#03 Focus on the Individual - Building confidence

Paul, guest · [00:20]I think my first point to that answer is that we constantly assess our own tutors, what they're providing the child, and we've got a marking process in place where the child has to achieve a particular task at seventy-five percent or higher, and if they achieve that, then they can move on to the next harder skill set. And the idea is if they're constantly growing through the skills and they're doing more tasks, then the teacher's doing their job, the child feels confident, and then you're moving forward. So we monitor our teachers on a very, very close basis that they are constantly providing this child with the upgrade of the previous week's work.

Presenter, host · [00:56]So how do you feel about it as well, I mean, from the supplementary point of view?

Vishani, guest · [01:00]I think from a supplementary point of view, the teachers that we employ go through a rigorous amount of training before they actually get into the classroom, and also we employ qualified tutors at our center. So to ensure that besides just the qualifications, do they have a personality to engage with your child? Are they working one-on-one, getting to know who your child is? Because that's important, and that is a very important part to the academic journey. So they need to have good personalities and have a passion for teaching, and that is what we need to ensure.

Presenter, host · [01:31]That's one thing I hear from my children all the time, is that they're not going to learn something from somebody because they just don't like the teacher. The teacher's not getting their information across properly. So that's, it's nice to know that you'll have somebody who's actually maybe a little bit more au fait and has more time with that child and gets to know the child better as well, and where they need to actually be pushed a little bit further. Would you find that that's one of the things that you're always looking for in people too?

Paul, guest · [01:55]Yeah, I think there's a very important personality gap that has to be crossed with a remedial teacher. Not everybody gets along with everybody. That's the facts of life. And at the end of the day, you need to try and match up the right type of student with the right type of tutor. In school, you don't get much of a choice with that, but we're sitting in an advantage where we're saying, okay, I can choose the teacher that's going to do the best for you and is going to have the right personality fit, and then that builds confidence again, and that's one of our core principles.

Presenter, host · [02:27]I know that at schools, they generally have extra lessons after school itself. Why is this different from what they're doing there?

Vishani, guest · [02:35]Of course, what they're offering at school is not a problem at all because the more practice, the better. However, when there's a glitch in the understanding of the actual concept, when it is taught in the same manner, with the same styles, and in the same classroom, with the same teacher, it might be problematic as a different strategy is not being approached. And with extra lessons, a complete different strategy is utilized to try and make the student understand that concept area that they're struggling with.

Presenter, host · [03:02]So what grades do you do this from and to?

Paul, guest · [03:05]From grade one or even grade R, all the way through to matric, understand that in about grade ten, eleven, and twelve, it's no longer remedial. It's more of a instant satisfaction that needs to be approached. However, from a grade one to grade nine, it's very much a remedial or a focused set of goals that needs to be done.

Presenter, host · [03:23]Is it not just a case of sometimes in the lower grades you have those very pushy parents who want to just make sure that their child is going to get the best marks in the class at all times, whereas the child might actually be okay in reading well and everything?

Vishani, guest · [03:35]Well, there are cases for enrichment where they just actually want to achieve more than what they're getting and will be ahead of the game. And yes, you do get those parents and you do get those students who want to achieve more than what they're already achieving. And so we do provide enrichment in those cases.

Presenter, host · [03:49]So then you'd have them in a, in a different class to the other kids who are therefore more remedial background?

Vishani, guest · [03:55]No, not at all. I mean, in, in a class, Kip McGrath is believed to eliminate competition. So what we've done is we've put different grades, different personalities in a very small classroom where we tackle their personalized programs. So there could be Amber sitting on the one side in grade one working on sounds, and then there could be John sitting on the other side doing comprehension in grade ten. So it does not matter what level they're on or what program they're placed on, they can be placed in one class and it works on rotations.

Paul, guest · [04:31]I'm glad you asked that, and it's important to realize there is always a long-term goal and a short-term goal, and we're really working at the long-term remediation of the child so that he no longer needs to come back for extra lessons. If there's a test, sure, we'll help. That'll address a few needs, a bit of self-confidence, but it might not address everything that child needs from the past.

Presenter, host · [04:52]Okay, so you're not a miracle worker, in other words. They have to do the work themselves. Okay, and when will the child actually finish the supplementary education? Is there a point when you turn around and say, right, your child doesn't need to come anymore?

Paul, guest · [05:08]It's an important question that, and how long is a piece of string? Because when your child comes to you for extra lessons, you need to decide how much remedial work you're going to do versus how much current work you're going to do. And remember, the school curriculum is going forward, and your child is now, say, a year behind, and you're now trying to catch up, yet the school is still moving forward. So you need to make sure that you're constantly striving to making that gap smaller and smaller.

Presenter, host · [05:33]Okay, but when you talk about these gaps, I mean, why are the gaps there in the first place?

Paul, guest · [05:39]The first experience that I have is that somebody didn't do their job in the past, and it can be anything from they've moved schools, they've changed teachers, teacher went on maternity leave. There's a traumatic event at home, and it hinders that learning process for the child. So what we now need to do is we need to go and fix it from that point forward.

Presenter, host · [05:59]Okay, so if your, if my child, for instance, has been coming to you because they're having a problem with maths, but you now realize that they've caught up nicely and in fact have gone ahead of what they should be doing in their grade, would it be advisable to keep them coming, or is it one of these things where you can step out of the program at a specific stage?

Vishani, guest · [06:17]I think maintenance is highly important. So, you know, even though you've reached your benchmark or your goals, you still need to maintain that. And as the years go on, learning never stops, and there's a build-on on those concepts that you've learned. So there's a definite need for maintaining that and moving forward. For example, with reading, you know, you may be twelve years old, and now you reach a reading age of twelve. That doesn't stop. You need to constantly expose yourself to more reading and maintain that mark or that goal.

Presenter, host · [07:23]Okay. Now, how would I know if my child needs extra lessons? We're not just talking about they come back with a bad report card. They may actually have the work, but just didn't feel like doing it.

Paul, guest · [07:33]There is always a case where, the boy's being lazy, the girl's being lazy. That, that happens all the time. However, in most cases, it's happened a few times. So when we get to see the child and the family, it's normally at the point where they've realized this child is no longer coping, and they want to intervene and help the best way forward.

Presenter, host · [07:52]Okay. So what are some of the things that you should watch out for to see if your child is actually having a problem?

Paul, guest · [07:58]The school assessment process and class tests and things like that are normally a very good sign for you already as a parent. And then the report card, and then obviously the school book itself. If you're looking at the school book and it's half empty and it's halfway through the year, does it match up with the other children? Does it match up with what you expect them to know at this grade? There is no reason for you to hold back on a decision to bring your child for an assessment if you know they need help. At the end of the day, if we come for an assessment and you're saying, okay, you're operating at the right age grade level, then we'll tell you that.

Vishani, guest · [08:32]To follow on from what Paul said, I would also think that another red flag would be their personality. So you would start noticing a drop in their confidence levels, their motivation towards learning, their feelings towards school and their teachers and their subjects. You would notice that as well.

Presenter, host · [08:49]So their confidence would go for a bit of a loop. And I mean, would a lot of that have something to do with maybe the parents saying, you're just lazy, you're not working hard enough at school, that's why your marks are dropping so low. I mean, these educational gaps does not mean that the child is stupid and or lazy, does it?

Vishani, guest · [09:05]No, we firmly believe that there's no such thing as a child being stupid. It's just the way in which they're learning, the way it needs to be taught, and I mean, anybody can be taught if they're taught in the right way.

Presenter, host · [09:16]I remember when I was a child, we had this whole thing that if you had to go for extra lessons, it just meant that there was something wrong with you. People used to look at you and go, oh, you're just not actually keeping up with anybody. Look at you, supplementary education lessons. You are a little bit silly. And there was a stigma attached to it. Do you still feel that is happening, or has it actually become a bit of a place of pride for people to say, I'm sending my child to an extra lesson? In fact, I find that happening more and more often.

Paul, guest · [09:43]Absolutely. I think in the past, the classes were small enough for a normal teacher to cope with, and they could do what they could. But our class sizes are getting so big, and the CAPS curriculum is so full of material that the teachers need to cover, it's almost impossible to cover the entire year's syllabus in that required days. So yes, stigma of coming to extra lessons is not really there anymore, probably like it used to be. However, at the end of the day, I think the child will walk out with the benefit, and two, three weeks down the extra classes line, you will see Result already in the personality changes.

Presenter, host · [10:19]I'm sure there are parents who are out there saying, oh, I've failed as a parent. I haven't managed to help my child. Now, most of us can't get our kids to listen to us anyway, so trying to actually help them with their work is not going to go very far. Is this one of the reasons why a parent should actually be looking at supplementary lessons?

Vishani, guest · [10:35]Yes, I think a parent should look at supplementary lessons because what happens is when a parent tries to take the role of a teacher, often becomes confusing for the child because there's different methodologies that you've taught, and that's why getting the experts to help might be the best option. As well as the way parents talk, it's a different mannerism, and there needs to be more positive encouragement from the parents. So I would suggest the best thing the parent can do is read with their child and let the core concepts of maths and English be taught by the professionals.

Presenter, host · [11:07]That sounds like the way to do it. Paul, you have something to add here?

Paul, guest · [11:11]So absolutely. I think the emotional bond between parent and child is very real, and you can't blur those lines. Even in my case with my own children, I take them to one of the teachers that I employ. They need to learn from someone else. As much as I know how to do it, it's irrelevant to them. They're going to learn it from someone that they have a different relationship with. That emotional bond just doesn't work. So your dad can be an engineer, but can he teach you the maths the way you need to know it for school?