This is specially for grade school children, tutoring does not mean you will be spoon-feeding your child in the school homework. It is actually more of a checking and monitoring chore. That way, your child will have the impression that they should do well for you checking on their work. But sometimes you have to feed them some of your stock knowledge if you think it will do them good. But as much as possible, let the child do the research and the writing.
Educating a child is a three-way process. One is the learner himself. He should be doing his task, his homework, his assignment, and everything that is required of him so that he could learn and be educated. But it is not complete yet. His teacher also does a great job in teaching him especially in the transfer of learning and in moulding his traits. And to complete the cycle of child's learning, his parents should do their part not only tutoring their kid, assisting them on their assignment, providing them of the projects required, but to train him on the way he should go and when he is old he should not depart from it.
The parent should baby the child thru a few problems, show them a few examples, and then let them try to compete others on their own - waiting until the end to give feedback. Note, I'm not one of those people, and I saw this on a YouTube video, who thinks school should be all about failing. Homework is for failing, but the main goal is to pass the test - preferably with an A or B.
That's true, @Alexandoy . We should only guide them and share with them study techniques that helped us when we were still studying. When my kids have homework, I would let them answer first and check if it's right or wrong. If something needs to be corrected, I do my best to help them analyze or comprehend what is being asked for.
Wonderful points of view there, @Nocturnal Writer. Thank you for sharing. Truly, A teacher cannnot do it alone, there should be help from both the student and the parents.
You're right. Parents could initially provide examples to explain a particular topic because sometimes, a child does not understand what is being discussed by the teacher which can be attributed to several factors - sleepiness, being too far from the teacher to hear what is being said, etc. Once the child is able to grasp the ideas, then parents can test him/her if he/she truly understood what was discussed.
I would like my children be love learning and be self learner too, but I agree that it's also good for us guide them in school work or any learning opportunities. I always like to find some interesting ways to learn or practice some lessons, such as multiplication, so the kids will find it more interesting to learn. For me, the thinking process is more important than the result, hence I always like to know how my kid get the answer, instead of just checking the answer, well, it depends on the subject too.
Yes, @kaka135, we should not solely rely on teachers for our kids' learning. Teachers would often say they will not be able to fully impart knowledge on students without the help and support of parents. And come to think of it, we are our children's first teacher after all so we should guide them along the way.
I think that parents' participation on a child's education is important if we want them to make the most of school learning. Children whose parents are actively involved in their learning are more inclined to take their studies seriously. Parents can complement the teacher's efforts by reviewing recent lessons and reinforcing the lessons through worksheets or practice sets. They can identify weaknesses and help their children work at them. This also means that parents should update their knowledge to keep up with what the child is learning at school.
Parent involvement is definitely an important part of a kid's education and probably way underrated and under-seen as well, which is a shame if it is true. Maybe it is just me being cynical again though, but they are more likely to find it interesting if you are there to help, but not give answers to.
Tutoring kids can be tough for some parents. I mean, a lot of parents simply cannot remember Algebra. Also, they might not be history whizzes or the best in grammar. It's easier said than done.
Home tutoring is a good thing that not only helps the child learn but also brings about a healthy bonding between parent and child. Parents are not teachers and do not know every subject on the planet but helping them with homework gives encouragement.
I agree with Alexandoy and Nocturnal Writer. I too help my son do his homework and help him out with the occasional projects and assignments. However my help is limited only to help him complete his work on time, read along with him and try to understand problems, grammar etc. and then explain to him concepts which may not be clear. Other than that, I encourage him to find answers by himself and do all research that is needed. In the process, I too am learning new things and getting a clear grasp of concepts which were a bit fuzzy to me earlier.
Actually homework is meant to keep children busy and enhance their knowledge besides getting parents involved in their progress. So if the parents love their children in true meaning, they should regularly support their children which helps in two ways. First you spend some quality time with your children and the other and more important that you know how are your children doing in their studies.
I adopt a little of both the methods. At the start of a new lesson, I prefer to guide my child completely. But, during all the revision sessions it is solely his work. I intrude only after all the work has been completed. This helps me to guide him and allow him to learn to study on his own as well.
My older started 5th grade this year, and I study with him almost on a daily basis. He is very distracted at school, so he really needs this support. I will help him throughout this year, and hopefully next year he will be more independent.
There is as an ongoing debate about the amount of homework that are given to children. So most parents are willing (for the most part) to sit with their kids and assist with the homework, but at what point do you draw the line? The homework some kids bring home are just ridiculous. It's like they never did anything the hours they were in school. Some education institutions use homework to shift the responsibility of teaching to parents. This is why parents pay often exorbitant fees, so qualified teachers can do their jobs and teach.