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Enjoy Our Tutoring and Mentoring Programmes. Here Are 15 Tips for New Parents & Scholars
At the start of each term, we take time to actively reconnect with our current and new scholars. We want our programme to be a positive and fulfilling experience for all our scholars and parents. Together with our mentors and tutors, we aim to provide the best support possible and also continuously improve. These tips will help you experience the full benefits of our programmes!
1. Visit Our Tutoring And Mentoring Programmes Page
As a start, you may want to visit our courses page on our website to find more information about the programmes that we currently offer. There, you will find all the information and details that you’ll need to make a decision and also know what to expect. Some of the great programmes that you will see are our tutoring and mentoring programmes. These programmes have proved to be beneficial to many of our scholars who’ve previously been part of them.
We have designed our programmes to meet different needs and help scholars achieve their individual goals. Because our scholars’ unique aspirations will determine which programme they choose, we have created programmes that include aspects that will help our scholars achieve success. We have, for example, programmes that offer both tutoring and leadership courses within the programme to help a scholar reach their academic and leadership goals. These programmes vary and are meant for you to choose one that suits your teen best according to their personal goals. You can read more about our courses here.
2. Have A Discussion With Your Child
When you have more information about the courses that we offer, you can discuss this with your child and try to establish which programmes will be best suited for their academic needs. By finding out which programme your child is most interested in, you will help them remain engaged throughout the term.
Sometimes, a parent is well-meaning and would like to enrol a child in a particular programme because of its known benefits. However, having a discussion with your teen may also help you realise the areas that they would also like to improve in personally.
A child may need a mentor who will guide and support them as they navigate key decisions in their lives. While another young person, aiming to reach their academic goals, may need a tutor who will help them understand a subject, know their learning style or learn study tips to help them excel in their studies. If you’re not completely certain about the areas your child needs assistance in or about the difference between our tutoring and mentoring programmes, we are here to help. You can reach out to us here, and we’ll help you identify the best programme for your child.
3. Share Your Child’s Goals With The Programme Manager
Communicating your child’s goals with the programme manager in the initial stages will help the manager match your child with the right tutor or mentor who will help them achieve their goals. During the application process, we aim to gather as much information as possible about your child so that they can be matched with the right tutor and mentor. We, however, can only work with the information provided to us by you as the parent. This is why it is important to fill out all the necessary information in the application form so that we will not only know your child’s goals, but we can also match your child with the most suitable tutor or mentor.
4. Arrange Sessions
Make sure to always arrange your child’s sessions directly with the tutor or mentor. Another great way to communicate throughout the programme is to set up a WhatsApp group and to have all the information and arrangements in one place. This way, your child will not have to make any arrangements on their own, and you will always be updated with changes or details throughout the term.
5. Stay Consistent
When you’re setting up sessions with the tutor or mentor, consider choosing the same day and time to keep it consistent. You may want to ensure that your child sticks to the planned schedule so that they will get into a good routine. This may also help your child reach their goals and ensure that you reap the maximum rewards during the term.
6. Only Cancel Or Reschedule Sessions When Absolutely Necessary
Always aim to stick to the planned schedule and remember that the tutor or mentor will try to be as flexible as possible, but won’t be under any obligation to make up for the postponed or skipped session. Try to do your best to avoid cancelling a session. Also, remember that communication between you and the tutor or mentor is very important to reschedule on time when necessary.
We are aware of unplanned events and unforeseen circumstances that are out of your control that can cause conflicting and clashing schedules. When this happens, please make sure to inform the tutor or mentor ahead of time, so you can reschedule the upcoming session for a different date. Please also let the tutor or mentor know a few days before your scheduled session.
7. Give Notice And Plan In Advance
Once you are officially in the programme, you will be able to book tutoring or mentoring sessions in advance. Before the programme starts, your assigned tutor or mentor will contact you within 48 hours. This will also give you a chance to see which dates and times will work best for you and your child. The times agreed upon will have to work for both your child and the tutor or mentor’s schedule.
8. Meet The Tutor Or Mentor
We recommend that you meet with the tutor or mentor for your first session using a safe online communication platform of your choice. Having a video call will be a good starting point and add value to your relationship. This will be important for your child as the primary goal for the tutor or mentor is to build a relationship with your child to encourage, help and achieve goals together. This is also a great time to discuss the online tools that will be used for the tutoring and mentoring sessions, the best way for the tutor or mentor to contact you, as well as some potential challenges in sessions that the tutor or mentor should be aware of moving forward. This leads to the next tip.
9. Be Available For Feedback Sessions With The Tutor Or Mentor
Once enrolled in the programme, your child will have access to tutoring or mentoring sessions. The tutoring or mentoring programmes also include feedback sessions that take place between the tutor and the parent. These sessions are meant to give progress on your child’s tuition or mentorship.
The sessions can happen at the beginning of the term to explore your child’s areas of improvement. These feedback sessions can also occur in the middle of the term, as well as at the end of the term, to mark progress. It is essential to take part in these sessions because they will help you note how your child should be implementing changes in their development.
10. Make Sure An Adult Is Present For All Sessions
Safeguarding is important, and so it is highly recommended that an adult be nearby during all the planned tutoring or mentoring sessions. You won’t have to be in the room during sessions, but you will need to be nearby when each session takes place.
11. Check Your Emails Regularly
The tutor or mentor will be sending information to you regarding progress reports. As we strive to keep an open line of communication, we recommend that you check your emails regularly and respond promptly to calls and messages from us or our tutors or mentors. We will keep you updated on any important information you will need. We will also contact you regarding any information we will require from you as part of the process of joining the programme, to help us meet your child’s goals more efficiently.
12. Try To Attend Enrichment And Skill-Building Days
Each term we have 2 to 3 enrichment days for our scholars, parents, tutors or mentors. We encourage all to attend the enrichment days, which provide the perfect opportunity for scholars, tutors or mentors to interact and build a relationship. Our enrichment days are all about building skills and encouraging young people to do their best. Attending an enrichment day will also give you a clear update and understanding of what is happening in the programme.
13. Look Out For Notifications For Workshops And Enrichment Days
To make sure that your child does not miss out on our skill-building days or workshops, have a lookout for notifications for these events. It is also important to be aware that the first preference for all enrichment days goes to children who are already taking part in our tutoring and mentoring programmes. However, if these tickets are not claimed within a certain amount of time, they are then released to the general public so other children can benefit from them.
14. Adhere To The Safeguarding Policy
We value and abide by our safeguarding and protection policy and expect all our parents, scholars and tutors or mentors to observe safeguarding rules. We therefore urge parents to make sure they know when their children are meeting their mentors or tutors by arranging all sessions on behalf of their children. Please don’t leave your child to arrange bookings with the tutor or mentor by themselves. Tutors and mentors have been trained to make all session bookings via the parent, so they will be expecting this.
15. Keep In Touch With Us
We would love to hear from you. Let us know if you have any questions or need further information about our programmes. Feel free to contact us at any time, as we have a fantastic team on standby, ready to assist and support you! You can register your interest here.
GT Scholars is a not-for-profit social enterprise and registered charity. We run after-school and weekend programmes that help young people achieve their academic and career aspirations. Our programmes include tutoring, mentoring and enrichment sessions for young people aged 11-18. Contact us if you would like to know more about any of our programmes and courses.
GT Scholars is an award-winning education company and social enterprise. We run high-impact tutoring, mentoring & enrichment programmes for young people aged 11-18. If you’d like to give your child the support, skills and strategies needed to achieve their academic and career aspirations, you're in the right place!
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