Statement of Tutorial Philosophy

I started our tutoring company almost three years ago because I saw too many children who were struggling in school, not because of a lack of intelligence, rather a lack of motivation and poor learning skills.  In America today, many parents are just too busy to spend the time necessary to foster these qualities in their children.  Additionally, with the increased overcrowding of the school system in our area, students are not receiving the level of individual attention that they need (or the teachers would like to provide). 

 My approach is simple:  build a trusting and energetic relationship with each child I tutor and then begin developing the building blocks of learning success.  These building blocks are as follows:

Organization.  This step is about giving my students a system of organization so they know exactly where to find their homework, syllabi, class notes, handouts, etc.  I encourage them to keep track of these documents with specialized planners and notebooks.

Preparation.  This step is about teaching my students how to get ahead in a course.  Too many students are reactive to due dates; in other words, they do homework the day before it’s due, they study for a test the night before, etc.  I lay out a plan for my students to condition them to consistently work on their academics and avoid the last minute trap.

Comprehension.  This step is about ensuring my students truly understand the material.  I use memory triggers to help them remember key facts, but I always make sure they understand the “why” behind the material.         

In short, I first want to make my students care about their academic performance, but ultimately it’s about instilling a true desire and ability to learn.  I believe the best tutoring is that which results in the child no longer needing tutoring.  There are many private practices that I have come across in my business that are only interested in short-term improvement in a student’s grades.  I believe that a tutor’s job is to teach a student how to learn, not how to pass their next test.  We’ve seen great results from our students with this approach and it is extremely fulfilling to know that we are building life-long skills.

Copyright 2009.  Early Bird Learning, Inc.

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