tutor standing in-front of chalk board which says believe in yourself
Educational Advice

A tutor to build academic self-confidence

A tutor can help improve exam results and academic success of a student, and it’s for this reason that they are needed. However, a growing number of students and parents are turning to tutors for many other reasons: for advice on applying to university, to increasing academic self-confidence.

Is this what you would expect from your child’s tutor? Or do you want their help solely to help improve and maintain exam results?

Tutors can improve exam results

It’s undeniable that a tutor’s first port of call should be attention to the child’s academic progression and bettering their exam results – if they weren’t helping in this aspect, you would have to consider what part of your child’s life they are affecting.

You may worry about:

  • The amount of attention your child receives in class.
  • Whether they are being given the opportunity to reach their full potential.
  • If they are asking for the help they need, instead of shying away for fear of embarrassment.
  • Not getting as much work as they need, or feeling swamped by the amount they’re getting.

Enlisting the help of a tutor can resolve these issues.

… and improve academic self-confidence

A growing number of parents are opting for tutors to help raise their child’s self-confidence. Dreading lessons and feeling afraid to answer questions can have a huge impact on their self-worth and confidence. By enlisting a tutor, struggling students have a new aid to call on when work gets tough. Similarly, gifted students, who may shy away from speaking up in class due to being branded as a ‘geek’ or ‘nerd’, have someone to encourage their talents.

In an ideal world, the best tutors take on all of these qualities. They are first and foremost teachers. Helping their students with concerns over work and a guiding hand when exam preparation begins to take its toll. But they should also be a mentor. They should be increasing their pupil’s self-confidence: picking them up in hard subjects so they can contribute during class, or reassuring them that intelligence is nothing to hide. The tutor should be a figurehead of education, without being intimidating or patronising. The link between academia and mentor – and that should be your reasoning behind finding and enlisting their help.


Written by Robert Grabiner – founder of MyTutor

5 years ago
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