Why the recent increase in private tuition?

Over the last decade, we have been seeing a steady increase in private tuition here in Britain, and it's a trend that won't be disappearing any time soon. The increase is global, with Japan leading the way in private tutoring. In South Korea and Turkey, spending on private tuition is almost equal to the amount spent on education in the public sector. What exactly does this phenomenon mean for UK students?

Demand

This increase in private tuition comes largely from the continuing demand for higher education and degrees. With increased competition for employment, students and families are looking to tutoring to help them remain competitive and get into sought-after schools and universities. This is especially true for middle class families looking to work in the service industry and needing degrees to make them eligible for jobs. Private tuition helps them to achieve their goals and creates further demand for private tuition as others strive to keep up or get ahead of the game.

At university level, students want more contact time from lecturers to help them make sense of their studies. But a recent report by the Higher Education Institution and consumer group Which? shows that many students are actually getting less lecture hours than they should be receiving from their higher education. The findings supplement a report by the Quality Assurance Agency, which found huge discrepancies in student study hours in UK institutions. As a result of this, students are using private tutoring to close the gap in achievement and give them more time with someone who can support their learning. And as British cities and universities become more multi-cultural, more students will need help outside the classroom to adjust to the British education system.

Confidence

Private tuition also gives students a sense of personal achievement. Students who receive private tutoring are building their own confidence to help them achieve academically, and finding education more engaging.  Tutoring allows them to work and learn at a comfortable pace. As teachers in schools are hard-pressed to find the time to work with individual students during lessons, for some children and young people, classrooms can be unproductive environments. These students may find the work hard to follow and may struggle to remain engaged, even when the quality of teaching is high. 

Private tutoring provides the support students need, which can lead to an improvement in their work, grades, behaviour and engagement in the classroom. Having a tutor to assess and support a student on a one-to-one basis can heighten intellectual curiosity and, for many students, a private mentor gives greater value to the information they are learning.

The growth in private tuition demonstrates a positive trend in how society values education and learning, and more families are looking for opportunities to make sure that their children get the attention they need.

If you would like your children to have that opportunity, please get in touch with us on 01858 462648 and talk to us about how we can help.

10 benefits of private tuition

There are many reasons for investing in private tuition. Here are 10 things you can expect to benefit from:

1. Much smaller student to teacher ratio
Because private tuition takes place in small groups or one-to-one, students are able to focus better and are taught in a way that specifically meets their own unique needs. Here at Inicio, students attend in groups of up to six children, but teaching is always one-to-one.

2. The right tutor
At school, you don't have a choice about your teachers, but we match the child and the tutor following our first meeting with the child. This means students have a mentor who teaches in the most effective manner for their learning styles.

3. Extra review
Often in school there is only a limited time to review a child's work and understanding. That may not always be enough. Having a private tutor gives students an extra chance to review the areas in which they may be struggling. 

4. Homework help
With a tutor, students enjoy having a guide who can make the topics that they're covering for homework less stressful, less of a chore and more of an effective learning experience.

5. Test practice
For students who struggle with studying for tests, private tuition helps them to develop better study skills and ultimately to perform better in exams.

6. Confidence
Because tutors develop a more personal relationship with their students, they are able to see and cultivate the potential within them. This is all too easy for teachers in school to miss, especially if a child is well-behaved or of average intelligence. This gives students increased confidence in their studies.

7. Saves parents and students time and effort
Parents with busy schedules don't always have time to help their children with school work. Having a private tutor takes the pressure off (although we would always encourage parents to spend time with their children wherever possible!). 

8. Stronger drive to perform to their very best
Because private tuition means the instructor is really focused on the success of the student, students are far more likely to have an increased drive to perform to the very best of their ability.

9. Safe environment for open discussion
Sometimes students may not be as willing to ask questions in a large class, but working with a private tutor gives them more confidence and the freedom to speak out.

10. Students get taught by innovative methods 
Because private tuition is one-to-one, tutors are willing to experiment with new teaching styles that work more effectively for the student.   

If you feel you or your child could benefit from a private tutor in Leicester then why not visit our learning centre in the centre of Market Harborough to see for yourself and to talk with our friendly staff about the options available.