The Covid-19 pandemic has definitely changed the education sector throughout the country. Schools were shut down temporarily and all lectures are now done online. Parents are concerned about the impacts these changes have, especially when it comes to their child’s preparedness for their national exams.

On April 3, Ministry of Education Minister Ong Ye Kung announced that all mid-year examinations will be cancelled to help students reduce their anxiety during this time. However, national exams will continue and will proceed on June 1 and 2.

The government will adjust the arrangement for the examinations to protect the students. Seating will be decentralised and follow distal distancing.

Status Quo For Important Year-End Exams

When it comes to the year-end exams like the Primary School Leaving Examinations, O-Level, A-level and N-Level, the ministry is still looking into the situation and adjusting the examinations accordingly.

If certain parts of the curriculum will not be fitted into the online setup, they will be removed from the exams. Marking will also be adjusted for these upcoming exams. 

The Ministry has agreed that the current setup is “far from ideal”, but all must make the best out of the available means currently in use to ensure education continues for students. Parents must use this opportunity to sit down with their children and teach them in the safety of their home without making these mistakes like the ones highlighted here.

However, parents may find it hard to teach their children, especially those from low-income or vulnerable families. Some may even be unfamiliar with the lectures because they did not study them during their younger days.

Fortunately, there are alternatives available to help your children that you can utilise and one of them are online tutors.

Online Tutors for Online Help

Online tutors act similarly to regular tutors but they conduct their lectures online. While they are available across Singapore, not everyone is signing up for it. 

Here are four major reasons why engaging an online tutor is crucial right now: 

A wider selection of tutors (not limited to location)

When you engage online tutors for your children, you are not limited when it comes to where these tutors will come from and how to reach out to them.

You only need an online connection and a computer, your children can easily get tutored by online tutors whenever they want to do their classes while at home.

Online tutors can be accessed through tutoring platforms like ours which you can search and they even have tutors from other parts of the globe specialising on the subjects your child needs to review on. They can even look into your child’s progress wherever they are on the globe. 

Aside from academic subjects, your children can also find online tutors who specialise in other subjects which they are interested with. From arts to culture, your child can find a tutor with us easily. 

Specialised and Individualised teaching

Online tutors can teach your children based on their current skillset and curriculum and adjust their lessons accordingly. If you can’t spend time with your children due to work and other commitments, online tutors can help out.

You simply tell the tutor what lessons your child is taking, sit down with your child and sort out the classes. Your child’s online tutor will also utilise various online platforms and materials which they can understand and learn from.

Even students about to take their national exams can benefit from online tutors and there are online tutors out there that specialise in helping students for these situations.

Of course, you will need to check if they are from Singapore so they know which items to review with your child. These tutors will test your children’s skills in understanding tricky questions and how to answer them within their time limits.

Our online tutors even use online exam papers that will mimic the situation of the real test so students can see their progress. 

Record your lesson

Did your child forget anything in their classes?

In traditional tutoring, your children can’t easily ask for a repeat, especially if they are not really confident to ask their tutors.

But, with online tutoring, your child simply has to replay the video of their session for the day to backtrack whatever it is they forgot. They can also record their sessions so they can review what they answered during these classes.

Recording tools are available for free and some tutors do offer it with their service.

Aside from recording the classes, some online tuition platforms do offer virtual whiteboards and additional resources so students can review their lessons whenever they wish.

Others also provide transcripts with every end of the course so students can print it to review. 

An improved attitude towards tuition

Our children may find it boring to keep studying and receive tuition while at home. It reduces their time to play and relax.

If students are pressured to do their studies a lot at home, it can cause children to resent their parents and resent having to study altogether.

But, if your children are not doing well at school, a tutor may be able to help out. 

With online tutoring, your children may find it easier to deal with studying their lessons than with face-to-face tutoring.

Some children may feel intimidated by traditional education, which may be the reason why they are not coping up easily. They may also find it hard to keep up with the material because it is not fitted to their learning style which is detailed in here.

With online learning, they can at least hide behind an online identity and there are lesser chances of being embarrassed when they make a mistake or do something wrong in their tests. Online tutoring can assist in making them confident since there are tools that match well with their learning style.

With this in mind, they will have a lesser inclination to resent further learning through this method.

Conclusion

Even if our children are now learning online to continue their studies or prepare for their incoming national exam, it doesn’t mean that they won’t have help from teachers who can guide them throughout this process. This type of online learning may just be the right kind of learning that will benefit your child. 

For more of the latest education news, check these out:

What Singapore can Learn from Other Countries in Managing COVID-19 Challenges in Education
Schools Step Up Precautions after Singapore Raises Wuhan Coronavirus COVID-19 Outbreak Alert to Orange