High school can present many challenges for students, including social activities, new responsibilities, and covering new academic topics. Some activities students can choose for themselves and have a sense of control, like which clubs they’ll be a part of or electives they’ll take. But some things are out of the hands of students, like which core classes they’ll need to take each year in order to accumulate enough credits to graduate. There might be more flexibility as students get older, but it’s always a possibility that your child might take a class that challenges them in ways they aren’t prepared for. A high school math tutor can help them build confidence in complex topics and reach their academic goals.
The Bottom Line
- What to Know - and Ask - Before You Start Your Search - A solid place to start because we know the journey to finding the right match for your student can be a tough one.
- How Can I Find The Right High School Tutor? - You can ask for recommendations for tutors from people you know or work with a trusted company that only hires well-trained tutors.
- What Are The Types of High School Tutors Available? - There are high school tutors for any subject you can imagine, and some tutors can help students who need a more significant challenge in their studies.
- Online vs. In-Person Tutoring - Which Is Better for My Student? - Online tutoring is flexible and convenient, with recorded sessions for students to refer back to after each session, so online tutoring is a good choice for many families.
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What to Know - and Ask - Before You Start Your Search for a High School Math Tutor
High school students have a long list of things on their minds that may put their academics on the back burner. High schoolers may prioritize their friends, social programs, or activities, choosing the best college over developing good study habits and getting good grades. High school is a tough time for many who struggle to learn how to balance everything on their plates.
Even students who perform well academically can work when they take on too much, like sports or clubs. According to a study conducted by Yale, “75% of the students’ self-reported feelings related to school were negative.” A high school tutor can help high school students develop good study habits, including how to prioritize their studies. Many high school tutors could also have experience tutoring students in college. These tutors can give high school students insights into good habits for each learning style to make the most of their time in college when the time comes.
If your child flies from one activity to another or if they have lost interest in their courses, it might be time to talk with them about working with a high school tutor to develop their academic and study skills. College students need a sense of independence that elementary or middle school students don’t need. A high school tutor can help students, including high school juniors preparing for SATs, develop this independence so students will be better prepared for their time in college.
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Find the Perfect High School Math Tutor: Five Proven Methods
If you think a high school tutor is an excellent way to help your child reach their academic goals and prepare for the future, there are several ways for you to find the right high school tutor.
1. Teacher recommendations
Your child’s teacher likely has a good idea of your child’s academic performance, or at the very least, they have assignments with feedback and grades they can share with you. Teachers also generally have a good idea of ways to help students improve academically, so many teachers may be able to make tutoring recommendations for your child. High school teachers also usually teach subject-specific courses, so you will likely need to speak to a few teachers to get a good list of recommendations. Many high school students can improve their academic performance by working with an experienced tutor with well-rounded knowledge in a specific subject. There are tutors to help students in need of help with test prep, reading, writing, and math.
2. The school district website
You can also search your child’s school district website to find recommendations for high school math tutoring. Some teachers may offer to tutor, which could be advertised on the district website. Some larger school districts may also have partnerships with local tutoring services that they’ll share on their website. Each school district’s primary goal is to help every student achieve academic success, so they’ll likely share tools to help students reach this goal on their website or online. These recommendations may not be for a particular subject but for a company or service. While you won’t get a customized plan from the school district website, you may be able to find reliable companies that the school district trusts to help their students.
3. Family and friends
You can find many resources for high school tutoring services with one simple online search, which can make your search very overwhelming. Instead, consider checking in with family and friends who’ve tried tutoring services they like and ask them for their recommendations. Your family and friends may have knowledge of a tutoring center or virtual tutoring company that you haven’t heard of just yet that they trust and like. Your friends and family may also have experience with the type of tutoring you’re after. Some high school tutors help students prepare for college courses, college board test prep, or even subject tests in certain subjects. Whatever your needs are, your family and friends can provide trusted advice to help you find what you need.
4. A trusted online company
You could consider partnering with a trusted online company to help your child improve academically. Many virtual tutoring companies, like Learner, require experienced high school tutors to have a bachelor’s degree and tutoring experience. Some tutors have experience teaching math, writing, reading, or test prep. Because there are so many different subjects within math, math tutors likely have experience in certain math subjects, like pre-calculus, trigonometry, geometry, and more. Virtual high school tutors can help your child from the comfort of your home, and some companies record sessions so your child can refer back to the lesson when needed. Recorded sessions can be helpful for students when they’re studying for exams, working on homework, or brushing up on skills outside of real-time tutoring sessions. Many sites, like Learner, are transparent about customer satisfaction and openly share customer reviews, tutor credentials, and more on their websites.
5. Guidance counselors
Guidance counselors at your child’s school may also have tutoring recommendations that they can share with you. Many high school guidance counselors help students prepare for college, which can include improving their grades and developing great study habits before going to college. High school guidance counselors also know which high school courses students should take to be prepared for college so that they may have subject-specific tutor recommendations for you based on your child’s academic needs. While guidance counselors may not have in-depth intelligence about the subject areas your child needs help with, they can communicate with you or your child’s teacher to get a better idea of what type of tutor can best support your child. Whatever method you may use to find the best tutor for your child, you should know more about the different types of high school tutors available.
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What Are The Types of High School Math Tutors Available?
A few different types of high school tutors can help your child reach their academic goals on their road to college.
Group tutors
Some companies offer group tutoring sessions that are for more than one student at a time. Group tutoring is a good choice for students who are proficient in their academic skills and can use group tutoring for extra practice. Group sessions may not allow tutors to share specific feedback with each student, so it’s best for students who aren’t struggling in class.
Group sessions can be fun for students, but if the tutor can’t get control of the group, there can be a lot of wasted time in the session. Group tutoring works best with younger students to help build problem-solving and social skills.
One-on-one tutors
There is much supporting literature on the positive effects of smaller class sizes on academic outcomes. It’s no wonder why one-on-one tutoring yields highly successful results. These tutors can better support students who struggle with specific academic topics. One-on-one high school tutors can closely examine a student’s specific educational needs. These tutors can spend the time teaching students particular strategies regarding what they’re learning in class. Whether a student excels in the category and needs more challenging materials or struggles to grasp the concepts, a one-on-one tutor meets each of their students where they are to help develop their skills.
High school-age students can do very well with one-on-one tutors as these tutors can give specific insight into complex topics like high school math, SAT or ACT prep, or any other high school subject area.
Peer tutors
Peer tutors are usually students in high school who have completed the courses they’re tutoring students in. Many seniors can offer great insight on SAT prep and strategies for those just beginning their journey. Peer tutoring uses students as tutors, so peer tutors may not get paid but instead may volunteer to peer tutor. Peer tutoring may happen after school, before school, or during a student’s free or study hall period if it aligns with the tutor’s free period. Peer tutoring also happens on college campuses.
Many colleges have tutoring centers in libraries or student centers on campus. Sometimes, the cost of university peer tutors is included in the tuition price, depending on the individual college.
Virtual tutors
Virtual tutors help students without driving to a physical building. Virtual tutoring can benefit many students because students can work without other students, reducing distractions. Many tutoring companies have a system for parents and guardians to set up appointments to complete a video call for the student and their child’s tutor. Students working with virtual tutors also benefit from looking back at their recorded sessions. Students can use the recorded sessions to review for standardized exams, for homework, and just for extra review outside of real-time sessions.
Before/After school tutoring
Some teachers might offer before or after school tutoring for students needing extra help. This type of tutoring will be restricted to smaller blocks of time because the school building likely has a set opening time. This type of tutoring may have flexible scheduling because teachers may pick certain days for children to go in early or stay after school for extra help, but the actual time blocks will likely be rigid. Teachers probably can’t keep students from going to class in the morning, and many teachers may have planning time for the next school day after any after-school sessions.
Online vs. In-Person Math Tutoring: Which Is Better for My Student?
With the rise of remote work and remote school, many tutoring companies implement a virtual setting for their sessions. Depending on what qualifications you’re looking for in a tutor, this convenient option could be perfect for you, Some companies have done it well, and other companies have stuck to in-person tutoring. So you may find yourself wondering: Which is better for me? There are a few pros and cons to each in-person and virtual session. Virtual sessions allow tutors to work with children in their own homes, reducing any driving that high schoolers or parents need to do. Virtual sessions also enable tutors to record sessions for students to review between live lessons.
But when working with a virtual tutor, students may not be able to do any group sessions as they could in person. One-on-one sessions can be good because tutors can more easily group students together for group sessions. Group sessions help more minor students build social skills and problem-solving skills. One big downside to one-on-one sessions is that families are limited to tutors only in the area. Virtual sessions give families access to tutors from all over the country with varied educational backgrounds. Here are some examples.
Charly
Charly is a certified math tutor and often helps high schoolers prepare to apply for college. Charly specializes in assisting students in preparing for important college entrance exams like the SAT.
Dylan
Dylan is a certified math tutor who loves the subjects he teaches. Dylan is passionate about helping students succeed on their college entrance exams, and he loves keeping students motivated throughout their sessions.
Neda
Neda is a certified math tutor determined to understand why students struggle and how to best help them succeed. Neda works with many different age groups, but she has ten years of experience teaching high school students for their SATs.
Bright
Bright is an experienced tutor who graduated from the University of Georgia. Bright has a well-balanced approach to tutoring as he considers a child’s strengths, weaknesses, and current intelligence.
Caleb
Caleb has more than 25 years of experience. Caleb specializes in high school lessons and enjoys helping students build a strong foundation in mathematical concepts.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Finding the best tutor for you and your family can be difficult because there are many different options. Here are some frequently asked questions and answers to help you with your search.
What is high school math tutoring?
High school tutoring is specifically for students learning advanced topics commonly taught in high schools, like geometry, trigonometry, writing, and even SAT and ACT prep.
What qualifications are needed to be a math tutor?
Some companies have very minimal requirements, but Learner requires each tutor to have at least a 4-year university degree and experience, and many Learner tutors also have teaching experience.
What does tutoring cover?
Tutoring can cover many academic subjects, including reading, writing, many different types of math, and test prep for the SATs and ACTs.
Do you need a license to tutor?
Generally, there aren’t licensing or certification requirements for tutors. This will vary from company to company. Some companies accept volunteer tutors without credentials, and some only hire tutors with a four-year degree and experience.
How often do students meet with their tutor?
For many academic subjects, a weekly session is sufficient for most students. Some companies may vary in what they offer in terms of services and how often students should meet.
Is small group tutoring effective?
Small group tutoring can be effective, but many students may not get individualized feedback. Small group sessions will likely be better for younger clients to develop problem-solving and social skills and targeted skill-building.
What are the different types of tutoring?
There are many types of tutoring. These include group, one-on-one, virtual, before-school, after-school, and peer.
How is tutoring different from teaching?
Teaching is for whole group instruction and individual students or a small group of students.
