How Students Can Benefit From Tutoring During COVID-19 School Closings

The world is pretty topsy-turvy right now as a result of COVID-19 infiltrating our lives; parents are home from work, kids are no longer in school, and pets of all kinds are loving the consequent extra attention. While everything might currently be on a major hold, that doesn’t mean your children’s education needs to cease. Everyone is adjusting to the new normal, and that includes finding alternate sources of learning. Luckily for our Internet-inundated generation, almost everything is easily accessible online, from free educational PBS TV shows to Zoom tutoring lessons. In fact, this latter option will probably outlast COVID-19 as students get used to the platform and enjoy the perks of individualized learning. Here’s why Zoom tutoring during COVID-19 school closings could just turn out to be a huge benefit to students that no one thought they needed.

Who doesn’t like a little more personal attention?

1. Everyone
2. COVID-19 — we will find that cure!
3. No one
4. Cats

And the correct answer is… C) no one! Everyone could use a little more personalized attention, especially when it comes to academics. In an ideal world, everyone would have a tutor to navigate the curriculum in a learning style tailored perfectly to the individual student. However, in real life (outside of the time of Corona) this isn’t physically or economically feasible; students have to adapt to group lessons and attempt to learn on a schedule and potentially in a manner that isn’t optimal for them. Furthermore, we’ve all had that one teacher who we could just never understand, no matter what we did to ameliorate the situation. Under those circumstances, one of two things usually happens; either the student resigns him or herself to only partially understanding the material for a year or a private tutor is brought in for additional clarity and help. Not only can outside tutors specialize the information for visual versus kinetic learners, for example, but they can also be hugely instrumental in shaping students’ attitudes towards academics and learning in general.

As in every aspect of our lives, mental health plays a major role in academic careers; although we as a society still do not fully understand every aspect of its impact. One thing is for sure, however, building academic confidence and mitigating performance anxieties should be a large focus for any educator. Even if students are mentally capable of achieving high scores in their regular courses or preparatory testing, if they don’t believe in themselves and their mental acuity, then a lot of their hard work and preparation will be ineffective and not produce the desired results. So, why not take advantage of this unprecedented time to treat yourself or your child to some personalized attention and mental pampering.

What subjects can actually be taught via Zoom?

Worried it might be hard to find a tutor for your very specific Latin curriculum? Do not fear! Not only does LA Tutors 123 have a vast network of tutors across ages and disciplines, they also have a huge database of materials to support your learning of any subject. We offer academic tutoring K-college and provide test prep all the way from the K-12 level to the graduate level to even the professional level (https://www.latutors123.com/tutoring-resources/). Moreover, tutors are becoming quite adept at navigating online tutoring in subjects one might not have thought would be possible to study remotely. For example, drama courses are switching from on stage performances to self-tape work, which while different offers its own set of challenges. Thus, no matter the subject, there is always a Zoom alternative to be found. So, don’t wait until 2021 to play catch up…

Can’t this wait until after COVID-19?

Speaking of catch up… given the inefficiencies of online group classes, a lot of schools are resigning themselves to accepting a five-month-long summer break instead of the usual three-month vacation typical in the United States. This is not to say that teachers and educational professionals are not doing everything in their power to maintain their curriculums throughout these last two months of school; moreover, everyone should applaud educators for not only working through these unusual circumstances but for always shaping future generations during normal times. That being said, only so much can be done online in large group formats; inevitably someone’s internet cuts out, or students’ attention spans fade when not being held accountable in person. Thus, unfortunately, we will witness many students and classes falling behind at no real fault of their own. The only way to combat this inevitability is to compensate with additional online tutoring, which will not only make the re-entrance to school less harsh but also might even put them ahead with such a personalized focus on their overall academic performance. Therefore, we have the unexpected opportunity to take advantage of this global pandemic and turn our normally outward focus inward on improving ourselves mentally and emotionally.

So, you’re a junior in high school and are celebrating because standardized tests have been canceled… HOLD UP! That is not true! https://www.latutors123.com/my-standardized-test-was-cancelled-this-month-what-should-i-do-now/ While the College Board has postponed the June SAT, the June ACT has not yet been canceled and could theoretically still happen. Furthermore, many universities are still requiring test scores, so whether you take them this spring or next fall, you should still be preparing. Confused about all the contradictory rumors your fellow classmates are spreading? Check out this blog post on exactly that: https://www.latutors123.com/college-admissions-changes-in-the-age-of-covid-19/. Additionally, for those of you freaking out at the prospect of taking AP tests at home, have no fear, we have articles for that too: for general standardized test tips (https://www.latutors123.com/tips-for-standardized-testing-from-home/) or AP specific ones (https://www.latutors123.com/preparing-for-the-2020-ap-exams/). Just like you wouldn’t want to fall behind in your regular classes, don’t fall behind on college entrance exams; now, more than ever in the past, juniors might just have the time to manage all of their academic commitments. Use this opportunity to crush the SAT or ACT by signing up with one of our superstar tutors and start studying now.

How can you get alone time from your kids inside your own house?

So, you’re a parent to an eighth-grader and you forget how to solve basic geometry problems… THAT IS OK!!! While your children might expect you to know the answer to every problem in the world, we do not. That is why we are here to take over and save you from having to revisit elementary math, or even math at all! https://www.latutors123.com/k-12-resources-for-at-home-online-learning/ Parents are superheroes, especially when trapped inside 24/7 for potentially months on end, but they can’t be expected to cook, clean, educate, entertain, and attempt to maintain a semblance of a work-life surrounded by Rugrats. Instead, why not take a luxurious hour-long break (or why not crank it up to 90 minutes while we’re at it!), while we take over the nitty-gritty of assigning homework and all that jazz. You deserve the break, and quite honestly your child deserves a professional educator. Plus, it takes a very patient and special kid to tolerate parents constantly looking over his or her shoulder and correcting them; let us save you the inevitable fight over the correct usage of who versus whom.

What if your kid dislikes school to begin with?

Well, why don’t we take this opportunity to fix that! Because private tutoring provides so much more flexibility than group lessons, our tutors can personalize the material and hopefully even make it fun for students. By offering students a different alternative to school, we can show them that there is more than one way to learn and expose them to learning methods that might not be effective for larger groups. Gradually, we can change your children’s opinions and demonstrate that learning actually isn’t so bad and that might even just be fun to succeed academically. Moreover, tutoring can often be a more concise way of learning, as we can spend less time on topics that come easily to certain students, whereas in school they would have to sit through the material while others in the class caught up. Thus, if your child has difficulty paying attention for hours on end, a single hour of tutoring to reinforce their trouble areas could be a very appealing solution for them. Furthermore, who says these lessons have to cover only academic material students are required to learn? Maybe you’ve always wanted to learn French but just didn’t have the time on top of your regular course load; now is the time to start. Take advantage of the down time and add a bonus subject to your tutoring schedule and come out of quarantine with a new skill!

Feature Image by Alexandra_Koch from Pixabay