Category Archive: Maths

1. Top 5 Tips for Prepping Your Next Tuition Session 

   26 July 2024 1:01 pm Leave a Comment

   Private tutoring is a different beast altogether from whole class teaching, but one thing is exactly the same: if you want your student(s) to get the most out of a tuition lesson, you need to prepare and plan the session.

   And, as Benjamin Franklin once said, “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail!”

   Here are our top 5 tips for prepping for your next session…

   Plan What You Want to Do

   Of course, there’s no need to produce a formal lesson plan, but you still need to be clear in your mind what you intend to during the session.

   This planning needs to be fluid and certainly not set in stone. Sometimes you will find that the student wants to spend time on something that might have come up in a lesson at school during the previous week.

   And just like in a classroom, the ability to be able to think on your feet and adapt a lesson plan as you go along is really important.

   But – all things considered – planning beforehand is still the secret to a successful lesson.

   Check Your Resources

   You have no safety net in terms of your resources if you are private tutoring in a student’s home.

   There will be no running off to the photocopier, or into your colleague’s classroom next door if you have forgotten something you need for the lesson.

   Therefore, it’s important that you check everything in advance. Make sure you’ve got all the resources you need and that you can easily access them before the lesson.

   It’s always worth having a back-up plan too – a Plan B. This gives you the option to change your approach during the lesson, should you want or need to.

   Objectives and Outcomes

   Again, there’s no need to write lesson objectives and lesson outcomes – or share these with the student you are tutoring. In most schools, this has become an expectation and an accepted part of a lesson.

   But one-to-one tutoring is different and should be different. If a tutoring session essentially just mimics a normal school lesson then what’s the point?

   It would just be giving the student more of the same: more of what obviously wasn’t working for the student in the first place. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be there.

   That said, any tutoring session still needs to have an objective and an aim to it. The outcome, of course, is how you can see that your aims have been met by the student.

   Extension and Extra Activities

   It’s always worth having some extra activities and extension tasks up your sleeve for a tutoring session.

   The nature of one-to-one tutoring means that you only have one person dictating the pace of a lesson. This a great thing, of course. It means that if a student is struggling with something, you can really take your time with them to ensure that they do ‘get it’.

   On the other hand, with only one student to focus on, there are occasions where you can fly through material – a lot quicker than you could ever do with a whole class.

   And, finally – there will always be times when whatever you have planned simply isn’t working. There could be a variety of reasons for this.

   You can’t really legislate for this. Sometimes, it just happens.

   So, it’s useful to have something else that you can move onto seamlessly, if it does.

   Personalise

   Last but not least, prepping for a tutoring session should always involve you asking yourself how you can personalise the learning for your student.

   What are their learning styles?  What type of activities do they respond to the best?

   It’s the thread that runs through all of the above.

   Follow the above tips and your next tutoring session should be a breeze!

2. The School Prom…Why is it important?

   23 July 2024 4:46 pm Leave a Comment

   The School Prom…

   It’s become synonymous with the end of school life for millions of students up and down the country. It’s a BIG thing for many… THE event and night of the year. So much so, that it’s become almost a rite of passage for teenagers.

   But, actually, the school prom is a relatively recent phenomenon in this country.

   Before the turn of the Millennium, school proms were fairly rare events in the UK. Some schools held them, but they were few and far between. If a trend was forming, it was certainly in its infancy.

   And they certainly weren’t the massive thing that they are today. They certainly weren’t a tradition.

   These days they are as much as part of a teenager’s school days as uniforms, school dinners and assemblies.

   Where Does the School Prom Come From?

   Well, for the answer, we need to look across the Atlantic to the good old US of A.

   As with many aspects of our popular culture, the influence comes from America. As the saying goes: If America sneezes, the rest of the world catches a cold!

   Blame Hollywood and countless TV shows – especially rites of passage/teenage dramas.

   The school prom is almost an ever-present in the storylines of the latter. And with the school prom being so embedded into American life, it’s no surprise that it’s been covered so much in films and TV since the 1950s.

   Strangely perhaps, one of the fundamental aspects of the school prom US-style – the question of who will be your date for the night – hasn’t caught on so much this side of the pond.

   But pretty much everything else has been copied from the American prom traditions and incorporated in

   The prom dress for the girls, the suit for the boys, the glitzy and glamorous entrance by limousine, sports car, or even helicopter.

   Yes, the school prom just seems to get bigger and bolder and more expensive as the years go by.

   Is it a Good or a Bad Thing?

   Well, as with anything, there are two sides of the coin here.

   The financial aspect of the whole thing is certainly problematic. Especially with the cost of living crisis and the statistics that show millions of UK children living in poverty.

   It puts pressure on parents, school prom can be expensive. However, we are seeing a rise in money saving prom schemes.

   There’s an argument that the school prom is just another example of how those growing up in lower socio-economic areas and with less affluent parents are disadvantaged.

   But on the flipside, young people deserve a big night out. They deserve a chance to let their hair down, and a reward for all their hard work for their GCSE and A level exams.

   And, like it or not, there’s no getting away from the fact that Prom Night has become the calendar event of Year 11 or 13 for many, many teenagers.

   Just as GCSE’s are important, there can be denying how important the school prom is to teenagers or how much they look forward to it.

   Everybody deserves to celebrate the end of their school days in style, surely?

3. Making the Transition Between High School and College

   3 July 2024 10:43 am Leave a Comment

   With the GCSE exam season over for another year, students can feel both relieved and proud. It’s no small feat. GCSE exams are undoubtedly one of the most challenging periods of time that many young people will have had to face in their lives to date.

   We don’t want to scare anybody here… but life does have a habit of throwing all sorts of challenges at you. These can come left, right and centre – at all sorts of moments.

   They come at you thick and fast. And hot on the heels of the exam period and results day comes the transition between high school and college.

   So, we thought we’d put together some key pointers about making the transition to college life seamless and straightforward.

   First Things First: You’ve Done It All Before

   First off, it’s worth thinking about this: you’ve seen and done it all before!

   Okay, so that’s not strictly true – but you have gone through (and survived and thrived) the transition from primary to secondary school.

   Whichever way you look at it, the move from primary school to ‘big school’ is way more traumatic than the move from high school to college.

   Yes, you are bound to be a bit nervous and possibly a little anxious. However, that’s completely natural and to be expected.

   There’ll be a few weeks of semi-confusion as you get to know your new surroundings. But once you’ve found your bearings, you’ll be as right as rain.

   Things Are Done Differently at College

   Although most young people know it already, many are still thrown a little bit. Which is understandable by just how differently things are done at college.

   Obviously, there’s no uniform. There will no teachers waiting on corridors to tell you to take your coats off. Yep, you are finally treated like adults!

   The thing is – although all of this is great – it also means that you expected to act like an adult too.

   And while colleges offer a great range of support and guidance for their students, it doesn’t really compare to the level of support most students get at high school.

   There will always be somebody to see and somewhere to go if you need some help, but you are expected to stand on your own two feet much more at college.

   The Challenge of A Levels and T Levels

   Another worry that many students have about starting college is a simple and obvious one:

   Will I be able to cope with A Levels?

   Most students will be moving up from Level 2 qualifications to Level 3. Of course, these are . bit more demanding. Which is why many students find the initial step up a bit of challenge

   The vast majority go on to cope comfortably with the higher level of work. But you will need to apply effort and determination if you are to succeed at this level.

   But you’ve got this!

   Enjoy college and good luck!

4. Setting Up a Tutoring Business in 2024 – Step 3: Your Name

   25 June 2024 7:53 pm Leave a Comment

   It’s All In The Name.

   Every company has a name. Some are well thought out. Others are plain rubbish. Some answer the question “What do they sell?” in a word. Others leave you guessing what the link between product and name is (I’m looking at you Apple!).

   By now, you’ve probably already read Steps 1 & 2 in this series of blogs. If not, it’s worth starting at the beginning here – seems like a sensible place to start, right? Assuming you’re all caught up on our previous two steps, let’s get stuck in to the next.

   Figuring out what the hell you’re going to name your tutoring business!

   Check That You’re Original

   You might think that it’s easy coming up with a name for your business – but often, you’d be wrong. And there’s plenty of reasons why. Let’s address the main struggle for naming a business straight away – not being the first to come up with it! But how do you know if somebody has already beaten you to that God-sent name that has just popped into your head? Easy! Check out this page on the Companies House website. It’s essentially a free to use database of all registered companies. You can simply type in your preferred Company name and – with any luck – nothing will come up!

   There’s a good chance you’ve just tried this feature straight away and, like most people, are left frustrated that some lucky so and so out there has already taken it! Don’t fear. You see, your name can still be the same as theirs – well, sort of. There is the slight ‘loop-hole’ of being able to register a trading name, as well as your official ‘registered’ name. It means that your customers can know your business by one name (trading), but your “official” name (at least as far as the government is concerned) can be used in small print only and so isn’t really used, or even widely known, by your customers. If you want a bit more information on this, check out this useful blog post from GoSolo.

   Don’t Be Too Clever

   It’s easier said than done – especially when you want to be regarded as an all-knowledgeable academic service – but try not to be so clever with your name that you come across sounding more like a type of medication than a provider of education!

   Sometimes simplicity is key. It allows your potential clients to easily identify what your services, and sometimes even values, are in one or two words. Take our name – TutorRight. I’m sure there are a thousand more creative names out there, but it does something really well… it tells you what we do and what we’re about: We tutor, and we do it right! I take zero credit for the name, as it was my wife who actually cooked it up, citing RightMove as a point of inspiration (we do both spend an ungodly amount of time on their app searching for the lottery home of our dreams!).

   Avoid Cheese

   Forget the fact that I’m one of only a handful of humans deemed “crazy” for not liking cheese (it’s true) – when you’re deciding what to call your business, you obviously don’t want to make it sound lame and cheesy, to the point that kids and parents alike roll their eyes when it’s said out-loud.

   That means avoiding OTT claims within your name, such as “Best Tutors Ever Ltd” and copycatting more prominent names, to create “Tutor Hut” (the cheese theme is strong, right?).

   It’s a personal dislike, but including slang can, in most cases, belittle what you want your tutoring company to represent – solid academia. So, in other words, “Getta-Grade Inc” should definitely “do one”.

   Being playful with your name can work, but of course, there is a fine line. You don’t want to be caught on the wrong side of being humorous and being silly. There’s also the chance that, just like me, you’re told by every person who knows you that you’re just not funny to begin with… which hurts. But then, it might be true… And if it is, being the dad joke of the business name world isn’t a prize you really want to get up on stage to accept.

   Your Name

   It goes without saying, but a lot of people will often flirt with the idea of naming their company after themselves. I mean, why not? Sure, it’s a little egotistical, but it’s your business!

   Well, here’s a couple of things to consider if you do decide to go down that route:

   • Not all surnames were created equal. That’s right – and you know it. Take my last name; “Walsh” is a fairly non-descript, middle-of-the-road kind of name. It wouldn’t particularly stand out to potential customers, but it wouldn’t draw ridicule. But what if your last name is “Smellies” or “Nutters” (yep – both real surnames)?
   • What if you wish to sell your company further down the line? If I’d have named my business “Chris Education” not only would I have sounded like a B-movie character who is quickly killed off, but it would have been tricky for Sarah or Phil to wrap their heads around offering to buy the company off me later down the line.

   Whatever you decide to go for, just remember, your name can be changed further down the line. But – it’s not always a straightforward process.

   An extra point of consideration would be to check that the URL isn’t already taken. This is an easy check by using sites such as GoDaddy and typing in the name that you’re considering.

5. How Can Tutors Deal with the Summer Drop-off of Tuition Work

   14 June 2024 8:36 am Leave a Comment

   Anybody that has dipped their toes into the world of tutoring for at least a year may well have learnt the hard way that the work that is available during the summer holidays drops off, the Summer drop-off is real.

   In fact, ‘drops off’ is a massive understatement to be honest… it falls off a gigantic cliff!

   You can go from having literally no free time to fit in any more students to having none at all in virtually an instant – and that means your income takes a serious hit.

   Planning For a Summer Drop-Off Is the Key

   The key to dealing with the Summer drop-off is planning for it in advance. After all, you do know it’s coming. And the Summer holiday’s are important – we talk about exactly why that is here.

   In many ways, tutoring is no different from several other sectors and industries – it is seasonal.

   The retail sector is largely reliant on Christmas sales; pubs depend on ‘beer garden weather’ in the summer – and the tourism industry largely shuts down between November and March.

   Tutoring is the same. You have to get it while you can because July and particularly August are likely to be barren periods.

   One way to deal with this is to do what these other sectors do – try to make a much as you can when you can so that you have enough saved to cover the quieter months. Make sure you also take the time to learn how to budget across the year!

   Take On Other Work

   Another option is to take on other work and look for different income streams during the summer months.

   For tutors, the most obvious thing that springs to mind has to be exam marking.

   Of course, the timing of exam marking fits in quite nicely with the drop off in tutoring. In fact, it’s almost perfect.

   As exams run from May to June, the marking period essentially runs from May to July (and maybe just into August).

   There will be a bit of a crossover with your ‘normal’ tutoring commitments at the start of exam marking, but – depending on the subject – you’ll probably find that the busiest marking period begins around the same time as the tutoring begins to drop off.

   The other great thing about exam marking is the experience you gain from doing it.

   Make no mistake, nothing puts you in a better position to be able to help and support the students you tutor than having the inside track on what examiners want to see.

   Not only that, as there are exams in every subject, it doesn’t matter what your specialism is – there is work out there for you!

   The Element of Risk Brings Rewards Too

   Finally, it’s important that we end on a positive note.

   Moving from a comfortable salaried job to the world of self-employment can be a daunting prospect.

   Unless your self-employment is largely made up of long-term contract positions – which, of course, as a tutor it almost certainly isn’t – you need to be mindful that your monthly income is likely to be variable.

   You need to be prepared for it to go up and down. And as a tutor – seriously down in the summer.

   There is always an element of risk but if are comfortable with this, it gives you the freedom to try different things and take on new challenges.

6. Setting Up a Tutoring Business in 2024 – Step 2: Your Niche

   12 June 2024 2:29 pm Leave a Comment

   So, you’ve weighed up the pros & cons of setting up a tutoring business and you’re now all in. You’ve established your ‘why?’ and feel confident that you’re in it for reasons that will hopefully lead to a fulfilling (and potentially lucrative) career!

   Well, that’s all well and good. But now comes the tough part. Now you have to actually do some of the groundwork to put your plans in to action. And it’s not exactly the most glamorous of steps. You see, one of the most common misconceptions that budding entrepreneurs make is that they assume that a skill or service they value highly is one that the rest of the local population will also be delighted to utilise. And sadly, that just ain’t the case!

   Research, Research, Research!

   So, how do you know if you even have a prospective clientele base to work with in your area? This is easy… if you take a stab in the dark and guess. But, that doesn’t sound like a good plan does it? Taken too far in the other direction, and it can become quite a quagmire of statistical studies, time spent researching local consumer behaviours and everyone’s favourite – canvassing your friends, family and every poor sucker that stumbles absent-mindedly past you, clipboard and questionnaire conveniently at the ready.

   My suggestion – forget both approaches and follow the advice outlined below.

   Is There A Demand?

   This is an obvious, and elementary, question to pose. But if your plan is to set up a tutoring business for face to face tuition in your local area. The first thing you want to consider is whether that is feasible

   Let’s say you live in a small village, where the local school holds a grand total of thirteen students. The chances are that relying solely on the income generated by your tutoring business from private face to face tuition is perhaps a little ‘unrealistic’.

   If this sounds scarily like where you currently live then don’t worry. You don’t have to frantically list your property on RightMove, pack your cases and to head to the city!

   A larger local population is certainly an advantage, but even that doesn’t guarantee they are the right demographic for your services. In areas that would be considered financially deprived, it probably doesn’t matter if there ten or a ten thousand students. Their money is going to be spent elsewhere on things that are probably more pressing to the quality and comfort of the collective household’s situation.

   Understanding this is really, really important.

   So how can you determine whether you’re currently in an area that wants a new tuition business, or one that would simply carry on living their lives happily ignoring any offers you thrust in their face? Well, a quick solution is literally a click away – my friends, let me introduce you to… Google.

   Okay, so chances are you have almost definitely heard of this nifty search engine. But let’s consider it as a tutor service database. And the best part? You can search for agencies, directories and even one-man bands in or around your exact target area!

   When researching whether there was a need for a ‘TutorRight’- style tutoring business in Warrington originally, I simply searched “Tuition Companies in Warrington”, “Tutoring Business in Warrington” and “Tutors Near Me”. Sure enough, before my very eyes, Google told me that there were several (loads, actually…) in or around Warrington town.

   Now, what does this mean? Well, I deduced that it was unlikely ten completely random individuals all took an uneducated punt at approximately the same time and were all currently at the same point in their journeys. And wouldn’t you know it? After looking at a few of their websites, I found that they were all at different stages of their journeys.

   Now, sarcasm apart – what does this really mean? Some had been established for twenty-plus years, whilst others were only in their second year of trading. And both categories led me to the conclusion that, if there wasn’t a need, then why would there be competition in the first place?

   Sometimes a bright idea that comes to you whilst peeling potatoes or taking a shower seems to solve everyone’s problems…

   Until you investigate it as a business idea and soon realise there is a good reason why nobody has bothered to bring it to reality – it either makes zero financial sense, or somebody has done it before, and they crashed and burned.

   Having established tutoring companies already in the community gave me a strong indication that there was a need for the service. Having fairly new companies still operating past their first year gave me a comforting indication that it wasn’t too late.

   They had started a company in the same sector, despite their established competitors, and they had enough business to get them through that first financial year. Which, as we’re led to believe by the statistics surrounding businesses in their infancy, is no mean feat.

   Now like I said, there are plenty of technical, advanced – even expensive – ways of determining the need for tuition in your locality, but the Google hack is certainly worth exploring!

   How Do I Compete?

   Congratulations! You’ve discovered that there is competition in your area! Wait? What? Surely that’s a bad thing? Well, as discussed above, it doesn’t have to be viewed that way. The real issue now is how to complete with those competitors.

   Did you find that your competition focused predominantly on secondary school exam prep, such as for GCSEs? If so, as a primary school trained professional, you might have the perfect skillset to offer a similar service but for a slightly younger target market. It could even be that you and your competitor put your heads together and refer parents to one another if there are services that you don’t offer, but the other does.

   Maybe you discovered that there was so much attention related to Maths & English tuition, that as a qualified Science teacher, you can offer a subject that seems to be in short supply. Again, starting with a particular subject can differentiate you. This in turn can help single you out as the authority in your field. After all, only you specialise in that subject.

   But what if there are already primary, secondary, subject-specific focused tuition companies already available to students in your area? How can you stand out when there are already varied options vying for the local parent’s approval?

   This is where marketing, brand and company culture come in. And for me, these are the “fun” aspects to work on in your business. All of this happens a bit further down the line. After all – we don’t even have a name yet!

   To look at the task of naming your future empire, look no further. Make sure you check out Setting Up a Tutoring Business in 2024 – Step 3: Your name

7. Setting Up a Tutoring Business in 2024 – Step 1: The Why?

   4 June 2024 7:51 pm Leave a Comment

   So, You’re Considering Setting Up a Tutoring Business?

   With plenty of head-scratching questions filling your head, potential knots in your stomach and friends, family, and colleagues questioning your sanity…

   It makes complete sense to do some research!

   But where do you begin? You’re probably eager to see how to price up your services and bag your first paying tutee. However, it’s important to take a sensible approach and reflect on one simple question:

   Why are you looking to set up a tutoring business?

   The “Why” To Setting Up Your Own Tutoring Business

   If you’re reading this article, there’s a good chance you are considering opting for a different career path to the one that you’re currently on. Whether that is leaving the teaching profession, entering the education sector for the first time, or simply wanting to gather inspiration for setting up a small business to call your own, the chances are your current job isn’t quite fulfilling your needs.

   So, why consider setting up a tutoring business? That’s really what you, and only you, need to answer. Nobody else will know exactly how your current circumstances are influencing your feelings and decisions.

   Helping To Answer Your Why

   Let’s have a look at some of the common reasons to enter the tuition game and hopefully provide you with more answers than questions!

   We each have our own perspective on life. On how we should manage our work-life balance and how we would ideally like to spend our valuable time.

   If you’re looking to start a tutoring business to have more free time, then you’re in for a shock! Of course, it all depends on your current workload, what your expectations are going into this process and how big (or small) you want your potential empire to be.

   Like any other start-up, a serious amount of time and effort needs to go into the early stages. Especially to get things off the ground initially. Plus, learning things that may be completely alien to you – such as business taxes and registering a company – takes time. Gov.uk is a great place to start. However, if you’re already familiar with that sort of jargon (or do friends’ tax returns as a hobby) then you can discount some of this time. However – if you have never run a tutoring business before, you’ll still need to dedicate a period of time to better understanding the profession. You will want to consider it’s need in your local area, the size of the opportunity in your location (unless you’re considering online tuition, which somewhat negates this) and the business model you intend to follow.

   “I want to be my own boss!” – a great idea in practice, but have you considered the implications involved with being the boss? Whether you plan on being a solopreneur or scale up to a full-blown operation consisting of hundreds of employees, the major decisions, headaches, and angst will rest on your shoulders. It’s not all doom and gloom of course. Ultimately, you’re in charge (to as much of an extent as is possible) of your professional fate. You get to decide who to hire and fire. You get to decide what the company culture will grow in to. And you get to pick the subjects and services that are offered to your students.

   Are you perhaps looking to move away from the ironically playground-esque staffroom politics within your current teaching role? It’s certainly a good enough reason to leave, but is it the reason for setting up a tutoring business? If you want to avoid the drama, but remain in education, would supply work offer a better solution?

   Found Your Answer?

   Hopefully by reading till this point, you have made some progress with reflecting on your why. Don’t be too stressed if you feel no further to discovering your why – there is no right or wrong answer. Besides, it doesn’t need to be a defined mission statement with which to base your entire business plans around.

   Make sure that, when you have identified your ‘why?’, it is strong enough to make the plunge worthwhile. There is nothing worse than dipping your toes in, failing, and then berating yourself for your business’ shortcomings.

8. Top Tips for Revising English Literature Anthology Poetry

   10 May 2024 1:14 pm Leave a Comment

   If there is one component of the GCSE English Literature course that fills most students with dread, it’s the Anthology Poetry unit.

   And to be perfectly honest, it’s not hard to see why.

   If you are studying the AQA course, there are 15 poems to study; for Eduqas things are even more challenging with a whopping 18 to get through.

   What Does the Exam Question Ask Students to do?

   When it comes down to it in the actual exam, students will only ever have to write about two of these poems. One of the poems you have studied will be printed in the exam paper. You will need to write about this poem and then choose another poem you have studied to compare it with.

   But because you have no idea which poem will feature in the exam, there’s no way you can cut corners in any way. You really need to study all the poems.

   That might not sound too bad…

   Until you remember that you are not allowed to take an anthology into the exam!

   In days gone by, students could take their annotated anthology into the exam. Then, for a few years, students were given a ‘clean’ unannotated anthology. Now, since 2015, students are not allowed to have an anthology in the exam at all.

   This means that essentially this component has become little more than a test of a student’s memory.

   But All is Not Lost!

   Fear not though, all is not lost.

   While there isn’t a simple hack or way of avoiding the fact that you are going to have to remember a load of quotes, there is a way of focusing your revision, so that you just concentrate on the really important stuff.

   So, here goes:

   1. You should be able to summarise each poem in a sentence or two. Even better, narrow it down to a couple of key words/themes.
   2. Choose a key quote for each poem. Approach this as if you could only use one quote per poem – the absolute best one – that sums up the whole message of the poem.
   3. Try to learn another 4 (minimum) important quotes. Aim for quotes that cover a range of ideas – not just 4 quotes that basically say the same thing.
   4. Identify one of two methods – poetic devices, language, or structure – that each poet uses to get their ideas across.
   5. Identify which poems go well together and provide the best comparisons.

   Follow the above 5 steps and you will be well-prepared for the demands of the exam question.

   Finally, bear in mind this last point…

   When it comes down to quotes, it’s never simply about how many you have got. The most important thing is what you do with them. Make your quotes work for you. They should never be more than a line long – and if you can narrow them down to a few words – or even just one word – all the better. They will be a lot easier to remember this way, and you will dazzle the examiner with your understanding of the most important words that a poet has used.

   You can do this! – And with that we will leave you with 5 more tips for the secret to success during exams.

9. Parents! How to Help Your Kids Handle the Pressure of Exam Season

   11:22 am Leave a Comment

   As exam season kicks off, it’s time for cool heads and calm.

   For students, exam season will be (for many) the most nerve-wracking, stressful, and downright horrible few weeks of their young lives so far.

   For parents, it can be an extremely difficult period too. It can definitely be a really stressful time for Mum and Dad as well – although don’t expect too much sympathy from your son or daughter!

   When parents are stressed and teenagers are stressed, it can make the home a volatile environment, so the big question for any parent is:

   How do you help your kids (and yourself) handle the pressure of exam season?

   Stay Calm!

   You might not feel calm – or anywhere close to it – but regardless of whatever happens over the next few weeks, it is vital that parents stay calm. Now is not the time for falling out and family rows.

   Maintain routines and boundaries… but be prepared to bend a little

   By this point, most students – either on their own or in collaboration with you – will have worked out a revision timetable.

   With a bit of luck, they will be using it already and will stick to it (most do, when it comes down to it). As a parent, it’s part of your role to ensure that your child keeps to the routine of their revision timetable. You might need to gently reinforce the importance of this. You do need to be firm about things but there’s no need to be overbearing.

   A ‘we’re in this together’ approach will always work best. Now, more than ever, the family needs be a team working towards a shared goal.

   It’s also important to be prepared to bend a little, if necessary.

   In an ideal world, the whole exam period will go perfectly and go absolutely swimmingly. However, we all know that life has a nasty habit of not panning out like that!

   A bad exam – or one your child feels went badly – can really dent a young person’s confidence and throw them (and everything) of course.

   Nobody knows your child better than you do, so instinct and intuition is likely to kick in when necessary. They might need a night off or a day out with the family, a shoulder to cry on, or just a bit of space.

   Praise, reassurance and support

   Parenting a teenager can sometimes be an unforgiving and thankless task.

   But, though it feels like the complete opposite of this sometimes, deep down all teenagers need praise and reassurance, and your complete support.

   If they feel supported, they will respond in a positive way! Mind have a good article delving into exam stress, give it a read so that you can understand more how your child may be feeling.

   Reward, reward, reward!

   You may have seen stories in the media recently about parents paying their kids for good exam results.

   Some reports have suggested that parents up and down the country will be shelling out as much as £150million in total as reward for exam grades.

   Now, of course, for many families this isn’t really an option, and some might view the whole idea as simply wrong, or nothing more than a bribe.

   However, while most teens will work hard of their own accord, sometimes a little bit of extra motivation works wonders – and we’ve spoken about it before here. Ultimately it can help to reinforce the link between the value of hard work and money.

   Cash, holidays, driving lessons… there are many ways to incentivise the whole business of exams.

   If it works for them, it works for you!

10. How to Instil the Importance of Exams Upon Your Students

    26 April 2024 11:57 am Leave a Comment

    How do you instil the importance of exams upon your students without putting the fear of God into them?

    This conundrum is one of the biggest challenges facing teachers today in the classroom.

    It’s a real problem because of 3 factors: the nature of teenage life, human nature in general, and the nature of schools.

    The Nature of Teenage Life

    Young people, it’s worth remembering, go through a lot of change and upheaval during their teenage years. Their bodies are developing; their emotions and minds are developing; and they are beginning to find themselves and their identity.

    There’s a lot going on, a lot to handle, and an awful lot to deal with during your teenage years.

    Not least the pressure of exams.

    Human Nature

    The psychology behind our actions and behaviour is extremely complex. However, when it comes down to it – in certain aspects – human nature is really straightforward.

    When we are faced with pressure, some people seem to thrive on it – even seeing it as some kind of incentive. In essence, we rise to the challenge.

    On the flipside, many of us seem to do the opposite when faced with pressure. We find it really difficult to cope with. In essence, we buckle under the challenge.

    That can manifest itself in several different ways. We might try to deny the importance of something or put off dealing with the issue head-on – kind of hoping that whatever it is that is causing us the pressure or stress will somehow magically go away.

    Which, of course, it never does.

    Part of our ability to deal with challenges in our lives comes from experience.

    This makes dealing with pressure especially challenging for teenagers. For more help understanding what’s going on inside the teenage brain, check out this BBC article.

    The Nature of Schools

    Schools exist under the lingering and looming threat of Ofsted. Not only that, schools are at also the mercy of government decisions and education budgets. All of this piles pressure onto schools.

    Under constant pressure to continually improve exam results, the pressure school leadership teams feel feeds down to curriculum team and subject leaders. This, in turn, is passed onto classroom teachers.

    And – you’ve guessed it – teachers then pass this pressure down to their students.

    Teachers are feeling it, so the students they teach feel it too.

    It is a vicious cycle that needs to be broken.

    So, What’s the Solution?

    In all honesty, there are probably at least another couple of blogs waiting to get out (possibly even a book!) on this topic. We’ve actually posted another blog ourselves on the matter. But to keep things short and sweet here, let’s leave it with this:

    Just because exams are important doesn’t mean that we have to talk about them all the time.

    We don’t have to mention exams in every lesson or every assembly.

    Learning, exam preparation, and performance in exams all have a process. Refine those processes and have faith in them.

    Think how an athlete responds after a disappointing result or performance. They don’t panic or make any knee-jerk reactions; they trust in the process that got them there in the first place.

    Trust in the process is the key.