All About Finding & Evaluating Tutors

[senseimichael]

Fabricated testimonials, fabricated credentials. There is no shortage of dishonesty even in the business of education. What is our world coming to?

[Mdm Koh]

I would be a little skeptical of anyone who promises "instant" good results. It’s unlikely to happen, especially if the student has been failing the subject for the past 1 year. If any tutor can promise to help the child improve from a failing grade to an A in a month, I’d ask to see the proof.


Also, I would ask about the value-add that the tutor has provided. There are centres that provide tuition only for easy-to-teach students, e.g. students who are A2 and looking to achieve an A1. Hence, if the website states in a general way that there is a high percentage of A’s, I would check with them if those students were already scoring A’s before they started tuition.

Finally, the child should also play a part in evaluating the tutor. Some pertinent questions are: Is the tutor focusing too much on one aspect of the syllabus? Is the tutor taking the exams too lightly? I have heard of a case where a tutor was hired to teach a combination of 2 science subjects, but focused only on 1. He was very good with that 1 subject; he could rattle off the facts with ease, and completely impressed the child. He then assured the child that the other subject would be "very easy" and could be left till the last minute. Of course, it wasn’t easy, and the child’s ‘O’ level grade was affected.

For English tuition, check that the tutors cover all aspects of the exam (e.g. oral exam, paper 1, compre, summary). For combined subjects, the tutors should try to balance the time allocated to both subjects.

[Thetrees123]

一位好的私人家教除了必须具备专业知识外，也必须有满满的爱心，能够仔细聆听学生面对的难题，和他们站在同一阵线，一起克服困难。

当今金钱挂帅的铜臭世界，素质一流的好家教凤毛麟角。想找个＂不食人间烟火＂的好家教还真不容易。
多数家长会认同大型补习中心的素质比小型的强一百倍。其实不然，因为教育必须回归到师资，只有好的老师方能培养出优秀的学生，与大型或教材的精美设计无关。
以上纯属个人看法。
谢谢。

[auntieM]

janet_lee88:

sometimes parents have to read testimonials of tutors carefully.


some are fabricated.

Agree with you.. ...and the part about teachers from XX schools being better..

[senseimichael]

mummy of three:

School teachers don’t teach which is why we end up hiring tutors, MOE should do something about it.

It’s better to get through recommendation or word of mouth and must know them personally too.

I would like to modify your modal. School teachers are unable to teach a tight syllabus to a class of 40 with plenty of time taken up on unnecessary admin work. And indeed MOE should do something about it, but so far we are not seeing that.

I agree that recommendation and word of mouth is good, but many of these teachers are already snapped up, giving others like me a chance to enter the market, haha!

[Geraldinelim]

To help a student score, it’s not just the tutor and child. Personally i think parents play an important role. We as parent should work closely with the tutor and school teachers to help our child to improve. Not just pushing the blame to others. Ultimately, we engage tutors to seek their professional help, to work with them, not to push our responsibility to them.

[senseimichael]

Geraldinelim:

To help a student score, it's not just the tutor and child. Personally i think parents play an important role. We as parent should work closely with the tutor and school teachers to help our child to improve. Not just pushing the blame to others. Ultimately, we engage tutors to seek their professional help, to work with them, not to push our responsibility to them.

Geraldine, life would have been much, much easier for teachers and tutors if parents think like you. Many parents are simply too busy or simply do not have the emotional means to work that closely with the teachers and tutors to help their children. Kudos to you!

[janet88]

Geraldinelim:

To help a student score, it's not just the tutor and child. Personally i think parents play an important role. We as parent should work closely with the tutor and school teachers to help our child to improve. Not just pushing the blame to others. Ultimately, we engage tutors to seek their professional help, to work with them, not to push our responsibility to them.

:goodpost:
We engage professional tutors for their expertise and as such we should work with them...they come just once a week, so it isn't fair to demand miracles.

[senseimichael]

janet_lee88:

:goodpost:
We engage professional tutors for their expertise and as such we should work with them...they come just once a week, so it isn't fair to demand miracles.

To take the devil's advocate here: parents pay good money for miracles. The problem is how the market works. Those who can produce the miracles need to make a lot of sacrifices and so will ask for an amount no parent is willing to pay. And those who jumped in to say they can produce the miracles when they cannot, are simply making money off market sentiments.

I believe tutors should be frank to the parents and let them know when some miracles simply cannot be attained, rather than give false hope. And some parents really need to look beyond a child's grades for his future. I know all parents want their kids to be scholars, but I used to tell my lovely MA class of 40 that the char kway teow man at Margaret Drive earned three times my pay!

The present system in Singapore is seriously not healthy, even if many governments around the world admire us for our ability to produce good workers.

[janet88]

It’s not right for tutors to promise miracles. As parents, we have to be realistic. Accept our kids for what they are.


Oh yes, professional tutors should not humiliate the kids like verbally abusing them like making them feel lousy and how weak they are.
Parents, work with your tutors but do check with your kids occasionally on tutors’ behaviors and how punishment is meted out for cases like forgetting to bring or get homework done. Probe.