Why parents are turning to tutoring, and it is no longer just about better marks

For decades, tutoring was largely viewed as something parents turned to when their child was struggling at school. When a student fell behind in maths or English, their report card raised alarm bells and tutoring was brought in to help them catch up. Fortunately, that is no longer the whole story.

Across our Success Tutoring centres in Australia and New Zealand, we are seeing a significant shift in what parents want from tutoring and, more importantly, what they believe their children need to succeed. Academic improvement remains important, but parents are increasingly looking beyond marks.

They are asking for help developing confidence, communication skills, critical thinking, resilience and strong foundations in literacy and numeracy. They want their children to be comfortable asking questions, interacting with adults and other students, articulating their thoughts and approaching problems independently.

In many respects, tutoring is becoming as much about preparing children for life as it is preparing them for their next exam.

Parents are struggling to help at home

One of the most common things we hear is that parents simply do not feel equipped to teach their children themselves. This is not because they do not care, in fact, the opposite is usually true.

Many parents are deeply invested in their children's education but are juggling careers, businesses, household responsibilities and multiple children. Finding the time to sit down every week and provide structured academic support can be extremely difficult.

There is also another challenge in that the way maths and English are taught has changed considerably. Parents will often tell us they understand the answer but do not know how to explain the process in the way their child's school expects.

Rather than creating frustration at the kitchen table, many families are choosing to bring in someone who understands both the subject and how to engage the student.

Australia's changing population is changing education needs

Language is another important factor. We work with many families where English is not the primary language spoken at home. These parents can be incredibly ambitious for their children and highly committed to their education, but they may want additional support with reading, writing, comprehension and spoken communication.

For many families, education represents opportunity. They want their children to have every possible chance to succeed in Australia and are prepared to invest significant time, energy and resources into helping them develop the skills they will need. This is one reason tutoring needs to be understood as more than academic remediation. For some families, it is part of a much broader commitment to helping the next generation thrive.

Confidence is becoming as important as ability

One of the most interesting changes we have seen is the number of parents who approach us because their child lacks confidence. Their child may actually understand the work however, the problem is that they do not believe they can do it.

They may be reluctant to put their hand up in class, frightened of giving the wrong answer or uncomfortable telling a teacher they do not understand something. This matters because confidence and learning are closely intertwined.