By twos or in small groups, informal study sessions go on throughout the day in odd corners of the building. On the whole, students here approach the challenges of academic work as a common enterprise, not as an excuse for competition. For students with learning disabilities, Commonwealth can offer support in the form of tutorial help, extra time for tests, and other considerations as needed. The school maintains regular contact with specialists who offer testing, treatment, and study counsel. In the fall, each student selects a member of the faculty as his or her adviser for the year.
Students choose advisers with whom they feel comfortable talking about academic or personal matters.
Advisers also act as all-purpose tutors and offer advice about study skills and academic planning. Further, advisers can discuss the school's policies and goals with their advisees in a more personal way, often serving as sounding boards for inspired proposals or particular problems. It is part of the advisers' job to be advocates for their advisees and to know them well, to understand and, when appropriate, put forward their points of view. Advisers also represent the first line of communication between parents and the school. At the end of every quarter, each adviser gathers grades and comments from course teachers and sends them home with a letter summarizing the student's progress.