Private Tutor vs Tuition Centre – deciding on which is the best for your child

A young man once confessed to me that when he used to have a private tutor coming into his house, he was never prepared and it never worked for him. He also admitted that now that he has to travel across London to a private tuition centre, he is more switched on and focused. On the other hand, some private tuition centres are a waste of time as they are manned by people who know very little about the school curriculum or how to get the most pout of a young person. Some are not qualified teachers or the class sizes are too large and mixed right across the age group.

Here are five quick points for comparing a private tutor with a private tuition centre:

1. Which programme suits your child best – taking into account his/her current circumstances? Would they thrive in one-to-one environment or they are best suited to the stimulation that will be provided in a setting with a small group of students?

2. Is the private tuition just to boost confidence in a particular subject or a topic in that particular subject? Or is it something that you want to be on-going until the end of that particular course of study?

3. Convenience for the family, the age of your child and travelling or scheduling your family’s daily timetable or space for study?

4. For which of the two options are you able to find the right tutor to really boost your son’s or daughter’s confidence at that particular time?

5. Cost. Group teaching at a private tuition centre or a Saturday School are on the whole slightly cheaper than one-to-one private tuition. However, it is not always the case and it sometimes depends on the features that the tuition centre offers in terms of the range of expert teachers, assessments, reporting, regular monitoring and most importantly accountability. Of all the above, experience tells me that it is how good the tutor is that matters most. Even in cases where the good tutors are far away and it will take your child a long time to get there, you may want to think about how he or she could make the best of the situation. One way is to have a long teaching session, with various subject taught on the day so he or she travels there and the travelling does not occupy a large proportion of his or her day.

Taking short breaks and adopting a positive mind set to the whole experience can have a big impact too.

We would love to hear your views on this or any other matter relation to your child’s education. Please feel free to post your comments below.

Our next blog is on Tuesday 12th November and the title is: “Are you worried about how your child will react to you seeking private tuition for them?” If you have any questions relating to the topics raised in this post or if you would like to speak to a member of our advisory team about any education-related matter, please feel free to contact us through the following mediums:

Tel 020 7112 4832; Email [email protected]; Web www.excelinkeysubjects.com