Archive for the ‘Private tutoring’ Category
Math anxiety is extremely common in children now in elementary and middle school. Math anxiety typically starts at a very young age, and it can carry over through high school and college. It is the reason identified for many low scores on SATs, and it is also believed to be the reason there is a shortage of math and science majors at college. This shortage even carries over to the professional field where math and science teachers are more scarce than social science teachers.
Math Anxiety in the United States
The New York Times highlighted the problem in a recent article that discussed how most students found participating on the American side of international math competitions are actually immigrants from other countries. In particular, India and China emphasize math as the basic skill that provides for growth of the professional workforce. In the United States, it is more common to emphasize reading and speaking skills as essential to personal and academic growth. Unfortunately, this means math typically gets the short end of the academic stick. Students think of it as unnecessary, a discipline to itself, and something to only be pursued if they want a math career.
Math Anxiety in Generation Y
Today’s students face a particular challenge because of technological impacts that reduce the need to learn arithmetic. Most students today have the opinion that they can use a calculator, which they almost always have access to thanks to cell phones and computers with the built-in function. They also tend to believe memorization is nonessential. For example, memorizing a formula seems unimportant if a student has constant access to the Internet and can simply look the formula up online. The result is a feeling that math is only taught in school because schools are outdated. Students seem to think they will never need the math again after grade school.
“Math as Life” Concept
One way to overcome math anxiety is to incorporate it more into basic and everyday needs. Students today, who are very in tune with the requirements of the real world, need to see how math can fit in and be useful on a daily basis. Introducing students to the idea math is a part of most careers is essential. For example, how will a student pursue a finance degree, keep accounting books or even simply verify a paycheck without a basic understanding of math? How about personal finance?
Interdisciplinary Instruction
In keeping with the idea that math is essential for life skills, parents and tutors can help incorporate a more interdisciplinary approach to math skills. Instead of keeping math confined to the math classroom, use the same math being learned in school to solve problems in science class or computer class. Teach students how their knowledge of the Pythagorean Theorem can help them understand how to build safe structures or even arrange furniture in a room. Never allow the same concept, such as algebra, to be taught in two classes without pointing out the connection.
Tags: math and science, math anxiety, math instruction, science anxiety, teaching math, tutoring math
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A lot of parents ask us how often we recommend having a tutor. There’s no real answer to this, but there is certainly strength in repetition.
Why Schools Can’t Repeat
One of the main problems with teacher cut back and overstuffed classrooms is teachers don’t get the chance to really repeat a lesson with students. This becomes an even greater problem when teachers are trying to teach to national standardized tests. Often, these tests are so broad, teachers are forced to give only a cursory review of a concept before moving forward. The losers? Students.
The problem is expounded when schools fail to use the whole education approach to teaching. While it would be ideal for a history teacher to correct grammar on a paper, this rarely happens. Similarly, it would be great if students used their algebra knowledge in chemistry, but they often don’t. The solution? Repetition at home.
Why Repetition Works
The main reason a tutor should favor repetition is to look for patterns in the student’s learning, behavior and abilities. When a student misses one question about an appositive phrase, for example, was it just the one question, or does the student lack an understanding of appositives? Repetition is most effective during homework time when a student is actually working out a problem he or she previously learned instead of just following along. Unfortunately, you cannot count on a student to force repetition on himself or herself.
You don’t have to take our word for it: there is scientific proof that repetition works. Studies show it forms the connection of synapses in brain cells. Only once this connection is made strong will a student truly learn the information. It then becomes easy to apply in the future, no matter how long down the line, and the student will not even remember when or how he or she learned the information to begin with.
For example, do you remember learning the Pledge of Allegiance? Probably not, but can you say it? Most likely. We learned this short pledge by repeating it every single day in school. Even if you haven’t said it since you were in grade school, you can still likely call upon this deeply formed memory to repeat the Pledge later in life.
Meeting Regularly and Repeating Exercises
Because it is essential to repeat, it is essential for a tutor to meet with a student regularly. Some students and parents would like a tutor to come for just one hour a week to answer math questions. But without actually going through the practice of doing the exercises with a tutor at hand, the student may not get an accurate feel for where he or she is strong and where the student really needs more work. Ultimately, it is best to meet for at least 3 hours a week for any subject a student is truly struggling in. This can be tapered off once the concepts are better-formed. If your student can focus, try to set longer sessions instead of just meeting more often.
Tags: how much to tutor, how often to meet a tutor, repetitive learning, repetitive tutoring, when to tutor
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Some parents will wonder if it is a good idea to have a student meet with a tutor over the holiday recess. While we generally advocate tutoring over summer break, the holiday period comes with more complications. There are some rewards to tutoring during this break, but here are also many draw backs.
Rewards to Holiday Tutoring
We all know students can lose track of their school work during the holiday break. Most teachers at the middle school level and above will assign some degree of work during this time period. Colleges typically have a semester break at this time. Secondary schools, however, often do not end their semester until after the holiday. Even if the semester has ended, secondary school students likely have the same classes for a full year, giving teachers the chance to assign work over the break.
If a student does no school work over the break at all, the student will likely be behind come January. Since students have trouble concentrating and keeping a schedule during this time period, having a tutor can increase the effectiveness of any study time. It is also possible to use a private tutor over the breaks to provide support in areas the student is weak in. This is ideal because the student is not distracted with the day-to-day demands of school outside of the tutoring sessions.
Downsides to Tutoring Over Break
- Some families simply want time to relax and be together during holiday breaks. This is a benefit students deserve, and you may find it is best to show that there is a time and a place to put down work and just relax.
- Just because a tutor is present, a student does not completely shift gears and get back into school mode when on break. While it is true a tutor will make holiday studying more effective, the same tutor would be most effective at a time when the student shows better focus.
- The tutor will have to create concrete lesson plans if the student does not have pressing academic needs. This works great with a dedicated tutor experienced with creating an agenda. Some tutors, however, are better suited to supplement education that is occurring in the classroom. They may have difficulty teaching a student who does not have an agenda from a teacher.
- Tutors are people, too. They may have busy schedules over the holidays that prevent them from being present when you most desire them.
Making the Choice
Ultimately, it is best to forgo tutoring during holiday break unless you know of a concrete need your student has. For example, SAT or ISEE tutoring can be moved forward during the break. Similarly, subject tutoring for a subject your student struggled in can be very effective. If your student mostly needs help completing homework or asking questions outside of class, it is better to only meet with a tutor when school is in session. Otherwise, you will likely find the lessons are much less productive.
Tags: holiday break tutoring, ISEE tutoring, Private tutoring, SAT tutoring, subject tutoring, tutoring over Christmas
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You may consider electing a tutor to assist in preparation for an AP subject test. There are a number of reasons why this can be useful, and most of them have to do with the money you will save down the line when the AP scores qualify you for college credit.
Cost of College Credit vs. Cost of Tutor
For any AP exam, scoring a 4 or a 5 pretty much guarantees you college credits at any university you choose to attend. For many universities, a score of 3 will even give you some amount of college credit. The cost of one credit hour at a public university is around $70. Private universities can run much higher, even up to several hundred dollars per credit hour. That means earning even 5 college credits from AP testing can save thousands of dollars down the line.
Compare this to the cost of hiring a private tutor. Most tutors will be able to provide assistance for an AP subject test within 5 hours of studying. This means you can spend less than a few hundred dollars to earn the same number of college credits that would otherwise cost you thousands.
Early Graduation and Other Benefits
Coming into a college with 5 to 10 units of credit will provide you many more options once you arrive. First, you can elect to take a lighter class load in any given semester or in all semesters. This will generally improve your GPA as you have to study for less classes consecutively.
Second, you will be able to elect to graduate early if you have enough credit to constitute a semester. Coming into school with 15 credit hours is the equivalent of going into college with one semester already under your belt. You can then take an average or accelerated course load and end up graduating early. This puts you at an advantage of being able to take an internship for a few months or even start working early than anticipated.
Finally, you will be able to place out of a number of pre-requisite courses. Surprisingly, a lot of the initial courses required in a major can be the most challenging. This is known as the “weed out” phenomenon. Department heads make these classes hard in order to determine which students are serious about a major.
Scoring High on an AP Test
Most high school AP teachers will be competent, but they are not always committed to securing the best grade possible for you on an AP test. The teachers must still fulfill curriculum requirements set by the high school, especially if you attend a public school.
A tutor, on the other hand, can focus solely on the goal of a high AP test score. The tutor can provide samples and practice tests for the AP exam. It is also possible to seek a tutor who placed very highly on the AP test. This person will have key insight into what it takes to achieve the high score and how to apply the scores to gain college credits in the future.
Tags: ap bio, ap calculus, ap chem, ap classes, ap test, ap test prep, subject test, subject test tutoring
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Tuesday’s election results show that Measure T was defeated in a 57-43 majority, well below the 2/3 vote needed to pass the measure.
What is Measure T
Measure T was a proposal for parcel taxes for the next 5 years to raise funds for education. The Measure was to prevent budget cuts and help balance the deficit. Only 13% of voters turned out for the vote. The Measure was supported by the School Board, who said it was necessary to avoid critical cuts in education spending. Further, the state is expected to cut back on funds to the district, meaning Long Beach Unified School District is facing a big gap in money needed versus money available.
What Will Happen
LBUSD has already cut about $100M out of the budget in the past 5 years. The measure would have given the district an infusion of about $60M over 5 years to help save jobs. Instead, the failure of the tax means the district will continue to make cuts to the tune of $90M in the next 2 years alone. The board has already started verifying the tenure of over 900 teachers, which is typically a precursor for layoffs. When the district approves a budget this June, you can expect layoffs across the board, according to school board officials.
In schools with insufficient budgets, students are packed into classrooms. They complain of distractions and a lack of individual attention. Further, school counselors are overworked, as reported in our previous discussion. Students simply do not have access to any personalized instruction in a school that cannot afford to save the jobs of valuable staff members.
What Parents can Do
If your child attends a school that is part of the LBUSD school district, then you need to be aware of any changes in budget that lead to changes in classroom size or curriculum. It is common for schools to cut AP or honors classes, lumping students of varying achievement levels together. It is not just the failing students that lack the appropriate support to get through school; high achievement students typically suffer the worst in a school without resources.
When a student is doing “enough” to earn a good grade in a class, a teacher cannot be concerned over whether the student is reaching his or her full potential. You may know your student should be getting straight A’s; but, if he or she is getting A’s and B’s, the school will not be concerned over the overall performance. This means you have to seek external resources to challenge your student and prepare him or her for the much more stringent demands of college.
You may seek to place your child in some community college courses, especially if he or she is high school aged. Even if the classes seem too advanced, you can gain assistance from a private tutor to get your student through the coursework. You may be surprised to know that some credits transfer. If your child wants to take AP tests but your school does not offer AP classes, hire an AP test prep tutor to teach the subject material.
Tags: ap classes, ap test prep, Budget cuts, california education budget cuts, honors classes
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Teachers unions were strongly opposed to a new measure that would allow students to transfer to new districts if their schools are not performing. Despite this opposition, the Senate approved the measure today so that California will be eligible for federal grants.
The measure will now go to the Assembly. Aside from allowing low-performance school’s students to transfer, the bill would also expand the number of charter schools currently allowed in the state. There is a cap on the number permitted as the law stands today.
The law, SB X5, repeals the prohibition of the use of data from the performance of students to make employment decisions on teachers. This is the main cause of tension with the teacher unions, which have long been a powerful force in the state and in the nation. The bill would require parents and teacher be notified if a school is in the bottom 5% in the state, and then an overhaul of the school would be made. Teachers in low-performing classrooms may be penalized or fired.
Over $4 billion in federal grants is up for grabs, leading to a push for California to become more competitive in order to capture much needed funding. Teachers, though, say the grants are a one time thing, and the cost of continuing these initiatives would far outweigh the funding gained from a single grant. Further, the government has not yet finalized the criteria for application for these grants, leading many to say the change is premature.
What does this mean for your student?
Partly, it means that a majorly heated political battle is taking place right in the classroom. Schools are not immune from the debates of local and national lawmakers, and the performance of each child is now monetized in grants. The goals of education have become partially clouded with the goals of capitalism; mostly, schools will compromise on long held beliefs in order to be eligible for money. Its true: California is in the midst of a budget crisis taking its toll on our schools. But compromising the quality of education by using standardized tests as a primary measure, allowing the government to overhaul local schools, and simply allowing students to jump ship when a school is failing does not improve the overall quality of education for each child in each classroom.
The solution
Sadly, there does not appear to be a silver bullet solution to the education crisis in general. Most agree there are major problems, but few can agree on any major solution. Parents come to private tutoring services looking for minor solutions, though, solutions that will help their individual students reach their own potential even if the schools cannot.
While educational policy can be very complicated and nuanced, education, on the whole, is not. It is as simple as spending time teaching a child the necessary tools to solve problems. If you are concerned your student does not have these tools, you may consider other means to provide them than in a classroom alone.
Tags: Budget cuts, california education budget cuts, federal grants, Standardized tests
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The Washington Post recently featured a guest blog from educational expert Marion Brady, who shares his thoughts on why the Race to the Top Program is not fit for success.
He points out several “false assumption” the new program makes, calling it an extension of the same problems that characterized No Child Left Behind.
- The new program blames teachers.
There are a number of external factors in each classroom that are contributing to the lack of focus in our schools. One is the more diverse student body, of which some don’t speak English. Teachers have to work to find common ground to teach on, where common ground used to be the basis for all schools.
- The new program assumes professional educators are responsible for the crash in schools, and they cannot be the ones to fix it.
In fact, professional educators have first-hand knowledge about the challenges they face. It is up to educators to fix education; we think tutors are an important part of this.
- The program advocates working harder than before to fix the education system.
Simply working hard is not enough to fill in the gaps in education many students have today. Working smart is what matters, and working smart is something few large, cramped classrooms have the luxury of doing. Working smart is more achievable on a smaller scale.
- The program treats teaching as if it is only sharing information.
Teaching is not about information, it is about learning and concepts. If your child comes home from school with only new information, you should be worried. Your student should come home sharper, with a grasp of how the world operates on a daily basis.
- The new program advocates a top down approach.
Many independent educational groups, like private tutoring programs, actually work from the bottom up. We see great success with the bottom up method.
*This is just a summary of Brady’s opinion, and the opinions are not supported nor opposed as a whole.
If you are concerned with the new changes in administration of the education field, you should consider getting involved at your local school to see how the changes will affect your child’s classroom. Regardless of your opinion on whether the efforts will succeed, we can all agree on one thing: something needs to change.
We are happy to work with you to inspire a change in the value of education your child receives on a daily basis. While it is easy to feel there is little you can do on the larger scale to improve the quality of education, you should remember you can have an immediate and impressive impact on the education of your own child. Private tutoring, working at home, and supplementing school efforts all increase the value of education your child receives in a day.
Tags: Add new tag, No Child Left Behind, Private tutoring, race to the top
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Economic recessions often affect public sectors even more than private sectors. When a private company can decide to go into more debt in order to expand necessary expenses in a budget, a public sector organization can only get this type of funding if voters approve further debt.
In the case of many school districts in the 2009 & 2010 school year, approvals are not coming. Now, San Diego is joining the list of schools expected to suspend any budget expansion in the coming year. The San Diego Unified School District will vote to freeze all spending and hiring for this coming year in response to an anticipated $16M deficit. This will be the second year in a row the district has used a hiring freeze to save money. The result? Less teachers despite more students.
However, the types of jobs that are not expanded are not the ones you may think of. Actually, teaching jobs are often continued. More likely cuts fall on school libraries, nursing staff and hallway supervisors. This may seem like a minor issue, but without these persons a school fails to function as a safe location for students. Many have expressed concerns over what these types of cuts mean for health, especially in the most devastating flu season in recent memory. Further, student distraction increases when less adult supervision is present in the school.
The deficit cannot all be blamed on the economy. Official reports link the budgetary problems to poorly managed investments, over spending and not sticking to a budget.
That’s right: your tax dollars are not going to the sources you think they are on every occasion. The dollars you spend to send your child to San Diego Unified my be allocated toward bad investments or unnecessary spending. Your child, as a result, does not get the type of quality education you are actually paying for.
Many parents outraged over these reports are at a loss for solutions. Some do not have the funds available to send a child to a private school, as many parents will resort to doing. Many parents also desire to keep children in public schools due to the social education they receive in a more diverse environment. It appears the days of getting the best of both worlds are numbered. Most students will have to choose between social & academic education.
However, there are some options to increase what your student is learning and retaining even in a crowded classroom. Opt to place your student in higher-level classes whenever there is the choice. These classes tend to have the lowest teacher-student ratios. Even if your student does not immediately qualify for these classes, ask the school what you can do to place him or her in them. The classes will be a challenge, but it is the average level classes that tend to be ignored when staffing is short. Instead of trying to place your child in an average classroom then get additional challenges outside of school, look for the challenge in school and opt for additional support.
Tags: california education budget cuts, san diego unified school district
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As you may know, this year, Los Angeles schools will be a part of the $6 billion cut in state funds. Teachers will be laid off, and classroom sizes will grow. Other consequences come along with these changes. If you are concerned budget cuts may be preventing your student from achieving his or her maximum learning potential, then recent reports will solidify your concerns. Local education news site LAYouth.com sheds light on the types of issues budget cuts raise for daily education.
Less teacher feedback
One student story focuses on how larger class sizes mean less feedback on homework and tests. In an AP English class, one student says she used to be able to submit a paper several times for feedback. This is typical in classrooms encouraging growth and writing development. Instead of just receiving a grade, students have the chance to continually improve assignments to work toward an A paper. This is how the students learn what an A paper truly is, and it is also how they come to be prepared for a college grading system. Now, teachers will only be able to grade assignments once time. As they take on more classes and more students in each class, they simply cannot allocate time to repeated submissions. Working with a private tutor can overcome this problem. In a one-on-one situation, the tutor can continually stress a single concept until the student truly learns and moves forward. When grading the paper is not the sole focus of the meeting, more learning will result.
Difficulty focusing
One student complains there are not even enough appropriate desks for kids to sit in when classrooms are overcrowded. Many students will have obstructed views, and teachers are less able to maintain control of students they cannot see. Discipline problems expand in larger classrooms when a teacher cannot keep an eye on all students at once. The focus problem only expands if a teacher cannot ensure all questions are answered before moving forward. When hands go up, they do not often get addressed before the teacher has to move on to another point because there are simply too many hands raised. When students do not pay attention in even one class, key concepts can be totally missed. This is very true at the elementary and middle school level, where learning is cumulative from year to year. The only way to overcome this is to reinforce the topics discussed at home. Since students do not often give parents the attention needed during a lesson, it may be necessary to have a private tutor teach the lesson.
Lack of funding for paper handouts
This problem may surprise you, because it is not an obvious conclusion to draw from budget cuts. Many classrooms are addressing the problem by having shared handouts. Students have to pass around a piece of paper, copying down notes and questions onto a separate sheet. If your student lacks the ability to take proper notes, he or she needs to learn this soon in order to prevent falling behind. Study skills tutoring can help students learn to take better notes.
Tags: Budget cuts, focus in classroom, large classrooms, Study skills, study skills tutoring
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Governor Schwarzenegger signed over 200 bills into law this week; among them was one bill making California eligible for federal education funding.
SB 19 was written by Senator Joe Simitian, a Democrat from Palo Alto. The bill was signed just before the cut off on Sunday. The Governor had threatened to categorically veto all bills in response to the legislature’s inability to reach a consensus on the water crisis. However, Schwarzenegger decided enough progress was made for him to approve about half of the 700 bills before him on Sunday.
The new bill changes a previous clause in a state statute that forbade the use of testing data to determine the pay or promotion of teachers. Surprisingly, Joe Simitian also wrote that law in 2006.
The U.S. Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, has given his approval to the action. Now, the state will be eligible for over $4B in funding from the Obama Administration. Previously, any state that did not allow for teachers to be evaluated based on test scores was not eligible.
No federal funding was actually guaranteed by the signing of the bill. There is still a large state budget gap that will result in teacher layoffs and other measures. However, the schools are expected to at least partially recover from the budget crisis through much-needed federal funding. The program, known as Race to the Top, will only provide funds to a few states. As California is undeniably needy in this area, however, state officials remain hopeful they will be able to sway some officials in this direction.
The first round of funding will be decided by applications due at an undecided date this winter. There will be a second round for those states that do not earn the grants. It is uncertain whether California will be able to get the applications together by the first deadline since it was ineligible to apply until just this week.
All in all, this move is a good thing for the education department’s budget. However, it may not be the best thing for your students. Now that educators can be evaluated and rewarded based on how well their students perform on tests, you will see more of your instructors “teaching to tests” than ever before. While this will ensure students are able to perform at least generally well on state tests, it will not ensure they are getting a good education.
This is particularly true for students with unique learning needs. If your child is able to score a passing score on tests, any learning needs or disabilities your student has may be overlooked. Private tutoring can assist in addressing this gap, and it has done so for many years. States that rely heavily on testing for teacher promotions and curriculum traditionally have very high levels of students in private tutoring programs.
If you want to allow your child the freedom to truly learn a subject instead of just pass a test on the subject, you may be concerned with the testing initiative. Pursuing private tutoring can allay some of those concerns.
Tags: Rise to the Top, Standardized tests, teacher evalutation
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