Math is tough, here's a tutoring guide for your children

Math is tough, here's a tutoring guide for your children
By Euronews
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Maths has never been a cup of tea for most people. Whether it's fractions, algebra, geometry, or even basic math, every student has falters in one of those areas.

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Maths has never been a cup of tea for most people. Whether it’s fractions, algebra, geometry, or even basic maths, every student has a weakness. As a matter of fact, Maths is known to be a big headache not just for children, but adults alike.

It is a subject that can lead to extreme frustration at any age or level, be it GCSE, A-level and even throughout our everyday lives. If you take a stroll through a school playground, chances of coming across students excited about their next maths period are next to none. In fact, you’ll encounter sighs and groans of anguish. There is a huge lack of excitement and enthusiasm for this subject and numerous students have developed a mental block and ultimate dislike for maths.

In class, the subject usually involves formulas and putting in values to get the correct answer. This is hardly exciting work for the average learner and tends to trigger negative perceptions towards maths. This calls for teachers and tutors to think out of the box if they want math to be thrilling to the students.

The Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED) published a report that investigated primary and secondary mathematics problems and why the number of students carrying the subject through to post-16 level was alarmingly low. The report revealed that students were not getting adequate assistance in the subject and support to catch up when they fell behind. The report ideally found that younger students and those with lower ability skill sets hard the weakest teaching and were sometimes considered inadequate.

Also, the Ofsted Report showed that even the smartest pupils simply were not reaching their potential in secondary school, even those who were excellent at the subject at primary school. Ideally, numerous schools enter pupils so early for GCSE maths that they don’t have adequate time to level up and get the desired grades.

This is the primary reason why online math tutoringis in high demand nowadays. Most students find themselves demotivated, simply because they find maths hard to learn. There is also the issue of being taught in a manner that doesn’t suit them personally. This is a huge concern, not just from the parents and students, but from the United Kingdom school inspection as well.

Hiring a personal maths tutor at home allows the student to learn the subject in a supportive and encouraging environment, without having to deal with the pressure of keeping up with the rest of the students.

Ultimately, people prefer learning things that are not only interesting but ideally relevant. As a tutor, if you can be able to put math in a context that every student will comprehend, then you are halfway there. Here are a few things that you should think about when trying to motivate pupils to learn the subject:

How can I make Maths more interesting?

How can I get rid of the stigma around mathematics from my students?

What methods can I implement to improve the understanding of maths?

What resources are there to help with teaching maths?

What games can we play to make the subject fun?

As a tutor, it is your responsibility to get your students past the feeling of not being smart enough to solve math problems and eliminate the mental block in order to achieve academic success. It’s also your job to ensure they perceive maths as fun and essential for various aspects of life.

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