As your child gets to the end of school, tutoring is quite possibly something you’ve thought about (I mean, you are reading this article!).
The problem is, tutoring can be a lot of money and is often a financial sacrifice for families. You’ve come to the right place to find out if it’s worth it.
We’ll walk you through the benefits of getting a tutor for your child! Who does it help, and why can it often be the best option? We will also discuss what skills you should look for in a tutor.
Let’s jump in and find out more!
Reason #1: Students Can Learn at Their Own Pace
Reason #2: Students Take Responsibility for Their Study
Reason #3: Tutors Can Give a New Perspective
Reason #4: Tutors Can Help Create Realistic Study Habits
Reason #5: Tutors Can Target Specific Gaps in Learning
Reason #6: Tutoring Can Improve Self-Esteem
What should your child get tutoring for?
What should you look for in a tutor?
Reason #1: Students can learn at their own pace
The first benefit of tutoring is pretty straightforward. Even if students have brilliant teachers, it is very difficult to work at an ideal pace for everyone within a classroom environment.
Because of this, two things can happen. Students can fall behind and miss key bits of information, often leading to lower self-esteem about school. On the flip side, high-achieving students may become bored in the classroom and want to be pushed further.
A tutor can solve both these issues, by providing well-balanced help that meets each child where they are at.
Reason #2: Students take responsibility for their study
If you are enrolled in school, attendance is compulsory (as you know). This can often mean that students do not feel any real ownership over their education, and are simply going with the flow of what is around them. If friends do not feel a particular push to achieve highly, it may also affect your child.
At its core, ‘ownership over learning’ means being engaged, motivated and self-directed. It’s about getting things done regardless of peers. This can be a very difficult thing to do, especially when students are influenced by the culture of their friends.
Learn how to encourage your child to take responsibility for their success here!
By having a tutor, students need to be on top of work and able to respond to targeted questions. They are therefore more likely to take responsibility for learning. The very notion of having a tutor, even if your child is not using them to any extensive degree or learning new content with them, can set students back on track.
Reason #3: Tutors can give a new perspective
Sometimes, students are working really hard but they just don’t quite get the concepts being taught. Tutors can be an excellent way for your child to gain a new academic perspective. They can be shown what they are missing, and directed to improve.
This is important, given that most tutors have taken the subjects they are teaching themselves. They have an acute understanding of the topic, and also know what may come up in assessments.
“My parents supported me by getting a tutor that really helped and improved my grades.” — Vi (ATAR 95.1).
Reason #4: Tutors can help create realistic study habits
Students need study routines that work for them. Recommended routines can be excellent for a basic structure, but it’s even better if your child can develop a trusting relationship with a tutor to help guide them.
Tutors have done the HSC before (in many cases, fairly recently). They understand what is necessary for learning, but also how to balance all the other stresses like social lives, part time jobs and sport.
Further, even if your child is super unmotivated, tutoring happens at the same time each week. You’ll know that at a minimum, they are completing this work!
Your child is also generally more likely to listen to a tutor than a parent, so this can be a great way for cementing a study plan! You could co-create a study plan with your child similar to this:
Reason #5: Tutors can target specific gaps in learning
On a similar note to Reason #3, the one-on-one time between students and tutors can be the perfect time to target specific content or issues that your child has missed. As much as tutors can provide a different perspective (like we discussed), they can also introduce topics that students may have missed altogether.
This is particularly helpful for content-heavy subjects, like sciences, history or maths. Missing a lesson for a sick day can mean a big gap in content knowledge. Tutors can totally help with this!
One of the best ways to achieve great results is by having tutors and teachers work together. Encourage your child to ask for a simple note from their teacher, detailing what information they may have missed, or what the teacher feels they don’t understand. A good, experienced tutor should be able to pick up learning from there.
Reason #6: Tutoring can improve self-esteem
Combining all the above points, it’s easy to see how tutors can really boost self-esteem!
They can help students find their own learning style, which makes school more accessible and improves confidence. In addition, having someone who is championing your work is a game changer for anyone. Tutors meet students where they are at, and are likely to become great advocates for your child’s learning.
The benefits to this are two-fold. Not only will students feel good within themselves, but their marks are likely to increase too. When people feel more sure in themselves, they are more likely to push for better outcomes and are therefore more likely to do well at school.
It’s even better if you can combine tutoring with parent support too!
“My parents supported me in various ways including, providing me with a weekly chemistry tutor – a subject I struggled with and lacked confidence in and they took me to various open days of universities.” — Gaby (94.2 ATAR)
What should your child get tutoring for?
The answer to this varies! While you can get a tutor for almost all HSC subjects, it doesn’t mean this is the most beneficial answer for your child (or, frankly, your wallet). Here are some key things to consider if you’re looking at hiring a tutor:
Your child is particularly struggling or excelling in a subject
If you have a child who is progressing slightly outside of what a normal classroom caters for, whether that means they are struggling or thriving, it’s a great sign that they need a tutor. To find this out, listen to how your child talks about each subject. Have a look at the marks on their report, and evaluate.
Your child isn’t motivated
Most students have particular subjects that they don’t overly enjoy, or can’t be bothered to do the work for. Tutors can help get them back on track.
They request one!
If your child asks directly for a tutor, that can be a great sign that they are taking their work seriously. Consider if this is financially viable for you. It will make your child feel great if they know they their parents support them!
What should you look for in a tutor?
Choosing the right tutor for your child can be a rather challenging and subjective thing. As a general rule, you want to find someone that knows the subject area really well.
They are not only able to answer questions, but they can challenge your child in course content. Knowing the correct information also means being able to interpret exam questions or know loosely what content may be asked for in an exam.
You also want your child’s tutor to have great soft skills, like empathy and understanding. They need to meet your child wherever they are at, which can take patience. Find someone who not only knows the content, but knows how to teach it!
You can find great tutors at Art of Smart. We’ve tutored over 8,000 students and 93% of our students feel they have the confidence to succeed in future study with our holistic teaching style.
There you have it!
Now that we have spoken all about the benefits of tutoring, it’s up to you to weigh up what is best for your child! You know them, and you will probably be able to figure out what they need through some simple conversations.
You can always get in contact with a tutor when you feel the time is right.
Are you looking for some extra help for your child during the HSC through tutoring?
We have an incredible team of HSC tutors and mentors!
We can help your child master their HSC subjects and ace their upcoming HSC assessments with personalised lessons conducted one-on-one in your home or at one of our state of the art campuses in Hornsby or the Hills!
We’ve supported over 8,000 students over the last 11 years, and on average our students score mark improvements of over 20%!
To find out more and get started with an inspirational HSC tutor and mentor, get in touch today or give us a ring on 1300 267 888!
Lucinda Garbutt-Young hopes to one day be writing for a big-shot newspaper… or maybe just for a friendly magazine in the arts sector. Right now, she is enjoying studying a Bachelor of Public Communication (Public Relations and Journalism) at UTS while she writes on the side. She also loves making coffees for people in her job as a barista, and loves nothing more than a sun shower.
