Private tutoring and homeschooling?
This week’s question for homeschoolers I’m almost fairly certain was asked by a spammer. The email address and website given were fake and in the comment there were a number of links to various sites. But because the question outside of the spam linking is fairly interesting I’m going to allow it.
What role do private tutoring companies play in home schooling? There are a number of companies offering unlimited tutoring for under $100 per month. I’ve come across a number of online tutoring websites. Has anyone prepared a comparison of the various companies (pricing, quality, etc.)?
How do you feel about private tutoring in homeschooling? What instances would you say yes, or no? How about to the new homeschooler who is worried about teaching everything?
homeschool, tutoring, private tutoring, tutor, question for homeschoolers
July 20th, 2007 at 10:32 am
That is a good question. As a homeschooling mom with a late reading child, I have a positive feeling about tutoring. We went to a tutoring center for a year and they were able to bring her from a 4th grade reading level to an adult reading level (she’s 11) just by the force of love, a good relationship, no maternal frustration, special tutoring skills developed for late readers and perserverance. So, I’d say there is a time and place for that sort of thing, but the trick is to find a good place with people who care. I’m not sure if those centers care or are just trying to make a buck. Our program was free and taught by teachers.
July 20th, 2007 at 2:45 pm
I don’t think there is anything wrong with hiring someone with special skills to teach or tutor. Is hiring a reading or math tutor really any different than hiring a piano or guitar teacher? Or paying for swim lessons? I don’t think so. In fact, I think it’s a positive that we can evaluate our strengths and weaknesses in teaching in light of our kids’ needs. This is especially true as our kids go through the upper grades.
Typically, homeschool participation is greatly reduced for high school grades. I’ve found that online curriculum and classes coupled with paid teachers/tutors greatly helped me in teaching HS. The key is keeping the goal clear: get my kids a great education that fits their goals, ambitions and gifts.
July 21st, 2007 at 2:46 pm
This is a good question!
As with all tools, tutors are neither good or bad for homeschoolers. It’s all a matter of whether it works or not to meet the goals of the family/child involved.
Unfortunately, tutoring companies are businesses. They may do a great job in helping kids, but they also have a high interest in convincing people that they need tutors when they really don’t.
Also, some tutors are expensive. It’s rare that a tutor is the only possible way to learn something. So it’s important to look at all the possibilities before jumping on the tutoring bandwagon.
Just because something is there, doesn’t mean we have to use it. Just because it’s something a lot of people use, doesn’t mean it’s the right way for us. See tutoring as an equal to anything else - group classes, self-teaching, indirect learning paths (i.e. learning to read through games), work experience - all these things are ways to learn. Not one is universally better than another.
Tutoring is one of the many tools for a homeschooler. Don’t be a slave to it, but don’t ignore it as a possibility.
July 21st, 2007 at 7:20 pm
[...] and homeschooling July 21st, 2007 by Summer Minor The Friday question for homeschoolers dealt with using tutors while homeschooling. As everyone commented, using a tutor can be a valuable tool for helping your children understand [...]