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Originally Posted On: https://www.tungstenprep.com/2021/10/02/the-top-10-benefits-of-hiring-a-tutor-for-your-child/

 

Does your child need a little extra help with their studies? Do they find it difficult to juggle multiple assignments and a demanding course load? Are they anxious about the SAT or ACT and need the skills and strategies to do their best on test day?

Parents often feel helpless to support their students through the challenges of middle school or high school. Students may reject your help or take classes whose subject matter is a distant memory.  The good news is that parents don’t need to be their student’s homework helpers.

Hiring a tutor can improve your student’s grades and study habits, boost their confidence and restore a harmonious family dynamic. Read this article to learn how tutoring can be a great investment for your teen and your family.

1. Improve Academic Results

During the pandemic, many students fell behind in their school work. A McKinsey study estimates that students lost an average of five months of learning in math and four months in reading by the end of the 2020-2021 school year. That gap is likely to widen as schools continue to shift between in-person and remote learning or experience other health-related disruptions.

The good news is that academic research has shown that individualized tutoring has a dramatic positive impact on students’ academic performance, confidence, and ability to learn other subjects at a later date.

2. Strengthen Study Habits 

Many students who say they “hate” math or find chemistry “impossible” are not struggling with the subject itself. They simply haven’t learned how to study effectively. A good tutor isn’t just a homework helper.

It doesn’t serve a student’s long-term interests if the tutor simply gets them over the hurdle of the latest math equation or essay if the student doesn’t learn how to tackle academic challenges independently. On the other hand, tutoring can help students improve study habits and learn how to learn.

A tutor can teach a student to take better notes in class or write a study guide to prepare for a test. Together, they can organize folders and backpacks, so the material is easy to retrieve and review. The student can learn to read a long chapter in a history textbook and retain the most important information.

These are just a few of the study habits a tutor can introduce that will serve the student today in the classroom and tomorrow on the college campus.

3. Improve Time Management

Teens are so busy these days juggling multiple Advanced Placement classes, an upcoming SAT or ACT exam, and demanding extracurricular activities.  The result is students who often feel stressed, anxious, and can’t make time for friends, family, or sleep. A tutor can help your students manage their time more effectively and mindfully.

Better study habits will go a long way towards helping a student complete homework and study for tests efficiently. In addition, a tutor can help a student develop a system of recording and prioritizing tasks, such as to-do lists.  They can prompt the student to reflect on short- and long-term goals and ensure that they are spending time in accordance with their goals and values.

They can wean students off distracting activities, such as interrupting homework to check social media, and help them think about the place and time of day where they are most alert and ready to study.

4. Reduce Stress

With better time management and study habits, students benefit from a virtual cycle. A course load that felt demanding now feels manageable. There is more time for sleep, friends, and family.

Students are better rested, less stressed, and more receptive to learning, which in turn increases confidence and makes studying more efficient and effective.

5.  One-on-One Attention

Sitting passively in a classroom with 20 other students is rarely the ideal mode of learning. Most students learn better and find more enjoyment in their studies when they receive the kind of personalized attention that a tutor can offer. A good tutor will learn about the student’s interests, strengths, and weaknesses, what motivates and discourages them, and their personal goals.

That understanding of the unique student is indispensable to focused and effective learning.  Learn about all the ways our tutors tap into student’s interests to make learning fun.

6. Boost Mental Math

Individualized tutoring also helps diagnose systemic gaps in knowledge that are holding a student back. One of the most chronic weaknesses we see in students is basic math abilities.

The National Council of Teachers of Math has identified basic math fluency, the ability to recognize patterns in numbers, and problem-solving without a calculator as some of the core math skills that either limit or eases the way for students to more advanced high school and college math.

At Tungsten Prep, our tutors focus on building strong math fluency, no matter which subject a student is working on. We’ve seen that math can be the single most discouraging topic for students and impedes their progress not only in algebra, trigonometry, precalculus, and calculus, but also in physics, chemistry, or biology.

Strong math problem-solving abilities are an essential life skill, whatever path a student takes.

Whether you bake a cake, take out a mortgage, or choose a credit card, students will benefit from individualized tutoring to reinforce their math skills.

7. Strengthen Reading and Writing Skills

The ability to read critically and write clearly is another essential life skill that one-on-one tutoring can strengthen. Many students struggle to write a cogent paragraph or develop an argument over five well-structured paragraphs in high school. Equally, they find subjects from AP English Literature to AP Chemistry challenging because they lack active reading skills.

A tutor can help your student tackle a novel or textbook, understand the author’s point of view, identify the main arguments, and retain information for future use. Like math, reading and writing are essential life skills. College and future jobs can be needlessly frustrating and time-consuming when students leave high school without mastering these skills.

8. Score Their Best on Standardized Tests

Students who work with a tutor often find they have strong reading and math skills and great study habits already in place when it comes time to prepare for the SAT or ACT.  Those test-taking skills and mindset can mean the student is ready to study independently and score their best, even without further SAT or ACT tutoring.

9. Take the Stress off Busy Parents

Parents are busier than ever. They may not have the time or skillset to coach their teen through AP World History or pre-calculus. Even when parents do have the subject matter expertise to help, their son or daughter might not be receptive.

Sometimes a neutral third party is a more effective tutor for your student.  Students may be more receptive to feedback, more open to being vulnerable, and more willing to acknowledge when they haven’t completed an assignment or put in their best effort when working with a trusted tutor.

The good news is that delegating academic support to a tutor frees up parents and teens alike to enjoy family time without the emotional challenges of serving as parent and tutor.

10. Tutoring Can Be Surprisingly Cost-Effective

Hiring a tutor can be a lot more financially reasonable than most people think. By hiring a tutor for one hour on a consistent basis, your teen’s grades will improve, and your sanity will, too. There are also long-term financial benefits of better grades and standardized test scores.

With more college choices, a student can be more selective about picking the school that provides the best financial aid or merit-based scholarship package. And high scores on Advanced Placement exams translate directly into college credit, which could save money on tuition. At Tungsten Prep, we want to make high-quality tutoring accessible to all students.

Learn more about our pricing. We also offer discounts for packages of hours or for students to choose to tutor online.

Tutoring Is the Way Forward 

Your student needs and wants a tutor who will be there every step of the way as an academic partner. We all know how important it is to have a strong educational foundation. So it’s really important for your child to be taught and coached by someone who has the knowledge and experience you want and they need.

Parents often have to work long hours, and it can be hard to find time to help their children study or do homework all the time. When kids struggle in school, hiring a tutor can be a great solution for the whole family. Hiring someone who is an expert at what they do can help your teen or tween get the extra guidance and attention they need.

Enhance Your Child’s Skill Sets 

Give your child the skill sets they need to help them do their best in school. Sometimes all it takes is a little extra guidance and attention from a tutor. In the long run, tutoring is an investment that goes a long way towards helping your child succeed.

Finding the Tutor Your Child Deserves 

By hiring a tutor, you help teach your children at home, over Skype, or in an in-person session. They work with a child on any school topic that you specify, from math to reading comprehension. So reach out to Tungsten Prep when you’re ready to hire a tutor for your child.

Tungsten Prep will help create an individualized plan for your child. It is these specific techniques that match each student’s learning style and provide one-on-one support. As a result, your child will never feel so overwhelmed or alone again, even when tackling difficult subjects.