When parents take the time and effort to tutor their kids, it is seen as something many would do to support their children. It is essentially a positive thing that can easily turn negative. Here are some reasons why tutoring our own children isn’t always a good idea.
Familiarity
Children tend to be more “afraid” of teachers than parents when it comes to studying. They are usually more attentive, more eager to follow directions, and more aware of being at their best when it is someone else aside from the parent doing the teaching. This phenomenon is traced to the sense of familiarity between parent and child. While familiarity should be a good thing because it ensures that a child will be at ease, the lack of urgency in the absence of a person in authority about teaching is sometimes blamed for a child’s laxity.
Pressure
Parents will always like their children to do well in school. The pressure involved when a child seems to be unable to follow the lesson puts tremendous pressure on the part of the parent. The reason is obvious. This is not just any child. This is our child we are talking about. Failure on the part of the child will be difficult to separate from the feeling of failure on the parents’ side.
Lack of Sufficient Knowledge
Teaching school subjects to children is generally easy until the parent find herself walking on unfamiliar territory. It is not easy to teach something we do not know. Sometimes, it will be impossible thus the need for professional tutors, if and when it is found out that a child really needs it. The lessons of kids today are way too advanced when compared by parents during their time. Parents who insist on tutoring their own kids must exert extra effort to understand the lessons first before they can pass the understanding to their kids. Parents should take care not to add confusion to the lesson.
Different Interpretation
Older children may not be as open to parent tutoring like they were during their younger years. Some will interpret it as added pressure or interference. Tutoring sessions may just become precursors of battle of wills between parent and child because of different appreciation. When studying becomes an underlying cause for family conflicts, the more it would be difficult to encourage children to study.
Originally posted on January 7, 2014 @ 7:09 am
