7 Useful Skills You Can Develop Through Volunteer Mentoring

Volunteer mentoring is a rewarding role that offers the opportunity to really make a tangible and effective difference in the lives of young people. Volunteer mentors receive a real sense of purpose and many other emotional paybacks from their work.

Together with these rewards, volunteer mentors also learn valuable new skills and experiences that they can apply to their career or personal life. Here a 7 useful skills that you can gain from volunteer mentoring.

Emotional Intelligence
Emotional intelligence is defined as the capacity and ability to be aware of, control, and express one’s emotions effectively. Emotional intelligence affects all areas of your life, especially with regards to handling interpersonal relationships and displaying empathy. As a mentor, you have to listen to your mentee and empathise with their situation. You have to put yourself in their shoes so that you can understand what they are going through and relate it to yourself. You will then have to communicate your understanding in an effective way so that they feel like their feelings are being acknowledged and appreciated. These interactions will build up your emotional intelligence and help you to handle all interpersonal relationships well. In a work environment, this skill will be especially useful when working in a team or with your colleagues in general. It will help you to lead team discussions, resolve and avoid conflicts, and ensure that everyone is cooperating and working together effectively.

Leadership and Management Skills
As a mentor, you are put in a position of authority and you are looked upon as a role model and a source of guidance. Though this may seem daunting, being a role model teaches you important leadership and management lessons such as responsibility, effective communication, time management, and accountability. It is your responsibility as a mentor to ensure that mentoring sessions take place on schedule, that discussions are productive, and that desired outcomes are reached. It is also your responsibility to motivate your mentee and ensure that they feel supported. These skills will help you manage your work tasks well which will show employers that you are responsible enough to take on leadership roles.

Adaptability
As a mentor, you will usually work with a different mentee every term or year. This will expose you to a wide range of various young people with different personalities, talents, and aspirations. They will also be from different backgrounds and face different challenges in their everyday life. Through this, you will learn how to adapt your mentoring sessions to the young person specifically. This will build your adaptability skills which will make you more versatile and make it easier for you to work under change or pressure, which is something valued by employers. This exposure to different people will also build interpersonal skills and that will help you to relate to different types of people. This is valuable in the workplace as you will be interacting with many different people from various departments and companies, and also from various cultures and nationalities.

Self-Reflection and Self-Evaluation
Volunteer mentoring and listening to a young person’s thoughts and feelings will put you in a position to reflect on your own life. You will use your own life and the decisions you made to mentor the young person, setting examples of good and bad responses, reactions, and decisions. Reflecting on yourself allows you to become more self-aware and better at making future decisions. It allows you to pause and evaluate yourself to make sure that you are doing the right thing, and it makes you more aware of the consequences of your actions so that you will now know how to prevent negative outcomes. For example, if you know that a certain habit or behaviour has negative effects on your colleagues or friends, then you will learn to work on changing this habit or behaviour. Self-evaluation is an important part of personal development and it will have positive effects on various aspects of your life.

Resilience
Resilience is about keeping a positive attitude in the face of adversity, and it is often related to self-confidence and self-belief. It is one of the main skills you will teach a young person as a volunteer mentor. It is an important skill that will help them to face current and future challenges, keep a clear mind when dealing with adversity, and to never give up. As a volunteer mentor, you will set a good example by building up your own resilience and believing in yourself. This will greatly increase your confidence which will improve the way you work and interact with people.

Developing a Personal Brand
As a volunteer mentor, you will be delivering a consistent message to young people that you have developed from your own life, your past decisions, and your experiences. This consistent message will become a personal brand that will be easily identifiable to your mentee. A personal brand will show others that you are someone who has specific skills and talents. It will make you stand out to employers and colleagues and it will make you more confident in yourself and more charismatic. Developing a personal brand is also helpful to entrepreneurs as it will help develop your business identity and to network with other businesses and entrepreneurs.

Problem Solving
During mentoring sessions, your mentee will usually approach you with a problem or situation that they are facing or not sure how to deal with. They will come to you for encouragement but more importantly for advice and effective solutions. This builds up your problem-solving skills. It will teach you how to look at a problem with objectivity, to find a solution for the problem, and to find a way to prevent the problem from happening again. This skill is something that you will definitely need for any workplace in any career. Even if your work is straightforward and easy, you will eventually face challenges in some way or form that you will need to solve. If you have good problem-solving skills, you will be able to show employers that you can solve a range of challenges, and you will also show them that you can solve challenges without their help. This independence will show them that you are capable and efficient.

This is by no means an exhaustive list of the skills that you can gain from volunteering as a mentor. You will find even more useful skills and tools that you can apply to both your career and personal life.

If you would like to help a young person between the ages of 14 and 18 to achieve their career or personal aspirations, then contact us to find out how you can join our after-school mentoring programme. Our mentoring programme welcomes volunteer mentors from various career fields and backgrounds. Visit our website to find out more.

How you can make a difference as an Events Team Volunteer and help us at our events, workshops and courses!

by Marilyn Other Volunteer Roles Volunteers

About GT Scholars
The GT Scholar’s programme is a social enterprise that consists of two programmes: The Academic Programme which offers online one-to-one tutoring and the Awards Programme that focuses on mentoring.

As part of both programmes, we also offer free access to our enrichment and skill building events that are hosted throughout London. These events are designed for young people aged 11-18 years of age and include activities such as STEM activity days, study skill workshops and career days and trips to the city. We also run parent workshops and community engagement events to ensure that parents are aware of the academic and career opportunities available to their children.

What makes us different?
There are a range of charitable organisations and social enterprises offering programmes to improve the life chances of young people. However, The GT Scholars programme has the capacity to work with all state school pupils, not just those on Free School Meals. This means that pupil parents do not have to be on benefits and pupils do not need to be referred by their school in order to qualify for support.

What does volunteering at an event involve?
Volunteers who are interested in getting involved and supporting us at our events can help assist with various tasks and responsibilities.

You will need to arrive on time. If an event starts at 10:00am you will need to be there by 9:30am to meet the team and gain an overview of the event with the event coordinator.
You will help with setting up and clearing up at events.
You will assist to coordinate a smooth arrival and registration as well as departure for attendees and other guests. This can also include maintaining the register and managing any late attendees.
Assist with the coordination of lunch or refreshments for attendees.
Support workshop facilitators with managing groups of young people or parents.
Help with the distribution of stationary and workshop material.
Assist the event coordinator with ensuring the health and safety of attendees and overall risk management at events.
Give feedback to the event coordinators and programme managers at the end of each event.

When and where do our events take place?
Our events take place throughout various parts of London. Our events mostly take place on Saturdays from 10am to 4pm and we often have some events on weekday evenings, like our volunteer meetups, which takes place from 6pm to 9pm.

How much time do Event Team Volunteers commit to?
This is a flexible volunteering role. You will be volunteering as part of the Events Team and you’ll need to be available for approximately 6 events per year. All of our events take place on the weekend or weekday evenings and range from 2 to 8 hours in length.

To get started you’ll need to:
Be passionate and committed to tackling educational inequality

Be able to support at events as part of a diverse Events Team
Enjoy working with children and young people
Be able to remain calm under pressure
Be punctual and organised
Possess strong communication skills
Have excellent time management skills
Be able to work well as part of a team

Other important information for this role:
Please note that this is a volunteering role where you will be interacting with young people, therefore the following information must be noted:

Enhanced DBS check – Before you can join the Events Team you will need to have a valid Enhanced DBS check that is dated within the last three years. If you do not have one we can process one for you. Please contact our office for further information on this.
Pictures – Please refrain from taking any pictures on the day, especially of the young people this forms part of our data and security policy. The volunteer photographer/videographer at the event will be responsible for capturing the day.
GDPR – To ensure we comply with the latest GDPR rules all data must be treated as confidential and must be returned to the events coordinator at the end of the event. Especially documents such as the attendance register.
Training – You will be provided with support and training for your role and will be briefed with any additional information on the day of the event.
Travel expenses -Any travel expenses within London will be reimbursed up to the amount of £12 for any session.

How to apply: Please attach your CV and a short cover letter through our contact form.

Think you don’t need maths tutoring? Think again!

by GT Scholars Growth mindset Post 16 Private tutoring University What's new? Young people

Imagine for a moment that you are sitting in a restaurant. A waiter walks over to your table to take your order, “One double cheeseburger, a medium chips and a regular coke, please”, the waiter jots down the order and reads it back to you, you nod, satisfied and he walks off. As you sit there waiting for your food, the restaurant starts to fill up, a family of four take the table to your left. A young couple is guided to a table directly in front of you. There is a group of ladies; celebrating a bachelorette party, fourteen in total guided to a collection of tables lined up in the centre of the room.

More people come and a few leave as you sit there an hour later and still no food. You notice that the young couple, sitting opposite from you, is staring lovingly into each other’s eyes over two orders of delicious looking ribs and mashed potatoes. You look at the table with the bachelorette and her posse, where one of the ladies is making a toast as the others enjoy an array of starters.

You look to the family of four, study their frowns, their “plateless” table and think to yourself at least you are not alone; they too, are victims of this appalling service. At least that is until your waiter arrives at their table, their orders on a tray. Fuming now, you wait until they are served and then call your waiter over to your table. “What in the world is going on, where is my food?” you demand. The waiter looks at you as if you are crazy, absolutely bonkers, “What are you talking about sir, the chef is starting on your order as we speak?”

“Starting, he is only starting!” You shout, shocked by the complete disregard for you, the casual dismissiveness of your waiter’s answer and the outright injustice of it all. “I’ve been here for over an hour, most of the people you have served came after me, I was first and yet they get their food before me…” “So what?” your waiter says, cutting you off mid-sentence. Of course, you can’t believe what he just said; you are at a loss for words. Your waiter looks toward three of his colleagues approaching, trays overloaded with soft drinks, ten double cheeseburgers and eighteen medium packets of chips

Your waiter smiles, “Here comes your order sir,” he tells you. “This is not my order,” you say as the three waiters carrying the trays begin to offload on your table. “What do you mean sir?” Your waiter seems genuinely surprised, “Did you not order, double cheeseburgers, medium chips and cokes.” “I ordered one double cheeseburger, one medium chips and one regular coke, not this mess.” You are yelling now, beyond boiling point. “But sir, what difference does it make, whether we serve you first or last, two cheeseburgers or ten?” Your waiter asks sincerely, “Are you not the one who said, you do not need math?” You just sit there, unable to speak. “Oh yes, and this meal will cost you two hundred and thirty-seven thousand pounds. Now is that going to be cash or card?”

Ok, I admit that this is a bit extreme, or is it? Shakuntala Devi once wrote: “Without mathematics, there’s nothing you can do. Everything around you is mathematics. Everything around you is numbers.”

I want you to ask yourself, what do you want for your future? Do you hope to own a house someday, own a car? Well, those come with payments like taxes, mortgage, and insurance and you will need math to calculate those or risk paying too much, two hundred and thirty-seven thousand pounds for a cheeseburger as an example.

How about your career of choice? Math is needed for almost every single profession in the world. If you want to be a biologist, archaeologist, an attorney or work as a cashier at Tesco, it is without a doubt that numbers will be part and parcel of the job. Basically, you will never be able to live without math so accept it and try to make learning math fun.

A friend once told me, “I want to be a photographer, what do I need to know about calculus or trigonometry?” Well, that is quite simple actually, a photographer will need to calculate the depth of field, determine the correct film speed, shutter speed, aperture, and exposure, and so much more.

Do you like playing video games, Playstation, Xbox, Wii, and others? Do you have a few killer ideas that you just know will make great games? If so, guess what? Math is a necessity. Aspiring video game programmers will need to study trigonometry, physics, and calculus.

As a boy, I had dreams of becoming an astronaut, “to go where no man has gone before.” If that’s you, then consider this, astronauts use maths in order to make precise mathematical calculations, from how the spacecraft leaves Earth’s atmosphere to how the astronauts pilot the craft. So no math, no Captain Kirk.

Math is a necessity and when considering the uses and benefits thereof there are a number of reasons to learn math:

Develop your “lifelong learning” skills: Asking others for help, looking stuff up, learning to deeply focus on tasks, being organized, etc.
Develop your work ethic: Not making excuses, not blaming others, not being lazy, being on time, not giving up so easily, etc. This is more important for “success” than raw IQ. There is no shortcut.
Get better at learning complicated things. You are less afraid of complex ideas and classes.
Develop pride & confidence in your ability to understand complicated things. This is not fake self-esteem, but one that is earned.
Certain careers in science, health, technology, and engineering require serious Math skills.

Studies suggest that intelligent & motivated people are generally more interesting and happier. Your frontal lobe is not done developing until the age of 25-27. The more things you can learn before reaching that age, the more things you can learn over your lifetime. A survey concluded that 20% to 40% of college freshmen take remedial courses. Do you want to retake high school courses in college, or do you want to take real college classes?

If you need assistance with Maths or English, sign up for GT Scholars flagship programme, GT Scholars Academic Programme. This programme not only has tutoring in Maths or English, but also provides skill-building, enrichment and mentoring. Keep a lookout for our enrichment days and our skill-building workshops by signing up to our newsletter.

Could a fixed mindset be preventing your child from learning?

by GT Scholars Growth mindset Parents Private tutoring What's new?

Parents have a direct impact on their child’s mindset, and the same can be said of a carer or teacher, even they can potentially influence a child’s mindset. Children observe their parents’ actions and language and use that to set the bar on what is expected of them. You can manifest a growth mindset in your child by being aware of your daily interactions. Always be aware of how you praise them. Talk to them about how the brain works and how it learns. It is also important to teach them how to deal with failure and transforming mistakes into learning opportunities.

Mental and emotional development
A study investigated the influence a parent’s emotional investment had on a child’s emotional susceptivity and competence. The results concluded that the parent’s emotional involvement does affect the emotional competence and regulation of a child. Much has been said of the relationship between a child and their parent, but a child’s learning capacity does not solely rest with their parents. Teachers, guardians, role models, and even coaches may play a huge role in a child’s learning potential and their ability to fulfil it.

Failure mindset
One of the basic mindsets that may pass on and influence children, is their view of failure, or “failure mindset”. Mindset scholar Carol Dweck and Kyla Haimovitz did a study on ‘’failure mindset and found that a parent who viewed failure as debilitating, was concerned about their child’s abilities. Therefore they focused on whether or not they were successful instead of helping them to learn from their failure. As a parent, your belief about failure can also predict your child’s mindset regarding intelligence. A parent’s perspective on failure has huge implications on how they perceive failures. Difficulties that their children may face and these behavioural differences may affect their children’s view on intelligence and ability. Encouraging parents to adopt a failure is enhancing perceptive, could make a big difference to their children, allowing them to develop a growth mindset about intelligence.

Become more invested
There’s no doubt that one of the most prevalent learning tools available to a child or young person is their parents, guardian or teacher. Without knowing they pass multiple actions and reactions, emotions and mindsets. To ensure that the right attributes and mindsets are passed on to our child we can make an active decision to be more invested. Make time to truly invest emotionally in your child and their development. One effective way to do this is to join a group that share the same focus, as it can remove some of the isolation that may come with the journey of being a parent. It can also help to keep you more involved in your child’s life. Sharing experiences and solutions may also offer a new perspective on the development of a child.

Be an example
Children normally look at their parents and use them as an example on how to act and react to situations, especially on an emotional level. An emotion that can easily be passed on to your child is a positive attitude. This does certainly not mean ignoring the negative, but rather choosing to focus on the possibility of a positive outcome. Someone who is a positive thinker acknowledges a situation and approaches it productively. Positive thinking stems from a neutral situation such as starting a new job, a new school, meeting a new teacher or making new friends, in which the positive thinker chooses to focus on the positive aspect of the situation and aims to make more of it. The best way to foster positive thinking onto your child is to be a role model. The more optimistic a parent is, the better a child can understand the principle and implement it into their own life. Be expressive about it. When in a neutral situation such as the changing to a new school, engage with your child, ask what there is to look forward to? If they reflect a negative attitude, help them re-align it, with aid and advice. Reassure them that the worry they feel is only going to worsen things and that they should rather be open-minded and embrace the change and see it as an adventure with new opportunities and a chance to make new friends. By taking on this approach you will aid them in forming a positive attitude from the situation.

Acknowledge negative situations
Having a positive attitude does not make you oblivious to the negative. Acknowledge the downside but emphasize how dwelling on the negative points will not help the situation. If your child has a broken arm you must show empathy and acknowledge the pain with reassuring statements like “I know your arm is in pain and it’s making you feel upset” but always remember to also offer an alternative to negative attitude as well. You can suggest that you can draw some awesome pictures on his cast and get his friends to do the same. The earlier you teach your child the principle of positive thinking, the more equipped they can become in applying it when they are faced with a negative situation and they are on their own.
Remember that although parents do play a vital part in the development of a child, they are not the single variable that may dictate a child’s learning potential. The environment, peers and teachers contribute almost just as much. The building blocks, however, does start at home and parents can definitely provide a solid foundation that can form the basis of a child’s mindset.

Programs such as the GT scholars programme offers an enriched environment, promoting growth and learning, with high impact courses, workshops and programmes are designed to give young people aged 11-16 the strategies and skills they need to achieve their aspirations. If you would like to keep up to date with the latest enrichment activities and workshops in and around London, sign up to our newsletter.

Young People and Entrepreneurship

by Marilyn Entrepreneurship Parents What's new?

The importance of entrepreneurship in the economy cannot be stressed enough. It also goes hand in hand with innovation, which will be non-existent if not for entrepreneurship. The benefit of having a generation that stands for the alleviation of bigotry, oppression and inequality, comes with the responsibility of being more accommodating and progressive as a society. This means that as a society we should be mentoring young people and informing them of all the available study and career options, so they can make an informed decision. Living in a world driven by technology, young people can access information on demand and reach a huge audience if they had the need to. Entrepreneurship is a viable career option for young people to consider.

Entrepreneurship Boosts the Local Economy
Economic development is powered by entrepreneurship. A weak economy can be improved by encouraging entrepreneurship. It is also a great aid to lower the unemployment rate and allows income to be circulated within communities, in turn, empowering those communities. It has a positive effect on the development of communities and changes the social structure of a community. A stronger economy will enable more people to become homeowners, improve the quality education young people receive. The overall quality of living standards will also improve. Furthermore, entrepreneurship can provide services and products that were not accessible in the past, creating wealth for the community as well as themselves.

Teaching entrepreneurial skills to young people
Entrepreneurship as a subject is the perfect balance between problem solving, creative thinking and business studies. The world is in need of graduates who are open-minded in approaching problems and who can come up with innovative solutions. Most importantly they must be able to take charge when it comes to putting their ideas into action. Most schools focus on traditional career choices when informing children of the various options. Entrepreneurship should in fact also be seen as a popular career choice, just like being a doctor, lawyer, teachers and architects.

Nurturing entrepreneurial traits
Great problem-solving skills is one trait that no entrepreneur can go without. Teaching young people entrepreneurship will develop their problem-solving skills. They learn to identify problems, discussing it and then try to come up with solutions. They learn to consider whether their solution will be viable by weighing up the pros and cons of the situation, but most importantly it teaches young people to make decisions and be proactive about them. You can develop your child’s problem-solving skills by creating mock examples of typical client vs supplier problems and discussing possible solutions and consequences.

Determination
Another must have entrepreneurial trait is determination. This is one of the key factors that make an entrepreneur successful. More often than not, entrepreneurs are faced with a lot of setbacks. Success comes from not giving up hope when setback after setback is experienced. Young people will learn that hard work will eventually pay off and it will also teach them not to take the easy way out when they find something difficult, but rather persevere and put in extra effort to be successful. A great way to help your child be more determined is to set challenging but reachable goals and act as a mentor that encourages them to reach their goals.

Managerial skills are important
Allow your child to become involved in organising fun days and events within the community. This will create an opportunity to work alongside group leaders, be present at team meetings and gain valuable managerial skills. By becoming involved in such an event, young people can also learn how to manage responsibility and possibly delegate. Most importantly assisting at events will give young people perspective on their strengths and also their weaknesses helping them to identify the areas they can improve on. It will also introduce the idea of making an income by the means of sales.

Money Smart
Being smart about your finances is another important entrepreneurial trait that can be taught to young people. It would be ideal if every learner can learn how to manage money. Learning basic accounting and bookkeeping skills is beneficial for learners because it can be beneficial to them not only in their future entrepreneurial endeavours but they can also manage their own personal finances better. Apart from accounting in school, young people can be motivated to save part of their allowance. Assist your child in creating a budget that makes provision for saving. A challenge to double his savings can also be introduced, for example, buying stock and selling it at a profit.

The importance of good language use
Many entrepreneurs have mastered the art of good language use. How a potential sale is approached and handled can either make or break the deal. The way we address a certain problem or deal with a difficult customer can influence your business reputation in a positive or negative way. It is not only important to be aware of what we say to people but also how we say it. Teaching young people to communicate with people who are different in age and cultural backgrounds will help learners be more effective in their communities and may contribute to career and business success in the future. This skill is also important for assertiveness and being an effective leader.

To be an entrepreneur one must also be a leader. You can motivate and inspire your child to become a good leader by being a role model. There are also various fun team activities that young people can participate in. This will also teach them the value of teamwork and give them the opportunity to rise as a leader and deal with possible conflict that might arise.

The GT Scholars Programme is a not-for-profit social enterprise that tackles educational inequality and improves social mobility by helping young people aged 11-16 gain access to the most selective universities and the most competitive careers. Our tutoring, mentoring and enrichment programme is designed to give young people the support, skills and strategies they need to achieve their ambitions. Sign up to our newsletter to stay up to date with events and oppertunities specially focused on young people.

7 Ways you or a Maths tutor can boost your child’s skills in Mathematics

by Marilyn Parents Young people

Mathematics is one skill you cannot go without in life. It is the basis of all things and it forms part of our everyday lives. From buying a bus ticket, scheduling appointments, telling the time or driving from one city to another, all these actions, and then some, require maths. The better we become in maths, the more we can achieve. According to the Math Worksheets Centre, almost every good position in the business world requires some form of maths.

It is very easy for a child to develop a phobia for maths. This could be due to a number of facts. Maybe it is because maths, in general, is regarded as a difficult subject and the child has made the assumption that this is true. Therefore they do not engage in a growth mindset when they think of maths. It could also be due to a teacher’s attitude towards the subject and how they present it. Whatever the reason may be, the general viewpoint of how your child looks at maths can be morphed into a positive one. Let’s look at 7 ways you can boost your child’s skills in mathematics:

Understanding the Basics: Maths is learned by following a learning order. All functions and concepts of maths are related to each other and in order to understand the more complex concepts, a good understanding of the basic concepts is important. Maths is like one big puzzle and all the pieces fits in together in the end. Parents can help their child feel more confident in the basics of addition, subtraction, division and multiplication. This will prepare them for the next advanced levels of maths. Confidence is key!
Ask for help: Children should always be rest assured that it is okay to ask for help and they should be encouraged to seek help when they feel that they have reached a dead end. Sometimes students get frustrated by a math problem and this can make them feel despondent, but perhaps if they had access to a tutor who could help and give that extra bit of guidance, it could make a world of difference. Sometimes a child only needs a bit of extra attention and explanation on a certain topic. Knowing they have a tutor on hand will make them more eager to communicate as to which areas they are having difficulties with. GT scholars have maths tutors to assist your child in maths as well as any other subject that he might need guidance on. Try to recognise when your child is getting frustrated and reach out in either acting as a tutor yourself or if time is of the essence an actual tutor will be the best option.
Practice, Practice, Practice!: ‘’Practice makes Perfect’’. Maths is seen by many as a language on its own and just like learning a new language, practice is an important factor in being successful in maths. Set time aside to practice mathematical skills with your child. For some students learning maths can be a slow-moving experience, teach them to embrace the ‘’A-Ha!’’ moments as this will ignite enthusiasm and energy for learning maths.
Find gadgets and games that encourage Mathematical thinking: It has been proven that learning mathematics can be more effective if games and activities are used as learning aids. Math puzzles, riddles and even math inspired cellphone apps are a great way to make learning maths fun. Use these methods to improve and help them relate maths to real life situation. Simple games like Uno, Chess or Checkers serve to highlight mathematical concepts. The possibilities are endless and you can use things that are easily accessible like a home calendar, a wall clock, measuring cups and even a ruler. These are all mathematical tools. Incorporating the fun factor into your child’s maths learning experience cultivates a growth mindset and boosts their development of a clear concept of mathematics.
Maths in real life: Make them aware of the relevance of maths in everyday life. Challenge them to recognise and solve real-life maths problems while you’re out together. Allow them to sum up the total cost of items while out shopping, calculate change or even how many of a particular item will be needed to last through the month. Your child will show more interest in mastering mathematical concepts if they realise the value thereof.
Learn the vocabulary of mathematics: Learning the vocabulary of maths is the doorway to understanding more advanced concepts and getting used to mathematics in general. It is always a good idea to check if they know the definition of new terms. If your child cannot define the terms, help them by using examples and make them solve simple problems to demonstrate how the term is used.
Guide them on how to tackle their math homework: The goal of math homework is to reinforce the skills learned in class. Get them into a habit of studying the textbook and worksheet examples first before starting on the assignment. Redo some examples first, making sure that they understand the lesson, before starting the assignment.

As a parent, strive to make your child realise the beauty of maths and how to embrace it. We need to make them understand that the better one’s abilities are in maths, the more successful one can be. On top of it all, mathematics also offers rational thinking habits to make life easier. Our children should learn to use maths as a helpful tool in daily activities and problems.

It is always a great idea to engage with initiatives such as GT Scholars as a method to utilise resources to enhance your child’s academic career. GT Scholars is an accelerated learning programme aimed at achieving academic success. Our tutors and mentors are professional and well informed in their respective study fields, and can provide the perfect assistance to your child’s academic needs. If you would like to ensure that your child is set up for academic success, you should contact us for more information. We offer private tuition in Maths, Science and English as well as a Mentorship programme. Register your interest here or give us a call on 020 881 68066.

We need private tutors to teach children that failure is a part of learning

by Marilyn Growth mindset What's new?

Firstly, let’s understand this: to learn we must fail. Yes, that’s right. Failure provides us with opportunities to learn and an opportunity to reflect. Like Thomas Edison once said: “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that it won’t work.” Every attempt is a lesson to learn.

Many of us are constantly held back by the fear of failure. But how do we ensure that our children adapt the mindset of, “you won’t succeed unless you try’’? How do we ensure that they experience true freedom through embracing failure?

First and foremost you need to show empathy. We need to empathise with our child when we see that they are in distress. If you only say things like “It is okay, you will do better next time”, it can make your child feel as if their feelings of frustration and disappointment are being brushed off. This can escalate the feeling of distress they are already feeling. Rather try and level with your child. Try saying “I can see that you are really disappointed by this and I know you are really hoping to do better.”

Explain to them that failure is inevitable and happens to everyone. Tell your child about a time when you failed and how you dealt with it but most importantly remember to tell them what you learned from your failure and how you came out better on the other side of it. Make your child understand that things do not always go according to plan and if they don’t, that it is 100% okay.

See your child’s failures as an opportunity to teach acceptance and an opportunity to develop their problem solving skills. It is a great idea to spend time with your child and try to come up with an action plan together on what to do to have a better chance at success next time around. Try exploring areas such as different teaching techniques or perhaps entertaining the idea of making use of a tutor. According to Dr Mintzer, a clinical psychologist at the Child Mind Institute, it is a balance of acceptance and change and about accepting that the situation is what it is and building frustration tolerance while at the same time asking if you can change something in the future or how to learn from it.

Children need to be taught that when we do fail, we cannot do much about it in the heat of the moment, sometimes we need to accept the outcome and move on. Many of us are constantly held back by the fear of failure. The unseen hazards of social media are often overlooked, for example, if a girl’s friend tells her that she will not be able to go to the movies with her tomorrow night but afterwards she sees her friend posting a picture with someone else at the movies on Instagram, her feelings will be hurt. These instances are where we need to teach our child that calling the friend and screaming at them because she is angry and feels she failed at a friendship will make matters worse. We need to teach them that there is an option to ignore the situation and not engage in confrontation. This might not make her feel better and this is where you as a parent need to give guidance and empathy to help your child deal with the disappointment.

Our children should learn not to have a too high regard for others opinions. We are too scared about what teachers, tutors, parents and friends would think about us if we fail. We are too concerned about what society will say if things don’t go as planned. Worrying about other people’s opinions will prevent you from reaching your goals and dreams. Teach your child that in life, one sometimes will get into a situation where you might have to make an unpopular decision to achieve success. If you are constantly worried what other people think it will prevent you from making the right decision

Be an example to your child by striving to constantly grow and move forward. Should we fail, we have to look at it as a lesson to learn, adjust the route, adapt to changes and try again, but now with better knowledge. If appropriate, discuss your failure with your child and share your story on how you dealt with it. We have all heard the stories of failure, Einstein was classified by his teachers as “mentally slow” and Walt Disney was fired from one of his first jobs due to “lack of creativity”. Don’t be afraid to fail, dare to take risks, fail again, try again and reach your full potential.

GT Scholars is a not-for-profit social enterprise that provides a range of courses and workshops. Our growth mindset course focuses on helping young people and parents have a full understanding of growth mindset and how to apply this in their everyday lives. Find out more about our courses and workshops here.

7 Ways to Prepare For an Interview

by GT Scholars Young people

There are many times in life when you will find yourself needing to prepare for an interview. It could be your sixth-form college, university, or job interviews. So preparing yourself for an interview is a valuable and important skill to always have.

Interviews are notoriously difficult to prepare for. Some organisations and companies are kind enough to tell you exactly how or what to prepare, but most places will not do this for you. The whole point of the interview is for them to see how you think, apply your skills and talents, or react to a situation or scenario. They want to make sure that you will be an asset and a good fit for their college, university or company.

Your aim for the interview is to convince the recruiters that you have the skills, knowledge and experience for the job while also showing them that you fit the organisation’s culture and work ethic. Here are seven valuable ways that you can prepare yourself to reach this aim:

Do your research about the college, university or company:

The recruiters need to know that you are interested in their organisation and not just using them for your gain. They might ask you direct questions about their organisation, or they might ask you more indirect questions. You need to do enough research about the organisation beforehand to make sure you can answer their questions well. Visit the organisation’s website to ensure you understand what they do, their background and mission statement, and the courses or products. You can also get more perspective about the organisation by reading about them in news or trade publications.

Compare your skills and qualifications to the entrance, course or job requirements:

Thoroughly analyse the entrance requirements or job description and outline the knowledge, skills or abilities they list. Ensure that you are suitable for the organisation and that your qualifications match or better what they seek. If they list a particular skill, they may want you to demonstrate if you know how to do it, so you should ensure that you have the skill and are well-practised.

Prepare responses to commonly asked questions:

Most interviews have a set list of questions they are sure to ask, such as your strengths and weaknesses, academic or career goals, etc. You should prepare your responses to questions like these beforehand to answer them quickly. You should also understand that there are different ways to ask the same question; for example, they could ask you about your qualities that are useful to their organisation instead of your strengths. These questions can be answered almost the same way, so ensure you can identify that.

Plan what you are going to wear:

Your appearance is your first impression, so you should ensure they do not rule you out before you even tell them about you. Be sure that your overall appearance is neat and clean. It is best to dress smartly in neutral colours, with your clothes clean and ironed and your hair combed and out of your face.

Prepare what you need to take to the interview:

You should plan what you need to take to the interview to look prepared. Some organisations will tell you what they want you to bring to the discussion. Still, if not, then you should take the following: at least one copy of your transcripts or CV on quality paper, a notepad or professional binder and pen, a list of references, the information you might need to complete an application, and a portfolio with samples of your work if relevant.

Understand and pay attention to nonverbal communication:

Nonverbal communication speaks volumes and dramatically influences your impression and your interview. As you walk into the building, ensure you are mindful of your nonverbal communication, even in the waiting room. Show that you are confident but do not appear arrogant. Smile, establish eye contact and use a firm handshake. Sit well and be aware of nervous movements such as tapping your foot. Maintain good eye contact while answering questions – do not look around too much, as this will make you seem inattentive. Be aware of your facial expressions and reactions, and keep adverse reactions internalised. At the same time, do not appear too fake or rigid. Be comfortable and self-assured.

Prepare questions that you can ask them at the end of the interview:

Interviews usually end with an opportunity for you to ask questions or clarify any queries. Be strategic with questioning and ask questions about information not discussed in the discussion or found on the organisation’s website. For example, what are the most important criteria for success in this job, how will your performance be evaluated, or what is the next step in the hiring process? Using your prior research, you can develop a list of insightful questions.
This will both impress them and provide you with helpful information.

The interview process may seem daunting and challenging. Still, as you can see, with the proper preparation and prior knowledge, you can display your best qualities for any potential sixth-form college, university or employer.

GT Scholars is a social enterprise that provides tutoring, mentoring and enrichment to young people from various backgrounds. Contact us to find out how we can provide you with a knowledgeable mentor or insightful course to help you prepare for interviews.

Should luck play a part in your child’s academic success?

by GT Scholars Growth mindset Parents Private tutoring What's new?

Luck is an attractive idea, as it means believing that your success was brought about by chance rather than through your own actions.

The problem with chance is that it is a misunderstood force that cannot be controlled or predicted. No one can tell or choose when you will be blessed with good luck or when you will be harmed by bad luck, and so it makes it a very unreliable factor.

On the other hand, choosing to rely on your own actions gives you control over the outcome and your future. Thus, if you decide to put in the hard work yourself and to persevere towards a goal, the outcome is more than likely to be successful.

Your child’s academic success is very important. It unlocks the potential of your child by providing the right knowledge and tools to achieve a certain goal or career path. Thus, a well nurtured and successful schooling career ensures a bright and prosperous future. Since academic success is of such great importance, it becomes clear that the last thing a parent should do is leave it to chance. So, here are a few ways that you can overrule luck and take control of and predict your child’s academic success:

Personally, monitor your child’s progress: It is important for you to personally keep track of your child’s academic success. A child in the UK spends only about 22% of their week in school. This means that more than three-quarters of their week is being spent at home with you. This shows that you have a far greater influence on your children than their teachers, and you should take an active role in their education, beyond just going to parent-teacher meetings and school functions. Set aside a specific time, daily or weekly, to ask them about their academics and how they are doing in school to keep yourself updated and involved. You can also check on their current school work and assignments regularly so that you can find out whether they are struggling with any subject or topic.
Support their aspirations and goals: Your child needs to have aspirations, dreams, goals and plans, whether they are academic or extracurricular. You should regularly ask them about these aspirations so that you can support and advise them. You can support them by making sure that they are doing what they need to do in order to achieve these goals, or you can provide them with extra help or classes. For example, if they want to be a scientist when they grow up, make sure that they are taking the appropriate science subjects in school, enrol them in scientific extracurricular clubs or activities, and provide them with access to helpful books and resources. You can also enlist the help of a mentor who has experience in the field that your child is aspiring to be part of, who will be able to provide educated advice and wise counsel so that they can make their dream a reality.
Support them if or when they fail: It is very likely that your child will not succeed in everything that they do in or out of school. Failure, after all, is always going to be part of life and your child should be taught that failure is not the end of the world. Therefore, as a parent, you need to make sure that you are supportive and understanding when your child fails. If you are too hard on them, it will develop a fear of failure which will discourage them from trying new things. Richard Branson, the famous founder of the Virgin Group, believes that the people that are generally considered more fortunate or luckier than others are usually also the ones that are prepared to take the greatest risks and to not be afraid of trying something new.
Praise them for every effort they make: Research done by Dr Carol Dweck, a leading researcher in the field of motivation and a Professor of Psychology at Stanford University, has shown that sometimes parents can negatively affect their child’s academic development by focusing too much on achievement, and not on the effort made to reach the goal. This will lead to a fixed mindset, where they will believe that they cannot improve their intelligence, character or creativity no matter the effort they make. On the other hand, if you praise them for the effort they put into reaching a goal, it forms a growth mindset, where they firmly believe that extra effort can make them more intelligent, and they will not be afraid of any challenge.
Nurture and encourage a good work ethic: It is important to teach your child about the importance of hard work and independent learning. This prevents slacking in school, and they will independently choose to succeed academically. You must make sure that they are doing their homework and assignments properly and on time. You can do this by keeping a record of their homework activity, removing distractions such as technology and social media if need be, and helping them to come up with a daily schedule so that they can manage their time effectively.
Enlist a tutor if needed: If you find that your child is struggling with a certain subject or falling behind in school, and it is beyond your expertise or help, it is best to provide them with a professional tutor. The tutor would able to provide knowledgeable assistance with the specific subject or problem since they are well-educated in their respective field. They will also provide personalized care for your child’s academic needs, using a uniquely tailored approach to help your child achieve success. Furthermore, since you are paying them directly, you can closely monitor if the tutor is making a significant positive difference in your child’s academic career or not.

As you can see, your child’s academic success should not just be left up to the teacher, and it definitely should not be left up to luck. You as a parent can really make a meaningful difference. By taking an active role and providing consistent help, your child will feel supported and able to succeed.

GT Scholars really believes in going beyond luck and putting in the hard work to achieve academic success. Our tutors and mentors are professional and well-informed in their respective study fields, and can provide the perfect assistance to your child’s academic needs. If you want to make sure that your child is set up for academic success, you should contact us for more information. We offer private tuition in Maths, Science and English and a mentorship programme. Register your interest here or give us a call on 02088168066.

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