As a parent, you always want the best for your child. You want them to succeed and reach their full potential, if they have a problem you want to help them solve it.
For some students, maths is a real problem. It is a subject that can make them feel stupid, inferior and hopeless. A good maths education is a real keystone for education and career prospects, opening so many doors for college course and apprenticeships, which only adds to the pressure and inferiority students can feel. The fact you are reading this blog means you have probably already decided that you want to help your child improve their maths in some way, considering whether extra maths tuition is the way to go, how it all works and what the benefits will be to your son/daughter. Extra tutoring is a significant investment in your child’s future, and you need to be sure it is going to make a real difference. So just what is it that makes extra maths tuition so beneficial to students?
The stats.
- Research shows that regular maths tutoring will improve results by at least a grade, and in some cases by up to three grades.
- Total Maths Tutoring had a pass rate of 96% for GCSE in the last academic year, compared with the national average of 67%.
- Our students give us feedback on their sessions periodically. They report feeling more confident, more relaxed and more able to tackle the pressure of exams.
What do students gain from having extra maths tuition
- Confidence – This seems obvious, but there is more to it than just the confidence they gain from improving their knowledge. Our tutors are experts at nurturing and fostering self-esteem in students who are struggling, making them see that they are capable of succeeding if they apply themselves. As well as this, they now feel like they have a supportive team behind them. They have a parent who believes in them enough to spend money on extra tuition, and a tutor who really believes they can do it. Suddenly they are no longer alone and feeling so helpless.
- Understanding – I liken this to making a cup of tea. We can all make a cup of tea, and understand the process that goes into it. If we make a cup of tea and it is stone cold, we know that the thing that has gone wrong in the process is the kettle didn’t boil. If the tea is black, we forgot the milk. Mathematical processes can be thought of in the same way. Students might be capable of following a process to get an answer, but if they don’t understand the process, they don’t know if their “tea” looks or tastes like it should, and if their “tea” is cold they have no idea why. Total maths tutors teach for understanding, ensuring our students don’t just know the “what”, but they know the “how” and “why” too. This leaves them well equipped to self-assess and spot their own mistakes.
- Good study habits – Young people these days have busy lives, and it is very easy to neglect study. We can also have a tendency to shy away from things we find difficult, so students can quite often spend maths “revision” time practicing lots of skills they already know. A tutor will help them with those difficult topics in a safe, supportive environment, encouraging them to tackle their difficulties head on. They also know that if they are finding something difficult when working on their own, they will have an opportunity to ask the tutor for some support soon, so they are less likely to panic or give up.
- Exam skills – Many students perform well in lessons, but when it comes to a test they struggle to bring out their A game. In a lesson, students know that every question in the lesson is going to involve that topic in some way or another, whereas in a test, the question could be on any one of 100+ topics, or a combination of these. Deciding which branch of knowledge a question involves, and which skills to apply to that question is tough, but with practice and the right guidance, students can learn how to do this effectively, and reach their full potential in exams.
For younger students, a lot of the points above may not apply. They may be a long way away from sitting their GCSE exams. Tutoring is equally beneficial for these students however, and if they receive the right help now, they will feel the benefit of this for the whole of their school life and beyond. Our highest attaining students tend to be those who start having tutoring earlier, even if they only have a session every couple of weeks. This regular tuition helps keep them ticking over, and ensures their confidence and self-esteem stays high for the duration of their maths education.
There can be no doubting that regular extra maths tuition provides great benefits to the student, which they will continue to feel for the whole of their mathematical education and beyond.