Tuition is a billion dollar industry in Singapore and it is no surprise that you can find 3 to 4 tuition centres along the same stretch of shops in the neighbourhood. When you start to look for Chemistry tuition for your child, you may feel overwhelmed by the wide selection and choices out there.
Therefore, it is important to know some of the key criteria to look out for when deciding on the right Chemistry tutor or tuition classes for your child. Here are some of the strategies you can adopt when sourcing for the right tutor.
Have a talk with your child when looking for Chemistry tuition services
This may seem insignificant at first but will help to solve a lot of potential issues that may come up in the future. Before scheduling any tuition classes, you may want to have a chat with your child to find out his or her interest level and some of the considerations that both of you may have. By treating your child like a responsible adult, that will allow your child to learn how to make informed decisions and take accountability for his or her personal learning. This is especially so as the child gets older. The final decision is yours to make but at least your child feels that you have offered a listening ear and will therefore be less resistant towards tuition and studying.
Consider Between Private or Group Chemistry Tuition
Some children respond better to 1 to 1 private tutoring while others may be more engaged in group tuition classes. This really depends on your child’s personality and pace of learning for Chemistry. If your child enjoys interaction with his peers and is proactive in class discussions, group tuition setting will likely be a better fit compared to private tutoring. If your child has problems focusing in class or the pace of learning is slower compared to his or her peers, the 1 to 1 personal attention and customisation will likely help your child to improve faster. When looking out for Chemistry tuition classes at centres, one tip is enquire about the maximum class size as an ideal class size is between to 7 students.
Check for Recommendations with Chemistry school teachers or fellow parents
Approach fellow parents whose children are in the same school as your child or parent support groups online to find out if they have any recommendations of good Chemistry tuition classes. These parents may have personal experiences or have been in touch with their contacts just like yourself to try to find good Chemistry tutors, therefore this is a reliable source of information you can obtain. Otherwise, you can speak with your child’s Chemistry school teacher if you happen to be close to him or her as they may be aware of some contacts of theirs who have left as school teachers and went on to become tutors.
Verify the Credentials of the Chemistry Tutor
First and foremost, you may want to find out the number of years that the tutors has been teaching Chemistry. The experience level of the Chemistry tutor is a good indicator of how proficient the tutor is, although it is not the sole indicator to rely on when deciding for the right tutor. It usually provides an approximation to the effectiveness of the teaching and knowing what to look out for in a student’s area of weakness. Another aspect to look into is academic qualifications of the tutor. It is likely that a tutor with a bachelor’s degree or higher is a subject matter expert or understands how Chemistry concepts can be explained either in great detail or in a simplified way.
Find out about the Chemistry Tutor’s Track Record
You may want to see if the Chemistry tutor has a past track record of the performance of his or her students as well as the average amount of improvement that the students have achieved over the course of the tutor’s career. Sometimes, testimonials by students and parents are also a good way of determining whether a tutor is good or not as these testimonials are usually stamps of guarantee endorsed by the client themselves.
Understanding Your Child’s Progress of Chemistry Learning Helps
Sometimes, just a quick word with your child’s Chemistry teacher can help you to come to a correct decision on the kind of tutoring services that are suitable for your child. As mentioned in the earlier section, your child’s progress and pace of learning is one key factor to decide whether private or group tutoring works better. Finding out about your child’s weak areas will also help you to subsequently provide the information necessary to help the Chemistry tutor come up with a better lesson plan.
Requesting for Weekly/Monthly Updates from the Chemistry tutor
The prospective Chemistry tutor for your child may proactively take note and record his or her student’s weekly or monthly performance progress in a report and you can check if you can be given a copy of it. This will give you a peace of mind knowing what has been covered and how well your child has improved along the way.