- Different methods: Times have changed and so have teaching methods. You may know how to get the answer, but do you know how your child is being taught to get the answer? They have something called “new math” today where the kids are rounding and estimating more. The point is that they are learning how to do things differently than you did them and so it will be hard for you to help them when you don’t know the current methods being taught.
- Been too long: If your child is studying long division or fractions and those aren’t something that you deal with on a daily basis then maybe it’s just been too long since you’ve done some of these things for you to be the best tutor for your child. Could you look at a book and remind yourself? Maybe, if you had a book to look at. Kids today don’t drag big text books home like they once did.
- More patience: If you’re like me a tutor would have to have more patience than I do with my child. I know that I have more patience with other people’s children so I would assume that it would work the same way with a professional tutor. This is what they do. Your child will learn better if they aren’t worried about you losing your patience with them.
- Third party: Often times children will listen better to a third party than they do to their own parent. There is something about someone new that makes children want to do their best. They will listen better, they will even try to impress their tutor and this is all because they aren’t you. Mom and Dad know them and all of their faults and why should they try to be different? They ‘hear’ you, but I think they will ‘listen’ to a tutor.
- Time commitment: How much of a time commitment can you make to help your child? Can you really spend an hour with them three times a week to go over something? And I mean a solid hour where there are no distractions. If you get your child a tutor they can often meet at the school, before or after classes.
- You don’t know how to help: Maybe math wasn’t your thing or you don’t remember how to do signs and cosigns. Parents can look over the worksheet, but you weren’t in class with them and even if you were getting the concept across to your child if you don’t really understand it isn’t going to work. Tutors will have several different ways to approach a subject in order to help your child.
- Don’t want to disappoint: Kids don’t want to disappoint a parent so they may say that they understand something when they don’t. They may feel stupid asking a question for the third time if they still don’t understand. Tutors are used to this kind of thing and they can try to rephrase an answer in order to explain it differently so that maybe it will click with your child.
- More convenient: Having your child meet with a tutor before or after school would be a lot more convenient than having to try to find a time after you get home from work. Your child is already in learning mode at those times and more awake and able to learn. If you get home from work at 6 and then you eat supper and you sit down to help your child at 7 you are now dealing with a child who is probably getting tired.
- Teacher approved: While I’m sure you get along just fine with your child’s teacher there may be a concern that parents don’t give her fully honest feedback. If your child has fallen behind in a subject and they need a tutor the teacher will want updates from a tutor as to how they are doing. Parents may exaggerate how well their child is doing.
- Specialization: If your child has an issue like dyslexia or other learning challenges, getting a tutor who specializes in teaching children like yours will help your child far more than you can.
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