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Private Tuition - a parental obligation ?
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| The Designer |
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| posted by HKBloke 1166 days ago |
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I was reading an article in the Economist this week about the exploding growth of private tuition in the UK and that how more and more parents have decided to supplement state education with private funded lessons. It says that 25% of UK children now undertake some form of tuition.
Apparently it's a boom business and there is slowly forming trend of teachers dropping out of normal school employment to form their own private service companies which the big private education firms then sub-contract to.
Personally it's not something we have ever considering for our kids - not because they don't need it I hasten to add. Maybe this paranoia hasn't reached HK yet. I know from personal experience that the competitive nature of parents in the UK (specifically London) is nauseating in it's extreme.
Reminds me of a book i read recently called May Contain Nuts by Frank O'Farrell.
What about others - do you fund extra tuition for your kids?
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| Junior Member |
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| posted by n/a 1166 days ago |
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No but I tutor...govvie and aided schools have big class sizes and parents want more individualised attention ,wisely...of course we offer that at school as well in lunchtimes and after school for free....
Miss P
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| posted by sunwaterandsky 1166 days ago |
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Private tuition is booming in Hong Kong for local children. I tutor sometimes, but never accept jobs where the parents want help with homework. I only accept jobs where I do something that supplements the child's school curriculum - they already have a teacher for that.
I also feel that a good tutor helps a child explore how they learn best and how to structure their own study habits. I am leery of situations where children are shuffled from school to a series of tutorials and then don't have time to complete their homework or have play time. Creative play also plays a significant part in learning.
So, I earn money tutoring, but I would only recommend it if you have specific goals that you want to meet. I would hire a qualified teacher and would evaluate regularly to see if there were continuing benefits - i.e. improved grades, increased comfort with school tasks, etc. I don't have children, but if I did, I would be taking an active part in their learning. Hopefully, that would eliminate the need for tutors.
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| Junior Member |
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| posted by n/a 1166 days ago |
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of course I agree with you Sunwatersky,many parents here seem to feel that there is status (keeping up with the Joneses) in hiring a tutor and there is a difference in focus and objectives between primary and Secondary schools here re tutoring..alas because of exam pressures many older students want extra help to tackle exam format and content ...actual practice,in fact of the past exam papers is part of senior curriculum...a BIG part!!!tutoring schools also hire senior post exam students at peppercorn rates to tutor their clients...wonder if the parents know this?
younger students
Miss P
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| Junior Member |
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| posted by n/a 1166 days ago |
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and yes there is a growing number of teachers here retiring to form their own tutoring schools...its a fact...
Miss P
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| posted by Gum Tree 1166 days ago |
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Once upon a time, in a land and time far away .... parents and other relatives were both available and able to tutor the kids themselves. Now with extended office hours, both parents working AND multiple changes to curricula, a lot of parents just can't do it. When I was at school we had to sit under the watchful eye of mum around the kitchen table and big sisters and brothers were there to help out.
I got tutors for my kids for a short time, for very specific reasons eg. when extended illness or sporting commitments meant they missed out on work and were struggling. Or when the teacher in question (why is it nearly always maths, btw?) was hopeless and the kid just couldn't understand what s/he was saying.
It's just the way it is. Even tho' I have taught maths, for example, the time it would take me to get up to scratch with the subject, figure out what the latest way of doing it is, and then hold the kid down kicking and screaming whilst I explained it is sometimes too much. I think tutoring is a lot about giving the child confidence. They feel so lost sometimes in big classes ...
"Marooned on a rock with 80,000 and now 90,000 alcoholics and counting"
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| posted by barbie 1166 days ago |
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It's the quality of tutoring in HK that bothers me. Anyone who can speak English considers themself an expert.
At my last school (Sunwaterandsky knows who I mean most likely) someone who did 'tutoring' (and had no qualifications) would often watch what I was photocopying and ask for copies. On one occasion she photocopied the whole book and said she would use it from page 1-on for the kid she was tutoring!!!!
One day I was photocopying a standardised reading 'test' for one of the kids in my class and she wanted that too, I explained to her that it wasnt something which was available for public purchasing as it should be interpreted with great care and was normed against Australian kids. Also, test results should be put in a context of other things, not just parents told 'Your kid is reading at an 8 year old level according to this test.
Anyway, somehow she got copies and was then touting herself as a 'reading expert'.
She charged quite high fees and I felt that parents were just ripped off with her level of knowledge.
If you get a tutor, ask about qualifications and experience!!
I wait for the day when schools have all the funding they need and the airforce has to have a cake stall to raise money for a new bomber.
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| Regular Member |
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| posted by Gum Tree 1166 days ago |
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Maybe when I return after the hols, I will tout myself as a tutor. Actually, it quite appeals - to do some one-to-one work, instead of one-30 or 40. I will be in contact gals. Anyone want a literate, historically knowledgeable, economically and psychologically aware, science/maths/english tutor???
"Marooned on a rock with 80,000 and now 90,000 alcoholics and counting"
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| The Designer |
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| posted by HKBloke 1166 days ago |
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Where will it all end? Will market forces (and parental competition) take over completely and all children will end up being schooled at home involving weekly visits from the best tutors their parents can afford.
Perhaps we will end up with league tables of tutor achievements (and charges) - so parents can do their own pick'n'mix and spend their money on the subjects that they view as the most important.
Don't get me wrong I have absolutelty no problem with this (apart from the kids missing out on the peer element of course) - i'm just not sure what the education system will look like when my own children are in our shoes.
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| posted by hongkonger 1166 days ago (edited 1165 days ago) |
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Anyone read the school books for english?
Just about every native speaker (any standard) that has a few brain cells could correct the errors, both grammatical and spelling.... native chinese can't and should not be teaching english in my view.
In my day, the french teacher was french, the spanish teacher was spanish, and the english teacher was welsh :)
We will consume 85 million barrels of oil today, what's going to be left for tomorrow?
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| posted by Gum Tree 1165 days ago |
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Children won't be taught at home because one of the primary reasons for the schooling system as it exists today is to let parents work. Schools, like it or not, function as an underpinning of the economy in all countries. Not just to provide future workers, but to allow the current workers to both breed and work. That sounds cynical, but it is a reality. You only have to see the stats that are pumped out when teachers go on strike: so many job hours lost as parents have to stay at home, so many $$$$$ lost to the economy.
I'll stay on the soapbox for a bit. The trouble is that most schooling systems have divorced learning and teaching. For teachers to assist kids to learn they need skill/knowledge, time, low class numbers and flexibility. Teachers learn about learning theory at uni, and then during professional development classes if they are lucky, but rarely have the scope and support to put these into action. Why? Because no matter what anyone tells you, the primary aim of most systems is to get kids to pass exams. And to pass exams, the main thing a kid needs is memory and minor skills - not understanding.
Two examples from my kid's teachers. One: "your child's understanding of this subject is well beyond everyone else's in the class, but he won't get an A unless he uses more formal language in the exam". Two: "your child is easily the best in this class in maths, but he isn't fast enough in his calculations for the exam".
Neither of these are bad teachers - they just indicated the priorities that have been thrust on them - not that the kid understands, but that they can demonstrate the understanding within one tight, inflexible, and narrow way. So that is why we got a tutor - to skill him up in exams, not in actual understanding. And I am guessing that is why a lot of other parents do it. No one is really concerned that their kid has a life-long understanding of calculus (even though that would be a good thing), they just want them to fulfil the narrow requirements of the current school system.
That is why the IB program is so much better - at least the kids get a broad assessment structure as well as a broad curriculum and they have a chance to explore and enjoy learning for its own sake.
*Gets down off soapbox*
"Marooned on a rock with 80,000 and now 90,000 alcoholics and counting"
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| Junior Member |
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| posted by hongkonger 1165 days ago |
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"No one is really concerned that their kid has a life-long understanding of calculus"
I can't agree with that bit, perhaps because I am an engineer :)
if s/he wants to join a technical profession (i.e. engineering or science) it is certainly needed.
Also it should be remembered that education metrics, i.e. the school pass rate is considered critical. Some kids are held over a year (in local schools) if the teacher doubt they will pass the examinations - better not to damage the stats.
Everywhere examination is the standard, whether job application or uni applications - reviewers don't have time to check if every applicant has the understanding of the subject but could not meet the tight requirements of an examination. It is a shortcut society uses, even if the information is lost the day after the exam. That was the reason for increasing application of continuous assessment, to factor in understanding?
We will consume 85 million barrels of oil today, what's going to be left for tomorrow?
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| Regular Member |
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| posted by Gum Tree 1165 days ago |
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I think calculus - or at least an understanding of how it works - is a great thing to know. It helps you understand things like population growth. The idea that things can be both a point and a movement.
Yes - the lazy thing is using exam results though I know a lot of unis are moving towards interviews as well - especially in the people professions like medicine and teaching. Employers who rely on exam results deserve what they get - but they are generally looking for evidence of ability to do sh*t work and survive, aren't they????
The sad thing is the whole schooling system is geared up for uni entrance, yet most kids don't go uni. And universities are constantly bitching that the kids they get can't seem to research independently, write effectively, question for themselves etc etc. Yet they insist on using the results from a system that doesn't value any of those things!!!!
"Marooned on a rock with 80,000 and now 90,000 alcoholics and counting"
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| Junior Member |
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| posted by hongkonger 1165 days ago |
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quote:
The sad thing is the whole schooling system is geared up for uni entrance, yet most kids don't go uni. And universities are constantly bitching that the kids they get can't seem to research independently, write effectively, question for themselves etc etc. Yet they insist on using the results from a system that doesn't value any of those things!!!!
I feel the whole system is geared up to provide examation pass stats - and the driver? perhaps it is the parents themselves wanting a simple metric to judge the performance of a particular school.
In my view, Hong Kong is certainly different to UK, generally parents value education (particularly examination results).
When examination results are revealed, often parents have to tear around town and then queue for hours trying to get a place in the highest band school for their children.
my 2 cents
We will consume 85 million barrels of oil today, what's going to be left for tomorrow?
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| posted by barbie 1164 days ago |
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I'm not sure about last academic year, but I know the year before there were 10 local school kids who committed suicide over exam results.
HK is sheer lunacy in its education policies.
The minister, Fanny Law went on TV and said they were 'cowards' for committing suicide.
The entire system is here is an archaic mess.
I wait for the day when schools have all the funding they need and the airforce has to have a cake stall to raise money for a new bomber.
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| posted by Gum Tree 1164 days ago |
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Barbie - is that for real????? The Fanny Law comment: I haven't watched much TV. How fooking insensitive is that?? How does that make the parents feel?? And this is a minister in charge of kids? Bloody hell, I thought our guys were bad!
"Marooned on a rock with 80,000 and now 90,000 alcoholics and counting"
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| Newbie |
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| posted by barbie 1164 days ago |
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GT, HK kids are often very emotional , it's quite common here for them to have scars on their arms from self mutilation, they practise this quite a lot.
Suicide is quite commonplace over failed exams.
Fanny Law, in her comments was referring to any kid contemplating suicide.
Yes, she called them cowards.
I wait for the day when schools have all the funding they need and the airforce has to have a cake stall to raise money for a new bomber.
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| posted by Velvet 1163 days ago (edited 1163 days ago) |
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I don't know if it's because I was a competitive mum or if I just wanted my kids to do well in school, but I didn't get them tutors. I tutored them at home myself. I tried to make it as enjoyable as possible so that they wouldn't regard it as "ugh, not self-work again!" And yes I differentiated between school homework and self homework. I do believe that they got used to a certain routine and that helped to an extent their discipline with school work.
But life isn't only about working hard. So they got involved in sports as well and they are very much into playing music too.
Is it a parental obligation? I would say it is more a desire on my part to see that they become well adjusted adults with a good balance of activities in their lives.
I will never forget one teacher who said to me, "You are a stay at home mum, arent you? I can tell the difference".
"What we do in life echoes in eternity"
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