P1 Tution -- Necessary?

[Imami]

jacsplace:

Hi Imami,


I think \"trigger\" has different meanings to different parents. In my case, the trigger is that I realized my son needed someone to sit down beside him and make him do the work. He has tuition for maths and Tamil. He does well at maths in school, but he is careless. He also says he forgets what he has been taught in school. The tutor helps by giving him extra practice and taking more time to explain. The Tamil tuition is necessary because it's the only home support that he has.

Thanks jacsplace. How does tuition helps your child about his carelessness? Does the tutor give pointers and tips for him to avoid the common pitfall?

[Champion]

slmkhoo:

Imami:

[quote=\"hquek\"]Heard from a teacher that P1/2 are easy steps; P3/4 will be a big step forward; P5 they will start learning for PSLE. Unfortunately time don't seem to be on our side. Basically I don't want my kids to reach upper primary and then know they have to struggle to understand what the teachers are talking about.

Yes hquek, that is What i fear. The children are still young and they do not know what is available for them. As parents we need to make decisions on their behalf until they could decide wisely for themselves. Which is why this thread is of interest to me. I hope to understand more in order to make better decision is time to come (although I hope that time will never come).

I think it is important to focus on understanding rather than on results. A child may be doing well in school by mechanical learning but not really understanding; conversely a child may be doing poorly because of carelessness, lack of motivation or interest etc, not because of a lack of understanding. .[/quote] :goodpost:
P1 and P2 are the least challenging years of the child's entire career - this is my personal experience but please don't :pokeeye: if you are not agreeable to it. Most schools have done away with the \"standard exams\" CA1, CA2, SA1, SA2 in these 2 years so it is more important to allow the child to transit into P1 comfortably and then focus more on building up his character and subsequently lay a strong foundation on his academic aspect.

My DD1 is P4 (Upper Primary) and DD2 is P1 (Lower Primary) so I am dealing with 2 \"different\" levels concurrently But I apply the same \"technique\" to them (but am still learning, by the way :oops: :oops: ) - Motivation. Am still trying many methods to movtivate them because every child is different - rather that I focus on grades why not I focus on motivating them? After that, as I always tell my kids,\" you need NOT to be 1st or top 20 in the class; you just need to be answerable to yourself that you have done your best and done better than before!\" :evil:

[jacsplace]

Hi Imami,


Yes, the tutor gives him pointers and tips. She is patient and firm with him, which really helps because he is beginning to understand that he needs to take primary school work more seriously than kindy. I let go for quite a lot of things for his kindy work because I wanted him to enjoy his childhood. Looks like the downside of that is that he thinks school is all play play.

[kaitlynangelica]

Here is my two cents worth:-


1) Some people use a tutor as a babysitter to monitor the child’s work, or to get the child to do simple assessments or daily revision.

2) Some parents I know simply cannot coach the child and they feel that farming out to tuition will be better for the relationship.

3) Working parents who come back late have no time to sit down and set assessments for a child, let alone mark. What I found most difficult was coming home to mark the child’s assessments but having no time to go through or walk through the mistakes dd had made.

4) Tutors are helpful where a child is not exam smart.
For eg, section B for the science paper requires answering in a certain manner with keywords and correct tenses or the child will be marked wrong. A good tutor familiar with the school syllabus and what examiners are looking out for in an exam can point that out to a child.

For maths, math statements and showing of workings are essential in problem sums and sometimes, a tutor is needed to guide a child in that.

5) As a means of communication for the 2nd language.

I know parents who hire tutors for the child just to communicate in Mandarin becausethe parent is not competent in the language.

6) Finally, a lot is a matter of expectations. No right or wrong…I know parents who are happy with their child scoring 200 for PSLE. Some want their kid to score 250 and above and if tutors fulfil that, why not?


Above all, as a parent , you know your child best. The parent who sends the child off to tuition even from pre-school will probably have done so as they see an inherent need. No need to question others if it is right or wrong, appropriate and inappropriate. No need to feel insecure if your action is right or wrong. YOU KNOW YOUR CHILD BEST AND WHETHER HE OR SHE NEEDS TUITION.

[hquek]

Agree with what slmkhoo and champion says. Bottomline should be that the child should understand what what is going on and not learn by rote (actually I’m not sure if this is even possible now). All i ask of my kids are that they know they tried their best (that why im happy when they have dont know mistakes, but will be unhappy with careless ones) . Results are only for that term and will not mean anything going forward.


Can only say that when kids are young, parents should focus on getting the languages foundation firmly in place. Once that is in, kid should have little problems for the other subjects also.

[Imami]

Thanks you to all of you for contributing valuable comments and ideas. I see having tuition as taking anti-biotics. Some times, the body just need a some help in getting well. But too much is no good for the body. Having tuition is helpful in certain instances but it may not help a child to acquire the skills needed to learn (not sure if you all understand me?). If tuition becomes spoon feeding, it is not going to do my child any good.

[IrEnE06]

For those parents who are having their kids in P1 next year, do you give them tution?


It’s seems like a norm now for parents to send their kids to tution but is it really necessary for P1?

Reason I asked because, I called up one tution centre and they are teaching
Addition up to 10 for P1 Maths, which I feel is too simple for my coming soon P1 girl. However, being a Kiasu Parent, I do not want my girl to fall behind her peers if she did not attend any tution.

Any advise?

[libran269]

I think it depends on each child and expectations of the parents. If a child can learn what has been taught in kindy…I think tutuion isnt mandatory with some coaching from parents.


Plus also it depends on the monetary part…how much you want to spend.
Personally I feel children can spend this time in music, arts, speech & drama.
Make them socially more confident.

[KOOLMUM]

Hi


Agree with Libran. I didn't let my girl go for tuition when she was in p1. But she did attend piano lessons which she enjoyed.

p1 academic is not that tough, as long as u spend 1-2 hours everyday going thru assessment books or her school books with her, she should be able to progress well. obviously also depends on her attitude, she must be keen to learn. Don't make the 1 hour session like a chore, make it enjoyable e.g. show flashcards or use toys to represent maths problems fake apple, orange).

Hope yr girl will enjoy herself in her new school

[AppleCrumble]

Imho, don’t think it is necessary to have tuition for P1.


P1 school life is a big adjustment for any 6/7 yo kid. Though many have been in childcare or kindergarten, going to a big school is a huge step for them. Adjusting to longer hours of school, taking school bus, meeting new peers, getting use to ‘strict’ teachers, school rules, etc is a lot of adjustment for kids at 6/7 yo.

Would suggest that you monitor your gal’s adjustment to her new school for about half a year. There will usually a teacher-parent meeting at the end of Term 2 for P1. You can then find out from your gal’s FT on her progress. At the same time, you will be able to understand where her learning needs are before deciding if tuition is really needed.

If your gal is bored in class as the lessons taught are too simple for her, you can get some resources (e.g. story books, knowledge based books) which are pitched at her level to keep her stimulated. This way, you save money and time (don’t need to bring her around for tuition).

Enjoy the ‘honeymoon’ years at P1/P2… as long as your kid is able to keep up in class, she should be fine. Allow time for her to pursue other interests.

It’s only P1, there are many more years to come. Kids may suffer burnt out if they are packed with classes and courses so early in their school life. They may land up being more resentful about school and learning in the later years.