Washington Post education columnist Jay Mathews reports that a relatively under-the-radar Teacher Home Visit Program in Missouri is having a noticeable impact on student performance:
A study by the St. Louis public school system last year of 616 home visits found that the third- to sixth-grade students involved had an increase in average math grades and that the grades of students not involved declined. A study of 586 home visits in the Maplewood Richmond Heights School District showed students involved had better attendance.
In the Missouri program, Mathews notes, the teachers are paid for the extra time they spend in visiting students’ homes and are given specialized training in working with families. They also appear to have regular dinners with the families, which sounds like a nice idea.