Classroom education v/s home tutoring

Monica Gill

Every parent expects to see their child perform well in school. But not every parent is able to evaluate whether sending their child to school alone is enough. Though schools charge a lot of money to impart education, they fail to pay individual attention to the children. Bringing an end to this worry of parents is the growing trend of home tuitions.

Gone are the days when private tuition was considered only for those students who were weak in their studies or for those who were unable to pay attention in school. With immense competition, having an edge over the others is important. Home tuitions provide quality education in the comfort of one’s home and are a great medium for ensuring one-to-one interaction between a teacher and a student. This interaction might be difficult in school. A carefully planned study routine and a capable private tutor can help bring out the best in a child. Opting for home tuition does not necessarily mean that your child is not able to cope with what is taught in the classroom; so if necessary, do not hesitate to appoint a home tutor for your child!

I shall talk about both classroom education and home tutoring and leave you to decide whether you would want home tuition as well for your child.

Building a relationship with the child
One of the most important rules of teaching is to build a relationship with the student and know his/her strengths and weaknesses. This might be possible only to an extent in the classroom. As there are several students in a classroom, it is not always possible to pay attention to every student. On the other hand, a private tutor will ensure that s/he gives full attention to the child. Not only this, the tutor also gets to meet the child’s parents, talk to the child about his/her daily activities, etc. This helps in developing a bond with the student.

No tight schedule
Classroom teaching is all about teaching within fixed working hours. Moreover, every teacher gets a specific time slot to teach all the kids in the class. It is but obvious that rather than teaching every student personally, the teacher focuses on completing the syllabus within the given time. Home tutoring is more flexible – the convenience of the private tutor and the student is both taken into consideration. Also, in times of need, tuition hours can be stretched and the student can be given adequate attention.

Better revision
A German psychologist called Ebbinghaus did an interesting experiment (sometime in the 19th century). He made up a list of 2300 words and memorized it (to simulate the learning of new information for a school student). He then recorded the words he remembered at regular intervals. He found that he forgot 95% of the words within three days! However, he also found that spaced revisions helped him retain more information. In fact, revising his list for the fifth time helped him retain 95% of words for a long time. Ebbinghaus’s experiment shows that a home tutor can easily help kids remember almost everything they learn by scheduling their revisions in a proper manner (http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/Ebbinghaus/index.htm). Furthermore, since the attention of a home tutor is on a single child, s/he tends to explain chapters or lessons in detail. This revision helps in strengthening a child’s concepts, and boosts his/her memory.

Ray of hope for slow learners

Not every student grasps knowledge at the same pace. Slow learners may not be able to assimilate what is taught in class. This doesn’t mean that they won’t be able to understand anything at all. There are chances that if such students are taught calmly, and given the time to learn things at their own pace, they will certainly excel. Home tuition gives slow learners the opportunity to understand things according to their pace. Also, they can keep questioning the tutor until they understand the subject or topic.

Pre-learning infuses confidence
The feeling of already knowing what is about to be taught in class is unexplainable. When a child already knows the concepts or topics that are to be covered in class, it infuses a confidence in him/her. This opportunity can be availed only from a home tutor. Pre-learning helps a student understand the lesson better.

Availability of frequent constructive feedback

Knowing about the child’s progress is extremely important. Schools conduct parent-teacher meetings once in a while, but a home tutor can provide feedback as and when required. Also, since the home tutor spends more time with the child, s/he analyzes the child better, and works towards improving his/her weak areas.

Classroom teaching and home tuition both have their pros and cons, and it is not easy to determine which is better. Teachers in school put in efforts to impart the best knowledge to their students, however a little support from a home tutor can do wonders for a child. Whether classroom education alone will suffice for the child or there is need for a home tutor, it is for parents to decide in best interests of their child.

The author is a self-driven person who loves to spend her leisure time reading interesting books. She is passionate about writing and collecting new books. She also loves travelling. To know more about the work she does visit https://smiletutor.sg/

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