In general, tutoring has been primarily for struggling students, but tutoring is more than that. There is an instilled notion that tutoring is embarrassing, but the things besides struggling students, there are different types of students who require tutors. Tutoring is nothing to be ashamed of and is a proactive approach to improve his or her academic performance in class.

Nowadays, tutoring has gained massive acceptance among parents, teachers, and students alike. Even students who aren’t lagging behind in class can gain some benefit from tutoring, such as they can excel better in their class assignments or coursework. The ideal age where a child can start tutoring is 6 years – though not academically tutored but rather a musical instrument to see whether they would like it or not. The ideal age for an academic tutor, topics like maths or English is 7.

In this article, we will discuss how parents can evaluate whether their children need tutoring, and what qualities they should look in a tutor before giving him or her the job.

Tutoring For Any Students

Every student’s personality is different as well as his or her learning capability. In a classroom, it is not possible for a teacher to attend to every student. Not all students can follow the teacher’s teaching style and not all students will be able to grasp what is being taught in the classroom. Usually, it is being assumed that students who aren’t “smart” or who are lagging behind in their coursework or get poor grades to need tutoring. This isn’t entirely true and we already hinted out the reason at the beginning. Furthermore, due to limited time, teachers aren’t willing to explain all the fundamentals of a topic or subject.

As a result, some students struggling with the basics and struggle to advance to higher classes—that is if they are lucky! Not learning these core fundamentals can significantly impact a student’s overall understanding of the topic or subject, and can affect him or her well into college and beyond. Some are even to shy to question topics or ask the teacher for any assistance with so many other students around.

It is true that academic grades aren’t everything and it is important for students to have good grades if they want to get into a reputed college or university or land those coveted grants and scholarships. However, it is not possible for every student to excel in all of their courses as they have no control over the course load imposed on them. Nonetheless, parents want their kids to do better and it also behooves students to get the highest grades possible.

Finding and Hiring a Tutor

Now that we have explained why every student requires tutoring, it is important for parents to search for tutors that will help their kids to get better grades. There are many venues to look for tutors. For starters, parents can directly contact the schools whether they are offering any tutoring services. They can also contact local libraries for tutors as ask someone to volunteer as well. However, if these approaches aren’t viable, parents can hire outside tutor. But, they need to knowledgeable in their search, pricing options, qualifications, teaching methodology, personality, health, and so on.

So, what should parents look for in a tutor?

First, the tutors should have expert-level knowledge of their subject(s). In addition, they should also be updated about the latest developments on the subjects they will be teaching. There is no point in teaching something that has been obsolete for 10 years or more. Parents can discuss all of these things as well as their expectations and concerns with the tutor or/and tutoring agency.

Second, tutors must be able to communicate effectively with the students. If a tutor can communicate with the student about what he or she is teaching, then that Ph.D. in physics means nothing. Also, parents should listen to their children regarding their interactions with the tutor as well.

Third, parents should ask the tutors about the number and duration of sessions. However, this depends on the learning capability of the student. We recommend a session of 90 minutes to two hours is ideal for most students.

At last but not the least, students need to have a good understanding of the basic concepts of the subjects. Tutors are there to help them through the difficult parts. Students don’t always have to be struggling because there is no shortcut to hard work that leads to success.

Author Bio

David A. Buhr has over fifteen years of experience in the field of Education. He specializes writing articles on Education-related topics on his blog. He is presently working at SmileTutor, a reputable presence in the education industry.