Approximately 80% of Junior College (JC) pupils employ JC Tuition Centres or Home Tuition for one or more subjects. So why is the need for tuition at the junior college level so urgent?
It is common knowledge that the A-Levels Examination is the final and most difficult benchmark for JC students before entering university. With the course duration being only two years and the curriculum being significantly more rigorous than that of the O Levels, many students enter Junior Colleges only to be shocked by the abrupt increase in academic pressure, falling behind their classmates and struggling to keep up. On top of the academic stress, they must also manage the other aspects of Junior College, such as their CCA obligations, schoolwork, and extracurricular activities. To boost their grades and prepare for the A-Levels Examination, it is therefore inevitable that many JC students will seek out private tutoring.
JC Students have two primary tuition options: hiring a private tutor or enrolling in a tuition centre. This post will examine the benefits and drawbacks of both alternatives.
JC Tuition Centres
JC Tuition Centres are frequently established by reputable tutors, who may be Ex-MOE Teachers, NIE-Trained Tutors, or Full-Time Tutors with their own set of result-proven pedagogy. These instructors have extensive experience, and classes are frequently held in groups of 2 to 20 students from various institutions, with a predetermined structure and curriculum. In addition to the prepared curriculum, these institutions frequently offer their own original and well-curated notes and a compilation of the best features from each school’s notes. The aforementioned points summarise the benefits that a tutoring centre can offer students.
On the other hand, the programme’s well-organised structure permits little personal assistance flexibility. For instance, if a student has difficulty with a particular topic or concept, it is challenging for that student to consult the instructor in a group setting and receive individualised attention. Furthermore, inferior students may have difficulty keeping up with the class’s tempo and may struggle, rendering the instruction ineffective. Finally, joining a tuition class too late would mean that several topics/chapters have already been covered, leaving the student with little opportunity for revision or assistance on a previously covered topic.
JC Home Tutoring
JC Home Tuition is comprised of freelance home instructors in a variety of subject areas. Students and Parents can engage a Part-Time Tutor, a Full-Time Tutor, or an Ex/Current MOE Teacher, depending on their qualifications and budget. Home Tuition is frequently conducted in a 1-to-1 setting, allowing students to receive direct personal assistance with difficult topics/concepts. Lessons are also significantly more adaptable to the student’s pace, and instructors can provide targeted materials to help students strengthen their weak areas.
Consequently, hiring a JC Home Tutor provides a more adaptable and comprehensive approach to A-Level preparation. Important to note is that JC Home Tutors frequently reserve additional periods for students who may require last-minute assistance as the A-Level Examinations approach. This is because the impact of last-minute studying on a student’s performance on the final examination is often decisive. Unfortunately, tuition Centres cannot provide this flexibility due to the group nature of their classes and the absence of direct communication between educators and students outside of lessons.