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Choosing The Right Tutor Can Be As Easy As ABC

Sylvan Learning Center Offers Parents Top Tips

According to the Education Industry Association, the demand for tutoring increased 15-18% in 2006, compared to single-digit growth previously. As a result, the number of tutors has also increased dramatically. Before entrusting your child's academic future to someone, it's important to make sure that person is the best qualified to meet your child's needs.

Sylvan Learning Center, the leading provider of in-center and live, online tutoring at home to students of all ages and skill levels, offers easy tips for parents to use when choosing effective tutors.

1. Make sure the tutor is licensed or certified. Tutors will need the proper qualifications to assess, diagnose, and tutor to a child's weakness.
2. Look for a tutor with experience teaching children the same age as your child.
3. Request an assessment. An individualized analysis of a student's strengths and weaknesses can determine a child's needs and help set goals. Also, insist on progress updates as a child passes through each step of the tutoring program.
4. Define your goals. Are you trying to keep your child from failing? Are you looking to challenge a child who is already doing well in school? "Be sure your tutor understands your objective and is skilled enough to meet it," observed Richard E. Bavaria, Ph.D., vice president of education for Sylvan.
5. Find a tutor with specific expertise in the subject of your choosing. Just because someone is a math genius, it doesn't mean he is qualified to teach other subjects.
6. Make a personality match. Determine what kind of teacher the student has excelled with previously.
7. Ask tutors how they will help your child master a specific skill. A good tutor will require that a child learn a specific skill before advancing to the next academic level. Find a tutor who will work with parents and teachers to create an individual program.
8. Ask prospective tutors for references from previous employers and students, or hire a respected tutoring company.
9. Get recommendations for tutors from family and friends.