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Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →A parent’s report that a child needs extra help after four years in Montessori deserves attention, but it does not show that Montessori schools generally leave children behind—or that private lessons are the only way to address a particular gap. The useful next step is to identify what the child can do now, what the school expects, and what support fits the specific need.
What Montessori research can—and cannot—tell a parent
A 2023 Campbell systematic review found modest positive average effects for Montessori education compared with traditional education across its combined academic and nonacademic outcomes. The authors concluded: “Montessori education has a meaningful and positive impact on child outcomes, both academic and nonacademic, relative to outcomes seen when using traditional educational methods.” That conclusion describes an average across studies, not every school, child, or outcome.
The review retained 32 comparative studies that met its criteria, including evidence that comparison groups were equivalent at baseline through random assignment or statistical adjustment. Across those studies, it analyzed 204 effect sizes and 132,249 data points. For the composite of academic outcomes, the estimated effect was Hedges’ g = 0.24 (95% confidence interval 0.13 to 0.36), with moderate certainty. Estimates were g = 0.17 for language and g = 0.22 for mathematics, with high-quality evidence ratings for those outcome estimates. These are group-level estimates, not grade-level assessments for an individual child. Read the Campbell review.
The review’s literature search was last updated in February 2020; its 2023 publication date does not mean it includes studies published through 2023. An earlier 2017 review also discusses variation in outcomes and methodological limits in the evidence base. Read Lillard’s review.
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How to find out whether your daughter needs help
“Catch up” is only useful once it is tied to a specific skill and expectation. A broad impression that school feels harder after a transition is a reason to ask questions, not by itself proof of an academic deficit. The available evidence does not establish your daughter’s current skill level, age, grade, subject needs, or what her school has assessed.
- Ask the teacher what is difficult. Request examples of the skills or classroom tasks causing concern, and how they compare with the expectations for her grade or course.
- Request evidence of current performance. Ask whether the concern comes from classroom work, a formal assessment, or a transition adjustment. If a formal assessment is used, ask what it measures and what its results mean.
- Agree on a small number of goals. Make them concrete, such as a particular reading skill or mathematics concept, rather than an undefined goal to “catch up.”
- Choose support with the school or a qualified educator. Ask what can be tried during regular instruction or through school support, and whether outside lessons would add something specific.
- Set a review point. Decide how progress will be observed and when to revisit the plan with the teacher. If the agreed support is not helping, discuss a change rather than assuming more lessons are automatically the answer.
Are private lessons the only way to catch up?
No evidence in the sources available for this question establishes that private lessons are necessary for this child, or that they are the only effective form of support. The right response depends on the subject, the skill gap, the school’s expectations, and what has already been tried. Depending on those details, useful support may come through classroom instruction, school-based help, a targeted outside tutor, or a combination. Those are possibilities to discuss with the school, not findings about this particular child.
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A tutoring study should not be mistaken for a general verdict. A 2022 IZA discussion paper by Maria Zumbuehl, Stefanie Hof, and Stefan C. Wolter—later published online in Education Economics in July 2024—examined Switzerland’s transition to selective, academically demanding post-compulsory schooling. Its summary reports that students who had private tutoring before the transition were more likely to fail in the selective school than students with the same measured competencies who had not received tutoring. This is an association in a specific setting; it does not show that tutoring caused failure, assess every kind of tutoring, or demonstrate that a child should avoid support. Read the IZA paper information.
What to look for if you consider a tutor
If the school and family decide that outside lessons may help, choose around the child’s identified need rather than the Montessori label or a general fear of being behind. Ask prospective tutors:
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- What experience do you have with this subject and the child’s age or level?
- How will you identify the starting point and set measurable goals?
- How will you share progress with the family, and—where appropriate—with the school?
- What would indicate that the plan should change or stop?
A tutor can provide focused practice, but lessons should complement rather than replace communication with the school. Agree on what progress would look like before committing to an ongoing plan.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What this personal account does and does not establish
A parent can accurately describe a child’s transition as difficult and report that private lessons are being used. That experience matters to the family. It does not, on its own, establish that Montessori caused a learning gap, that the child is behind a particular grade standard, or that every child leaving Montessori needs tutoring. The comparative studies and the Swiss tutoring paper answer broader or different questions; none directly tests outcomes for children with this exact four-year Montessori history.
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