Increasingly at our tuition centre we are receiving calls from parents whose children lack confidence at school. We are always confident that we can help these children!
Confident learners participate more, speak more, don’t necessarily make fewer mistakes, but feel confident they can learn effectively.
Confidence is not exactly linked to accuracy; it’s all about attitude, which helps students get their point across, no matter how many times they stumble or make mistakes.
It’s important for students to feel confident because if they don’t, they simply don’t learn as fast.
Students who lack confidence often complain or say things like, “I can’t do it”; “I don’t know how to do that”.
Lack of confidence could mean that a child never puts their hand up in English or maths, and consequently the teacher doesn’t get the chance to see the full potential that lies within the student. This may become a pattern which means the child may go almost unnoticed in a class of 25-30 or more.
If you feel your child’s confidence needs a good boost, here are some ways to turbo charge it:
- Don’t correct them too much
It’s important to correct students’ mistakes but when students make too many mistakes, and you make it abundantly clear that that’s what they’re doing, their confidence starts to suffer.
- Offer praise
The other problem with corrections is that sometimes all we do is tell them what they did wrong and forget to tell them what they did great.
- Teach in context
We should always try to teach in context because it gives students a background to lean on
- Give them chances to succeed
- Make all learning goal-oriented
I can’t emphasise enough the importance of goal-oriented learning. If you set clear goals with your child at the start of the school year and even at the start of each day, they’ll have a better sense of what they’ve accomplished
- Instill habits and use repetition from Day 1
Confidence at English and maths, important school subjects, tends to go hand in hand with confidence at school in general. By helping pupils improve their performance and attainment, our experienced and qualified teachers know that a child will benefit far more from the whole classroom experience.
At Kip McGrath we structure the work so that our students experience success. This makes them happy and they work to achieve more of the same. Being successful can help a shy child to come out of their shell.
Teachers always tend to notice when this happens. It may also result in a much more positive Parent – Teacher evening!
If you feel your child needs more support with their learning, Kip McGrath Professional Tutoring can help. Call us on 01 490 8780 to discuss how we can help. Or see www.dublintutoring.ie
Sarah Davies BSc, MSc, PGCE Secondary, MSc Educational Leadership, PGDip Speech & Language Difficulties
