Kumon - Discussion

[Fairy]

kiasimom:

That's a good age to start.

Both my children attended Kumon from K1.

First, you have to bring your child to a Kumon centre.
The Instructor will invite you to watch a introduction video on Kumon.
The Instructor will then assess your child's ability.

The first stage to start is from 7A.
It starts from counting dots.

Your child will be able to progress based on his ability.

I personally find this program good as my child can progress on his own ability and not too fast or too slow.

My son has been getting very high scores for his maths (90+) so I think Kumon does help him.

I've known of P4 & 5 Kumon graduates (ie university level) in Chinese & English who did not score an A* for their psle CL & EL!

[kiasimom]

HI Fairy,


I think it all boils down on the indivduals.
I do agree with you that not all Kumon completers has an A* just like this year PSLE scholar doesn’t come from a GEP or SAP school.
No course will gaurantee you a A* if you enrol. If it is, it will be too good to be true. Let’s take it as it is, no matter how hard the teachers teach the child, if the child doesn’t revise and study but indulge in TV, com and PSP, do you think this child will come out tops in the class?

I am not saying Kumon guarantees A* and I have never quote that.

Being a parent of Kumon student, I witnessed myself how Kumon makes my children sit down and complete their worksheets and how Kumon gives my children a good headstart in Mathematics.

P.S: I do not work in Kumon nor am I a franchisee of Kumon.

By the way, have you been to the Kumon centre before to see how they carry out the diagnostic test?
My son’s instructor told me she has students from reputable secondary schools who can’t even do Level F worksheets.

At the end of the day, it is the child and the parent’s choice.

[kiasimom]

mum05:

oh thks for yr feekback, kiasimom,


is your son attending the Sk branch also? What are the cost involved besides the monthly S$120 per subject/month?, Like material, regn fees, etc? teacher/child ratio?

It's a 45min class?

Thanks.

Dear Mum05,

I pay a registration fee of $20, if I remember correctly as it was years back.

After that you only pay $120 per month for each subject.

Kumon do not emphasize on teacher/student ratio. Why?
Your child will be shown how to do the sums and the teacher will ask your child to sit down by himself and finish his worksheet.

The whole session depends on your child's ability.
Some take 5 mins to complete a set of worksheets while some takes an hour to finish.

However, there are many experienced trained teachers who are around to guide your child if they find your child having difficulties.

Make a trip down to find out more. Do make an appointment first before going down.

[kiasimom]

Just to add on.


I myself do not rely solely on the instructor to teach my child.
I will still do my role as a mother and go through my children’s homework with them.

I believe good results are achieveable when parents, teachers and the child work together.

Thus, no matter how good a course or instructor is, I never take the opportunity to slack and just leave it as it is.

A lot of trust, encouragement and bonding with the child will help.

[Fairy]

kiasimom:

HI Fairy,


I think it all boils down on the indivduals.
I do agree with you that not all Kumon completers has an A* just like this year PSLE scholar doesn't come from a GEP or SAP school.
No course will gaurantee you a A* if you enrol. If it is, it will be too good to be true. Let's take it as it is, no matter how hard the teachers teach the child, if the child doesn't revise and study but indulge in TV, com and PSP, do you think this child will come out tops in the class?

I am not saying Kumon guarantees A* and I have never quote that.


By the way, have you been to the Kumon centre before to see how they carry out the diagnostic test?

Hi Kiasimom,
The reason why I bring out the comparison between a Kumon Language Completer & the ability of the KLC to get an A* in PSLE Eng & CL is not because I think passing Kumon diagnostic tests guarantees one an A*. It is because Completers are people who have gone through & passed the stringent Kumon test for worksheets at UNIVERSITY level! I find it hard to reconcile why a child competent in UNIVERSITY-level languages could not get an A* for worksheets at primary 6 level. The disparity/irony is too much for me to accept. Would you hire a tutor who claims to be a university graduate but can't do a P6 paper well?

I have nothing against Kumon. And yes, my kids have been with Kumon Maths for > 5 years before I decided to pull them out! They were both in the Advance Student Honor Roll for years! I have attended many of the ceremonies honoring Completers and the Advance Students and I can understand why you are impressed by the success stories quoted. I once even contemplated running a Kumon Franchise. :lol:

BTW, coming from the GEP only ensures (I know it's controversial for some people) the students are of a certain level of intelligence. It does not mean that they are matured enough to work hard for good grades. This year's Top scorer is no doubt a fighter who works very hard and put in a lot of effort. Like you mentioned above, \"\"no matter how hard the teachers teach the child, if the child doesn't revise and study but indulge in TV, com and PSP, do you think this child will come out tops in the class?\"\"

[Fairy]

kiasimom:

However, there are many experienced trained teachers who are around to guide your child if they find your child having difficulties.

Make a trip down to find out more. Do make an appointment first before going down.

uh.. I know Kumon engages a lot of Kumon Completers who are teenagers, housewives & retirees as ''instructors'' at $5 an hour. For the housewives & retirees, they were given answer booklets to help mark the children's work. Teaching? Probably the junior levels. For the higher levels, students are encouraged to mark their worksheets on their own and to figure out how to answer the questions using the answer keys. This is part of the training in Independent/Self Learning, it was claimed. At the lower levels, I have no issue. At higher levels, I began to wonder..... :?

[kiasimom]

Hi Fairy,


Just out of curiosity.
Since your children have been in Kumon for about 5 years, what prompt you to withdraw them?

[kiasimom]

mum05:

oh thks for yr feekback, kiasimom,


is your son attending the Sk branch also? What are the cost involved besides the monthly S$120 per subject/month?, Like material, regn fees, etc? teacher/child ratio?

It's a 45min class?

Thanks.

Hi mum05,

There are two sides to a coin.

Whether you want to enroll your child is entirely up to you.
Our comments are for references only.

However, do make a trip to the centre. At least you have been there and find out more for yourself.

[Blackdas]

My son is turning four next year. After much consideration, I decided to send him to Kumon at one of these branches. There are Anchorpoint, Bukit Merah Central, Dhoby Ghaut, Greatworld City, Jalan Bukit Merah, Novena, UE Square and Tiong Bahru Plaza. Any of these locations are fine with me. Anyone has input on these branches would be greatly appreciated.


Tks in advance.

[kiasimom]

yqyq:

My daughter now at K2 have difficulty to do simple addition for 2 digits but after enrolled her at Kumon Gek Poh since Aug, she have no problem solve it in short time frame.


She started from Level 3A in August 2009 and early Nov already proceed to Level A.

Now, I intend to enrol her for English and Chinese as well. Any comments about the Kumon English and Chinese?

Thanks

Hi.
From what I gather from my children's intructor, they will usually advice the kid to stick to one subject first and if she has no problem doing that subject, she can take a diagnostic test for EL or CL.