School is Easy Tutoring

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Weekly posts on educational topics, how-to-teach tips, parenting advice, kids health and more. Subscribe to the newsletter (on the left or below on mobile) for education blog updates by School is Easy Tutoring.

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Labelling Students for Special Education in BC: Is it good or bad?

There are many opinions on this. Two things can happen. If a student isn’t identified to meet the eligibility criteria for special education they might be described by their teachers as a “behaviour problem, slow learner, unmotivated or just plain lazy”. They’ll remain in the general education and will most likely do poorly in school. The probability of dropping out will increase.

If  a student is identified as requiring special education the student will be categorized into a stream that hopefully the teachers will have knowledge and methods to assist the student to achieve. This classification alters the school experience and for this reason many educators criticize this process and claim that it does more harm than good to the student.

Let’s explore advantages and disadvantages of labelling.

Advantages of labelling

  1. Labels are required to get funding for special education from the BC ministry.
  2. Categories give educators a general idea about learning characteristics.
  3. If present categories were abolished then new descriptors would be made to take their place. Humans need “mental hooks” to figure out problem areas.
  4. Labelling will create more tolerance towards the minority of those who have a disability.
  5. Labelling creates specialized teaching methods, assessment and interventions for behaviour issues.

Disadvantages of labelling

  1. Once a child has been categorized this label will be forwarded to every new teacher. The label sticks.
  2. There is a stigma of being deficient.
  3. Labels shape teacher’s expectations. Studies demonstrate that what a teacher believes about student capability is directly related to student achievement.
  4. Labels can exaggerate a student’s actions in the eyes of a teacher. A teacher may over react to behaviour of a labelled child that would be tolerated in another child.
  5. Diagnostic labels are not always reliable. Sure they try to be accurate, but they can never be. Human beings are complex and unique.

Is it good or bad? Yes and No. Assigning a student a label for special education is a fateful step that should only be taken when all other options have proved unsuccessful.

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Tutoring ADHD children

A majority of the students who come to us for tutoring have some sort of label. ADHD is a common one. Approximately 3-5% of the school aged population suffers from ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) according to the Children’s Disabilities Information. ADHD affects the ability to concentrate and retain information. Some signs of ADHD include: careless mistakes, poor listening skills and a lack of attention to detail.

Here are some tips for tutoring ADHD students:

  1. Student should be in a calm environment that is free of distraction. It’s easy to do in a one on one tutoring session. In a classroom with 25-30 kids “calm” is harder to achieve. It’s best for an ADHD student to sit at the front of the class when at school. It’s also best to arrange seating for the ADHD child to be surrounded by calm children. Do not place 2 ADHD children side by side.
  2. When tutoring it is best to teach while doing an action such as building blocks or drawing on a piece of paper. It’s hard for ADHD students to sit still and focus.
  3. When teaching new concepts allow the student to respond orally. It is difficult for ADHD students to slow down to write when they readily know the answer.
  4. ADHD students like to know what will come next. Before you start the lesson give them a checklist of what will be learned that day.

Tutors working with ADHD students should keep a close relationship with the parents. Let the parent know what was covered and what the child is expected to cover between lessons.

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Academic Advantage gets new branding!

We have decided to create a new brand. Why? You might ask.

Our website domain is schooliseasy.com

Our phone number is 1-877-ITS-EASY

People often call up and say,  “Are you ‘School is Easy'”? We answer with, “We are Academic Advantage.” This seems to confuse people.  Since we are franchising we need to streamline and simplify the brand.

We will call ourselves ‘School is Easy Tutoring’.

This requires a new logo design. We started with 8 designs and we asked your opinion on all of them.

We’ve chosen our new logo. Thanks to all of you for completing our survey. We also received many comments. Wow! It’s truly amazing how many people can have completely different opinions, sometimes opposites of each other.

We deliberated over all comments and quickly realized that we cannot please everyone. We went with the majority. So here it is.

During this transition period we will continue under both names School is Easy and Academic Advantage for the next 6 months to a year.

This year marks the year of our 10 Year anniversary. It’s a perfect time to update our image.

We look forward to continuing to serve you with great care and attention.