pupils facing disadvantage. Here’s how our approach ensures maximum impact, one carefully crafted session at a time.

Grounded in research and evidence

Our curriculum is built on a foundation of up-to-date research into effective teaching and tutoring practices. This ensures that pupils benefit from the latest insights into how young people learn best. For example, our Year 6 English curriculum draws on guidance from the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) and incorporates evidence-based strategies like structured scaffolding and retrieval practice.

This commitment to research isn’t a one-time effort. Our Curriculum Leads (CLs), both of whom are experienced educators, conduct regular literature reviews to ensure our maths and English materials are informed by the latest studies and align with educational standards. By keeping our curriculum dynamic and reflective of current best practices, we give our pupils the best chance to succeed (and achieve the all-important passing grades in their SATs and GCSEs).

Tackling barriers to learning head-on

We recognise that all pupils face challenges, but those from disadvantaged backgrounds often encounter additional hurdles. Our curriculum is designed to mitigate these barriers, including:

1. Poor attendance

Attendance is a significant challenge for many pupils facing disadvantage. To address this, our team of Programme Coordinators (PCs) works closely with schools to maximise attendance. Additionally, our curriculum incorporates recap activities and opportunities to recall prior knowledge, to ensure that each session can ‘stand alone’ to promote pupil progress. 

2. The vocabulary gap

Research shows that pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds often face a significant gap in their vocabulary. Alex Quigley’s ‘Closing the Vocabulary Gap’ refers to this; he emphasises that many pupils lack exposure to rich language and diverse texts, leaving them less equipped to tackle challenging material. 

David Didau highlights this issue in his blog on closing the language gap, sharing an example from a foundation-tier exam on Of Mice and Men. The exam included a seemingly straightforward question about ‘dreams’, specifically addressing the ‘futility’ of dreams. Unfortunately, none of the pupils attempted to answer it – not because they didn’t grasp the concept, but because they didn’t know what ‘futility’ meant. Despite their understanding of the underlying idea, their limited vocabulary left them unable to engage with the question.

This challenge has only grown since 2015, as the English curriculum has advanced in complexity, particularly through its vocabulary demands. Simply encouraging ‘reading for pleasure’ is insufficient to close this gap. Pupils from lower socioeconomic backgrounds often don’t get the language exposure needed to access a lot of material.

That’s why our sessions are designed to model effective reading strategies and explicitly teach tier 2 vocabulary, such as “lunged” and “benevolent,” alongside tier 3 subject-specific terms like “metaphor” and “oxymoron.” By embedding this instruction into engaging, scaffolded activities, we help pupils build the language skills they need to access and excel in their learning.

3. Difficulties in accessing learning at home

A lack of access to technology or a suitable learning environment can hinder progress. That’s why our online tutoring sessions are fully equipped with the resources pupils need; such as headsets and printed anthologies of texts to annotate; delivered in the safe and structured setting of their school.

4. Closing learning gaps

Our curriculum is targeted at helping pupils catch up in areas where they may have fallen behind. For example, our Year 5 English grammar curriculum focuses on three essential areas: tenses, prefixes/suffixes, and fronted adverbials. These skills are foundational for success in Year 6 and beyond.

Aligned with the National Curriculum

Ensuring continuity with classroom learning is essential. Our curriculum aligns closely with the National Curriculum, enabling pupils to strengthen and build on their classroom knowledge. For instance, our maths resources integrate problem-solving questions and opportunities for “maths talk,” which mirrors the emphasis placed on reasoning and communication in schools.

Inclusive by design

We believe that a truly impactful curriculum must reflect the diversity of the pupils we serve. That’s why diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) principles are woven into every stage of curriculum design. We aspire towards:

• Author diversity: A 50/50 gender balance in our primary resources, and 25% of authors from ethnic minorities.
• Inclusive content: Names and scenarios in our curriculum reflect a variety of cultures and avoid stereotypes. For instance, traditional binary groupings like “boys and girls” have been replaced with creative alternatives, such as “guinea pigs and rabbits.”
• A proactive approach: DEI isn’t a bolt-on gesture at the end – it’s embedded from the very beginning of the design process.

Looking to the future

At Action Tutoring, our curriculum is more than just a set of resources – it’s a carefully designed tool to empower pupils, tutors, and schools alike. By addressing the specific challenges faced by pupils facing disadvantage, prioritising inclusivity, and constantly striving for improvement, we aim to deliver a tutoring experience that truly packs an impact punch.

We work with primary and secondary state schools across England to deliver heavily subsidised, high-quality tutoring for pupils facing disadvantage in Years 5, 6, 7, 10 and 11, in English and maths. If you’re interested in finding out more, visits our schools page:

Read our curriculum guides:

Action Tutoring’s curriculum is designed to ensure comprehensive SATs and GCSE preparation for pupils. Our specialist Curriculum Leads for English and maths are fundamental to this, bringing a wealth of knowledge from their experiences as Lead Practitioners in schools.

You can view our current Curriculum Guides for schools below:

‘Thank You’ notes that melted our hearts last term

One of the reasons why working with children is fulfilling is that you get to see them grow, learn and develop every single time. The endless energy, creativity and playfulness they exude always brings joy and excitement.

However, working with children isn’t all rosy. Sometimes we have to manage their energy, brutal honesty, and humour. But these challenges are outweighed by the rewards of watching pupils grow in subject knowledge and confidence.

At the end of each term or school programme, a heart-warming moment for many of our volunteers and staff is when pupils share inspiring and engaging thank-you notes of appreciation.

Here are ten of the remarkable notes of gratitude from pupils who were supported by our volunteers and programme team last term:

1. What a blast!

2. Experience the magic 24/7

3. Who wouldn’t like a PS5 as a reward?

4. Missing Kitty

A tell-all with express permission

6. Cheers to behavioural change!

7. They who laughs last, laughs best?

8. Choosing to learn over biscuits

9. The heart emoji keeps filling up

10. Football rivalry knows no boundaries!

Another amazing year together ahead

These words of appreciation and witnessing a pupil progress from strength to strength are why we do what we do. To all of our volunteer tutors, we want to say thank you for your selflessness and dedication. You make a real difference in the lives of children, and we are so grateful for your service.

With the 2023-24 new academic year starting in earnest, we look forward to another great year of supporting pupils together and some fun thank you notes.

If you are interested in becoming a volunteer tutor, find out more in the link below.

Our evidence submission: Tackling persistent absence and support for disadvantaged pupils

Since the onset of Covid-19, a significant challenge for schools and other education support organisations has been persistent pupil absence. When students frequently miss school or display a pattern of irregular attendance, it can have far-reaching consequences on their academic progress, personal development, and future prospects.

In March, Action Tutoring submitted written evidence to Parliament’s Education Committee inquiry into persistent absence and support for disadvantaged pupils. The parliamentary inquiry was aimed at examining the issue of severe absences, the factors causing it and to assess the likely effectiveness of the Department of Education’s (DfE) proposed reforms on attendance, particularly for disadvantaged pupils.

As an education charity and accredited tuition provider, our submission focused on pupil engagement in tutoring sessions – pre and post-pandemic, reasons for low school attendance, the impact of tutoring programmes for disadvantaged pupils, and ways to increase attendance and engagement in schools.

Tutoring attendance and engagement

The attendance figures for Action Tutoring programmes are slightly lower than before the outbreak, mirroring national patterns. Our data showed that the Pupil Premium cohort – children receiving Free School Meals who formed 72% of our beneficiaries – had lower attendance figures.

For primary schools in the autumn of 2022, attendance at Action Tutoring sessions was 82% for Pupil Premium pupils and 86% for non-Pupil Premium pupils. 

In secondary schools for the same term, attendance was 66% for Pupil Premium pupils and 72% for non-Pupil Premium pupils. 

Tutoring sessions for both primary and secondary take place outside the regular school hours.

The severity of persistent absence

Persistent pupil absence goes beyond occasional absences due to an illness or family emergency. It involves students who are consistently absent without valid reasons and hence miss a substantial number of school days, often exceeding the accepted threshold.

According to the Department for Education (DfE), a pupil is identified as a persistent absentee if they miss 10% or more of their possible sessions. Nationally, over 1.7 million pupils (24.2% of all pupils) missed 10% or more of their school sessions in Autumn 2022-23, up from 23.5% the previous year. This compares to 922,566 absentee pupils before the pandemic.

The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) School Absence Tracker has shown that the number of children who are severely absent remains at crisis levels and the situation worsens among pupils eligible for Free School Meals(FSM). In the 2021/22 academic year, the severe absence rate for pupils eligible for FSM was more than triple the rate for children not eligible for FSM.

Causes of persistent pupil absence

In our evidence submission, we mentioned that some of the causes of persistent absence may include:

• poor mental health
• illness including long-term illness or fear of infecting vulnerable family members with an illness
• chaotic home lives or factors such as additional caring responsibilities
• post-Covid fear of finding learning difficult, being demoralised, or feeling left behind 
• lacking the confidence to engage in the classroom

What needs to change

Tackling persistent pupil absence requires a multi-faceted approach involving collaboration between schools, families, and communities. As a tutoring organisation that provides additional academic help to pupils, below are some strategies we believe can help improve attendance and engagement with the young people we support.

• Sharing drinks and snacks during tutoring sessions to reduce hunger
• Letters and text reminders to parents and parent information sessions about the tutoring and its benefits
• Incentives for pupils such as vouchers or free tickets to the end-of-year prom if they attend the majority of their tutoring sessions
• Pizza parties at the end of the programme
• Award ceremony or presentation of certificates in assembly at the end of the programme
• Reminders earlier in the school about their tutoring session and/or picking them up from their last lesson into tutoring sessions
• Integrate attendance into the positive behaviour management system such as gaining points for their ‘house’ through attendance

New DfE’s solutions to tackle persistent absence

Last week, the DfE published a notice on new plans to drive up attendance rates and attainment in schools.

• Expand the Attendance Hubs programme with nine new lead hub schools to support up to 600 primary, secondary, and alternative provision schools
• Expand the presence of Attendance Mentors in areas of the country with the highest levels of pupil absence from September

The proposed solutions are to build on the existing attendance strategy which includes guidance for schools, attendance data dashboard and the work of the Attendance Action Alliance.

Collaborative approach

Persistent pupil absence poses a significant challenge to schools and the well-being of students. If the issue is not addressed, the nation risks creating a lost generation which may give rise to a surge of problems in the future.

By implementing a collaborative approach that addresses the underlying causes, provides support, and fosters a positive school environment, we can begin to tackle this issue effectively to help every child to reach their full potential.