This term I have found myself back in the classroom teaching A Level Sociology. It is the subject I love to teach and the topics it covers have never been more relevant in my opinion. I left teaching because I was tired of juggling motherhood with the classroom. It was exhausting and my children needed me more. Yet when asked to go and help out for a term I didn’t hesitate for long. These teenagers have one chance and I wanted to help prepare them for their exams.
Leaving teaching when I did has been the best decision for my family. Although there are times when I miss teaching as I know that I am a really good teacher. I like teenagers and can build positive relationships quite quickly. However, teenagers can be a little lazy, especially with their studies! I have a 15-year-old so know this well.
They need motivation and lots of support and encouragement. We encourage with plenty of external motivation and this is a little controversial as I found out when I went on This Morning to debate would you pay your teen for exam results? For me, it is a no brainer and we have already started discussing this with Dylan.
There are a number of tried and tested ways that we support our son with his learning because we want him to do his very best. Thankfully he is having a good year at school but as an introverted teen he doesn’t always enjoy the classroom environment. In fact he came home quite disgruntled just yesterday as he realised his science teacher, who has taught him twice a week for the past six months didn’t know his name! I was not impressed by that either. That is a sure-fire way to make a teen feel undervalued.
The teacher went to ask my son a question and as she looked at him, he realised she didn’t know his name. He was eventually called Andrew (not his name) and he carried on looking at her but did not reply. He said he wanted to make her feel awkward!! Well, she moved on and asked someone else the question and Dylan said he realised she was then looking at the register trying to work out who he was! This boy has not missed a lesson this year meaning she has taught him approx 48 times yet still doesn’t know his name!
Another way to support our teenager’s learning is by using tutors. I have tried to tutor myself and found it stressful teaching my own children. I have tutored over the past few years but would rather pay someone to tutor my own children, leaving me to tutor others! My Tutor has an excellent track record and pupils using MyTutor make, on average, double the progress of their peers. And 80% say it’s improved their confidence in school. This means they’re more likely to raise their hand when they know the answer – or ask for help if they don’t.
MyTutor lessons can happen anytime, anywhere as they are online There’s zero travel, so you can fit it snugly between football and dinner. Even on holiday. And you’ll always get your kids the best tutor, instead of whoever’s close by. This works for many families, especially if you are working parents and want to be able to support learning in this way but a time short.
Another way to support learning is by buying the best revision aids. The teenagers should know which exam boards they are using and there are plenty of targeted workbooks that can be bought to match the exam syllabus.
Setting a routine is key to revision and starting early helps no end. I think when parents have the attitude that education is a partnership between the school, parents and child is when you see the most progress. Another blogger I know has also been reviewing My Tutor and you can read Mich’s experience in this post.
There are plenty of things that we parents can do to support our child’s learning and My Tutor is a great tool in our kitbox. I also have a discount code for Emma and 3 readers which gives everyone £10 off their first MyTutor session, to redeem this just use this link https://www.mytutor.co.
One Response
I have been looking for a local tutor for my teen as she is due to sit her GCSE’s soon and she needs the grades to secure her 6th form place. She has actually applied to study sociology as one of her A-Levels x