If you need urgent support, call 999 or go to your nearest A&E. To contact our Crisis Messenger (open 24/7) text THEMIX to 85258.
Options
Is private tuition an advantage to young people?
Former Member
Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
Many pushy parents are making their children “miserable” by subjecting them to academic coaching in the evening, said Gail Larkin, president of the National Association of Head Teachers.
Read more.Are parents who pay for their children to have extra tuition being cruel by forcing them to do extra work, or are they being kind by paying their children to have extra help so they can get better exam results?
Should schools provide more extra tuition, so children whose parents can’t afford private tuition aren’t disadvantaged?
0
Comments
so yeh, there is my experience... I'd love to hear from some people who haven't ever experienced tuition!
Saying that, I had tutoring for my 11+ exam, and I don't regret it, although it was entirely my choice to have it. So really, as long as the child's chosen I think it's ok..
gosh 3 year olds is way to young!!!! I thought being 7 was young.... I feel that children shouldn't have tuition till the age of maybe 8 as like you said they should be doing homework, also at that young age, most parents or family member are able to help the child with work. 2 hours of work a day is ridiculous! I would get around 3 hours of work a week to sometimes up to 6..... but often being the rebellious one I am, id not do all of it!
But like you said, if the child chose's it. I think it's okay.
I never had private tuition because it was something my parents could never afford. I did however, get a lot of help from a friend of mine when I was doing my GCSEs, which benefitted me greatly. I missed a lot due to various reasons and the teacher didn't have time to go over what I'd missed. I am for numerous reasons, having to now consider private tuition (struggle with self teaching) for GCSE English.
I don't see the problem if it's something the child feels they need, like in my situation. But I think at the age if 3, it's silly. Who exactly does that benefit? At that age, it's better if that money is spent on I don't know, activites for the child if that's what the child wishes to do.
This.
As with anything, as long as the tutoring isn't detrimental to a child's welfare and wellbeing then I don't see an issue with it.
That said, there is a major flaw in the educational system and something I have an issue with as a teacher. Education is rapidly becoming more about exams, assessment and ranking schools and children nationally and globally. Along with that the requirements to be labelled or diagnosed as SEND has changed and become more limited - if a child receives private tutoring for their own personal development then fine, but if they are being tutored because the educational system is failing to support them in a adequate way then there is a problem and sadly that is becoming more and more common, from what I have seen. The most dedicated teacher can put aside time to help children but there simply is not enough hours in a day to bring children to the "standard" curriculum level, in a way that suits their individual learning needs and style.
Education is for life, not for assessment and I personally feel that I face a moral dilemma when I have my own class because I feel that it is so damaging to force a child, who is working below the expected levels, to sit an exam which they will not do well in and will clearly distress them. Getting a children discounted from exams is a challenge in itself and relying on private tutoring simply isn't possible. Yes it is an advantage but until the education system changes and children aren't treated as statistics then their welfare is being compromised regardless of whether they are additional tutoring or not.
Another issue is children getting private tuition from a very young age. If you think 3 is too young, what should the minimum age be?
Miss Ella,
I think a lot of teachers share your concerns about the amount of time spent on exams.
Do you think that the availability of private tutoring is a barrier to this problem being addressed? If only the classroom teachers taught pupils who currently get private tuition, would parents demand a more balanced approach, or would they expect more of teachers?
Sadly, this is the situation I find myself in. I managed a D in English at GCSE due to a mixture of illness and an undiagnosed learning disability. The local college are unwilling (and they have admitted this) to support me. This leaves me with two options - an 80 mile round trip to another college once a week or getting a friend to teach me instead, if either of us can find the time.
At the risk of derailing this thread, there is already a ridiculous level of demand on teachers. I am proud to be a teacher, but every single teacher is so much more than that. Teachers are social workers, parents, doctors, politicians, news reporters, dieticians, confidants, historians, linguists, mathematicians, scientists, athletes, psychics...all supposedly between the hours of nine and three. If only.
No I don't think that the availability of private tutoring is a barrier: I think the educational system is a barrier. I think the level of expectation placed on teachers, teaching assistants, governors, head teachers etc is not in line with what is possible. Equally the level of expectation placed on children is unrealistic.
Parents who deeply care about their child's education and welfare face a difficult choice, all too often one is compromised for the other. Take a year 6 child who I recently taught. She is diagnosed as SEND, she will be discounted from her maths SATs because she is working below the national curriculum level. However she won't be discounted from literacy because she is just scrapping a 3c/2a (the lowest NC level for SATs is 3c). Without additional tutoring, she is unlikely to actually receive enough marks in literacy to be graded as level 3, so does her mother pay for extra tutoring? Does her mother go ahead with something and watch her daughter become noticeably distressed by the extra work and pressure being put on her, or does she leave it and allow her daughter to take the exam in May and accept that she won't pass. The teacher is already doing extra teaching sessions with her twice a week, plus sessions with four other children. Where is the line drawn?
In the great scheme of things, SATs don't matter, nor do Year 1 phonics screenings, but try explaining that to an exam fearing child, who is buckling from anxiety. Even the most cock-sure child worries about exams. But what about GCSE exams, when to be what the government view to be a "successful" member of society you need AT LEAST a C in English/Maths/Science.
NB: I strongly feel that a grade doesn't define a child or adult, but it is one massive hurdle, as Melian has pointed out.
There's far too much pressure these days on children to pass exams, which means very little in the real world.
I can see how in a situation like yours, where a pupil is below the required standard because of a learning disability, or in a situation where a pupil falls far behind in their work, private tuition would be useful.
I wonder though, if in many cases, there isn't alearning disability and the children are not failing or struggling, but their parents simply want them to do better. They want them to get A grades instead of B grades. They want them to get 99% or even 100% instead of 91%.
Are these parents right to put so much pressure on their children, or will putting that amount of pressure on their children do more damage?
Do you think parents would be helping their children more if they got them private tuition for life skills rather than to help them do bettter in exams?
Perhaps the education system encourrages a focus on exams in private tuition because school life is increasingly about exams., and parents are responding to the culture by participating in it rather than challenging it.
That would just do more damage to the child. It won't benefit anyone.
No. Life skills private tuition is called parenting and parents/guardians should be the ones doing it if it's needed on top of what is or isn't taught in schools.