Shaheed Salim Tuition

  The CA1 is just over. When the results are out, some parents begin to panic. "My child needs a tutor!" "Where do I find the right tutor?" "My friends send their kids for tuition. Should I do the same?" The tuition industry is booming and it feeds on the fears and hopes of such parents. In reality, we can categorise students into 2 groups – those who need tuition and those who do not. Yet when we study the clientele in the tuition industry, we realise that sometimes those who need tuition do not get tutored, and those who do not need tuition are enrolled for many sessions with tutors. Common sense should guide how parents decide. What should clueless parents do? Simple – ask yourself sincerely whether your child needs help with his studies? If your child is scoring As, is tuition really necessary?  I remember a parent telling me, "My son scored almost full marks for Math last year." My uninhibited response was, "So why do you think he needs...

To meet the educational and academic needs of most students, school should suffice. Yet this is not the case in many Asian countries, and Singapore is no exception. Some parents insist that an A is not good enough and tuition is the logical means for their children to attain an A-star in the exams.   I have provided tuition services to students over the last 3 decades, and it is crystal clear to me that the students who truly need the services of tutors are those struggling academically. This is because tuition is equal to extra academic support. Why would students who are already getting an A grade need extra academic support beyond the guidance of school teachers? In 2018, I taught the above and below 8 students. 6 of them failed Math at P5. At the PSLE, they achieved 1 A-star, 2As and 5Cs. It was a spectacular year.  For 2021, I am focussing on Mathematics for students studying in Primary 4-6 and Secondary 1-2. In Singapore, these 5 levels of study can drastically affe...