1st July 2016 1:00
By Blue Tutors
There have been many stories emerging recently with regards to concerns over workloads for students at all levels. Parents have recently begin campaigning over excessive testing and revision work that their children are required to complete at primary and secondary school, while the university of Oxford has been asked by the Quality Assurance agency to provide guidelines for workloads after it emerged that some students were being asked to work over 50 hours a week. In all cases petitioners have pointed out that excessive workloads are detrimental to students’ education, leaving them with no time to actually think and absorb what they have learnt. Private tutors are often accused of exacerbating the problem by adding to workloads provided by schools. But could private tuition help mitigate the effects of excessive workloads?
Many people associate private tuition with parents demanding extra work for their children on top of the school work that they are already set. It is true that in order to tackle areas in which students are struggling, many tutors do set extra work. However, private tutors can also be an excellent resource in teaching students how to manage workloads and learn more efficiently and effectively. The key to finding a tutor who will help with this is to pay attention to their teaching philosophy and to ensure that you are clear on the need to manage workloads rather than add to them.
When helping students manage workloads, tutors should begin by going through students schedules and current workloads with them to ensure that they have a good understanding of what the student is currently managing. In do this, tutors can help their students identify where their time is best spent, and highlight any areas which are wasted, or where work is being repeated. For example, some students revising for exams may spend too much time on a topic that they already understand well, to the detriment of working on an area with which they require help. Tutors can also teach study and time management skills that may drastically reduce students’ stress levels and time spent working. Helping students manage their workloads works on an individual basis that requires tutors to help students tailor a schedule that works for them. In doing this, tutors can help students become more efficient and less anxious.