I don’t know about you but as parents, we’re always looking to do the best for our three children, but when it comes to selecting a tutor for them in Peterborough, wanting to do the best can cause any parent to delay … delay and delay making a decision.

I can appreciate that parents are often confused over how to find a tutor for their child in Peterborough, however, providing you follow a simple and reasoned approach then it’s much easier than you might expect.

On the one hand, they might be wondering whether tutoring works (it does) or whether it’s worth it (it is), but on the other hand they’re concerned that if they don’t do something that their child will miss out.

I’ve had similar conversations with many parents previously and so I felt it’d be useful to outline some useful tips and suggestions if you’re a parent who’s still undecided about whether to find a tutor for their child in Peterborough.

Local demand for tutoring is increasing

Each year there’s been a steady increase in the amount and frequency of both the amount of parents taking a tutor for their children, along with the subjects being tutored. Research by The Sutton Trust showed that over one in three (33%) pupils received tuition for specific GCSE exams, and 27% for a school entrance exam.

Of those sampled, almost half (47%) said it was to help with their school work in general, so you can be sure that at least some of the parents of the children in your child’s class have already started using a tutor for some of their child’s studies.

This research supports out anecdotal evidence which strongly suggests an increase in the number of parents obtaining a private tutor for their child in Peterborough.

Both state school and private school parents use Peterborough tutors

This is something I’ve heard voiced from both sides of the schooling debate.

State school parents believe that it’s only fee-paying parents that would ‘hothouse’ their children with a private tutor in Peterborough.

And, similarly, private school parents often think that only state-school parents who have children at ‘failing schools’ consider tutors.

Both sides are partly wrong, however, since we’ve found (and have seen research that confirms) that parents across the full range of schooling do employ tutors.

It’s simply that not every parent talks about their tutoring arrangements, often because they’d rather not have other parents benefiting from that particular tutors services.

Tutoring works for all pupil ages

Whether your child is attending a state or a private independent school they can benefit from tutoring.

For some children at the start of their schooling they can find the class sizes stressful and so being able to cover their subjects at-home is a calmer option for them.

Sometimes children find that the pressure to ‘fit in’ with others can mean that they’re not focusing enough in class.

Working with a tutor can help to identify where they’re slipping and this can be fed back, discretely, to their parents so as to guide their class teacher to see if they can make any changes in class, seating or suchlike, perhaps.

Many teachers have tutors for their children too

Parents are often surprised to discover that many teachers have tutors for their children.

This is not a negative comment about the teachers at their children’s schools but due to a deeper understanding as to how difficult it can be to ensure that a whole class moves forwards in their education during every lesson.

Class time is both tightly-managed and precious. It therefore takes just a small distraction for a pupil to misinterpret some point or comment or perhaps not hear an explanation that would be essential for their deeper understanding.

By having a tutor in Peterborough for their child they can ensure that any slips or missed learning points can be captured and dealt with swiftly so as to keep them on track for a strong result at the end of each year.

Tutoring supports in-school learning

The ever-present requirements upon teachers to ensure pupils are learning in every lesson can translate into some pupils falling behind but not wanting to say anything about this.

Perhaps it’s due to embarrassment or not wanting to be noticed in class, but working with a private tutor provides a safe environment to explore and fill any gaps in a pupils learning.

A good tutor will also be able to offer their students tips on how best to speak to their teachers if and when they misunderstand a comment or are confused over their subject.

By learning these skills your child will feel more comfortable when they don’t know a particular part of their subject since they’ll have more skills to discuss this with their teachers or heads of subjects.

Tutors understand what’s expected for school entrance exams

Across the UK we have a variety of schools and often that means specific entrance exams too. Some counties still have state grammar schools and since there is no single entrance exam across all schools it’s important that children learn exactly what’s expected of them and waste no time on irrelevant elements.

Whilst most state schools do not have entrance exams, there are some who have banding or music entrance exams and tutoring can help to improve the possibility of your child securing a place at these schools.

Where parents are considering sending their child to a fee-paying school, if they are seeking a prep school place most have an informal exam structure, more to ‘set’ new entrants.

It’s important, however, that if you have your eyes set on your child attending a top senior school when they leave their prep school that they enter the school best placed to secure a ‘top set’ place which is something a tutor can help them with.

Session length can be adjusted for your child’s age

In most state primary and secondary schools their class sizes are at around 30-33 pupils, sometimes more. This is in strict contrast with private school classes which often contain 10-15 pupils.

Tutoring, however, provides a one-to-one supportive environment for your child, and one which can have its length adjusted to reflect the changing needs of your child. This means that depending upon what’s being studied extra work can be introduced where necessary to support a pupil’s deeper understanding of each subject.

Tutoring helps pupils with school anxiety

Sometimes children find it difficult to cope with the routines and rigours of school. Maybe it’s because they feel they’re not fitting into a particular group, or perhaps they feel awkward at having challenges in a particular subject class. Whatever the reasons, working with a tutor is a perfectly good way to help your child to overcome those in-school difficulties and to learn ways to cope better the next time similar situations occur.

Consistency provided by one tutor

Parents of state school pupils often complain that no sooner than their child’s become used to their teachers than they’re leaving with a new one to replace them. This can be due to a variety of reasons; the school may have teaching status, a teacher might have been on a short-term contract, or suchlike.

Whatever the reason, the overall effect can be to slow down your child’s learning since a new teacher will often spend some time over the following lessons re-clarifying what’s already been covered in class.

Having a tutor mitigates this issue because they can ensure your child it kept on-track and on-time so they can complete the required syllabus and then revise in time for any forthcoming examinations.

Options of on-line or one-to-one tutoring

I remember when the only way tutoring was delivered was by a tutor attending a pupil’s home but now many tutors can offer on-line virtual tutoring as well.

Both have their advantages and disadvantages; virtual tutoring is more flexible as regards timing but can feel a little more detached – with one-to-one tutoring in Peterborough being more immersive but can impact upon the household for the duration of the session.

Flexibility means it’s possible to use Zoom, Skype, smartphones and other services to deliver a positive tutoring session.

Where on-line tutoring is selected it’s important to have in place strict routines in case a signal is lost or disturbed since getting back in touch can use up precious tutoring time.

Each method has its place in the tutors toolkit and pupils can and do benefit from both approaches.

Tutors in Peterborough can support exam preparation

Depending upon a pupil’s age they might be needing help in preparing for specific exams. This might be entrance exams, such as those for a prep school, a senior school or a grammar school, or GCSE, IB or A-Level exams.

Once the tutor has spoken with the parents and assessed their child it will be possible to outline a plan to help your child to achieve the best possible results in the exams in question.

It’s worth mentioning that, depending upon how much, or how little time is available until any exams the frequency and amount of tutoring might need to be increased, with a commensurate increase in additional set work.

Having a tutor requires regular commitment

Rather like taking up a sport where the benefits grow over regular attendance, tutoring also works best when the family sets aside regular tutoring time for each visit.

Your tutor might also set additional work for your child. If so it’s essential for parents to ensure this is completed otherwise tutoring time will be wasted and progress hampered.

Tutoring works best with pupil family support

It’s important to ensure that any other siblings are aware that when the tutor is in the house (or on-line) that they are not to interrupt.

This is why it’s always a good idea to arrange to meet with any prospective tutors before any formal sessions so any ground-rules can be covered and do’s and don’ts clarified.

Points such as turning off smartphones, televisions and games consoles to eliminate distractions are examples of where the quality of tutoring time can be degraded.

Once a tutor has been selected it’s important for parents to have an ongoing dialogue with them so they can obtain feedback as to how their child is progressing.

This is a two-way dialogue, however, and therefore parents must be willing to let the tutor identify where they feel anything happening within the household might be reducing the quality of work that their child can produce.

It’s essential, therefore, that the whole family supports the tutee so they can have the necessary quiet time to carry out any extra set work as provided by the tutor.

Tutoring is a brilliant way to ensure your child achieves their best

Many parents have discovered the benefits of a private tutor in Peterborough for their children. It’s something which can add strength to a child’s school studies at all ages and can help to break through a variety of challenges and difficulties.

Tutoring is something which every evening thousands of children are benefiting from and the learning those children obtain will last for their lifetimes.