Parents who are thinking about getting a tutor for their child should make sure that they have concrete evidence that their child needs assistance. Four ways to see when a tutor is needed to help one's child include the following:
1. History of Learning Difficulties: If one's child has a history of learning difficulties in a certain subject, then it is very important to have a tutor available for him or her. A tutor can help one's child with building confidence, reviewing content, and making connections with new content so that the child can apply the content to their studies.
In addition, parents may want to have a tutor on-call when they discover that their child need assistance on a certain unit. While this strategy is recommended for homework help, this can also be effective when working with instructional or strategic tutors who specializes in a certain area and are available to help one's child with his or her learning needs.
2. Difficulties on Homework: Parents should not wait until the last week of the current grading term to find a tutor. Parents should monitor on a daily basis on whether their child is doing well on their homework. This will give parents an informal assessment that their child need assistance with a specific concept and a tutor should be called in to help their child.
Homework is critical in helping students learn and parents should make sure that they pay close attention to whether their child is completing their homework with little difficulty.
3. Lack of Interest In Work: Some parents often seek tutors when they discover their child's lack of interest in their work. It does not necessary mean that he or she is having issues with the content, but it may be that another issue is at hand. When children are not interested in their work, this could mean that they do not see a value in completing the homework assignment or the work may not be academically challenging for them.
Therefore, a tutor can help by bringing in an accelerated curriculum that can either be designed to work with what the child is learning in class or designed to work on advanced topics. In either case, the child would benefit because it will give them the challenge and confidence that they are seeking.
4. Teacher Recommendations: Teachers work with one's child on a daily basis and have the best advice about one's child in the classroom. In the event that a teacher recommends tutoring for one's child, then it would be a great idea to search around for a qualified tutor who can help him or her. Also, individuals should ask their child's teacher for recommendations as they will have a network of tutors who will be able to assist parents with their child's learning needs.
These are four ways in which parents may begin to see that their child is in need of a tutor. Tutors are change agents who inspire to learn and serve others. Therefore, every child should have a tutor available to him or her when a learning need arises.