The changing state of education in Ontario suggests, however, that some features of the distance learning revolution can be made to work, if the proper supports are in place. Specifically, it is not enough to simply move education online for distance learning to be effective, students need a variety of supplies, but far less than before remote learning becoming the norm.
At the same time, many online-education platforms have been quite successful, and the Ontario government's willingness to extend online-education options for the 2021-2022 school year suggest that online learning could be here to stay in Ontario in some form or another.
The Role of Tutoring in the 2021-2022 School Year
For many parents and students, being able to take advantage of home tutoring online has been a lifeline in the midst of the pandemic upheavals.
Because tutors provide the kind of one-on-one support that has been very difficult for teachers to provide in the context of zoom classes, home tutoring has been an asset to kids who need a little extra help mastering difficult subjects.
Tutoring is most effective when it follows the regular school curriculum and provides an opportunity for students to ask questions and engage in a more dialogic style of learning, and supplementing regular classes with weekly tutoring sessions can help students who are in danger of falling behind keep up with their classmates.
One of the biggest challenges in the coming school year will involve confronting the shortfall in learning objectives that was seen across the board in 2020-2021. Just as teachers needed to re-evaluate their teaching plans for the past three semesters, they will now need to adjust their upcoming classes to account for the fact that students did not learn as much last year as they might have done in more desirable circumstances.
But tutoring isn't just for students who are struggling; for students who are ahead of their class, fighting boredom can be a major challenge, and tutors can also play a vital role in giving gifted students an opportunity to push themselves academically.
Perhaps the most important thing we have learned over the past sixteen months is that things can change rapidly and if we want to be able to respond effectively, there needs to be a plan. We have learned a great deal about how distance learning works, and should build on those insights to make our system more resilient.
Tutoring is, for many families, an essential part of that. The personalized support and flexibility that tutoring offers can continue to provide help to students even if in-person learning returns this September, and parents who want to take advantage of the benefits of tutoring should get in touch with Prep Academy Tutors to learn more.
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