How to choose the right tuition centre for your child

Choosing the right tuition centre as a parent can come with a lot of pressure. While tuition benefits children who might be slower in their academic learning and encounter difficulties keeping up in school, the right tuition centre can really make a difference.

We speak with Jamie Tan, founder of Flying Cape, on how you can pick the right tuition centre for your child. As you decide if your child needs tuition, it’s also important to note that children have different personalities and learning styles.

What might work for another child, might not work for yours. Some children may prefer studying by themselves, so signing up for group tuition might not be suitable for every child.

But the benefits of tuition are undeniable. Tuition could help reinforce concepts, clarify areas that they are uncertain of, give them more confidence and allow them to participate more actively in class.

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Education as we know it is changing. As Jamie shares, “There is a gradual shift, leaning towards creativity and innovation in school rather than pure academic results. The change in PSLE grading system next year will feature a wider scoring band and schools are moving away from judging performance solely on exam results.”

So while you sign your child up for tuition centres, it may also be beneficial to expose your child to different types of enrichment programmes to help develop their interests and nurture their creativity and soft skills.

Learning Style

Having a better understanding of your child’s learning style, you will be able to find out more about the teaching framework and approach used by the tuition centre and assess its suitability for your child.

For instance, if your child is a kinaesthetic learner, you might want to select a tuition centre that focuses on a more experiential learning approach and incorporates hands-on activities in their lesson plans.

Class size

For centres with a smaller class, students tend to find it easier to get their questions answered, and teachers will be able to cater to each student’s individual needs more easily.

Small class sizes usually lead to more one-on-one attention from teachers and they can easily recognise a student’s strengths and weaknesses.

This will lead to a more conducive learning environment, particularly for students struggling with weaker subjects.

Ability of teachers to connect with the learner 

It might be useful to spend some time to talk to the teacher who will be teaching your child. A good educator does not simply teach core learning concepts, he or she is also able to connect with the student and motivate them to achieve more.  

As some of these considerations might not be easy to assess upfront, platforms like Flying Cape offers the All-you-can-learn-pass (ALP) which allows learners to try out trial sessions for different enrichment and tuition classes before making the decision to sign up for a term package.

Through the trial sessions, parents will be able to assess the suitability of the class before committing for the longer term. There’s also Geniebook, an online learning tool that’s powered by AI to sharpen your child’s academic performance.