Personal Finance

Tuition (both private as well as the centers) are highly in demand among parents in Singapore compared to tuitions in the neighboring states as found by a survey conducted by an international news agency where they have found that more than three-quarter of the parents do invest on such academic agencies despite the fact that they cannot expect the best grades by just providing them a tutor. It was also that in Singapore, parents prefer to send their kids for extra classes even before their formal schooling has officially started in order to brush their English as well as their Math’s skills.

Here in this piece of writing we will be talking about the tutoring services available for children of all ages here in Singapore and how much would it cost you to send your child in one of them.

Pros and Cons of the Different Tuition types

1. Private Tuition

• Advantages

1. Home tutors engaged from a tuition agency can give one-to-one attention to students that is most desired by parents. Students do have different learning styles and the private tuitions can be designed in order to suit the exact learning style which are not possible in large classrooms or tuition centers/group tuitions.
2. They can work out at the student’s pace.If the student did not understand something in the class then he/she can consult with the tutor later on at home and clear the problem they are facing in that particular chapter .
3. Private tutors do take on the responsibility of doing the children’s homework given by the school. Homework of children of Standards 6-12 can be sometimes complicated for several parents with complex arithmetic and science chapters to deal with and this is when private tutors come to the rescue as they have become experts by teaching those subject for a long while.

• Disadvantages

1. Private tuitions are generally  expensive compared to other tuition types which is why not everyone can afford them.
2. It is often very difficult to find a good private tutor that does meet the children’s needs.
3. Most parents are also concerned about the safety of their children with the adults they do not know for sure, henceforth it is highly recommended for them to refer to a tutor agency that do screen its private tutors and have accurate reference.

2. Group Tuition /Tuition Centers

• Advantages

1. More affordable compared to private tuitions
2. Students do receive materials that help them to understand the topic in a better sense.
3. Students are able to discuss to share their knowledge and solve their problems      with other peers in the group/class.
4. Helps with enhancing on social skills
5. As the tutors in group tuition or tuition centers are working full time therefore it is seen that they are extremely committed to teaching.

• Disadvantages

1. As there are many tuition centers available, students are often sketchy which was to choose among the lot that would *actually* work hard on enhancing their skills.
2. Also sometimes these centers do charge exceptionally which makes them unaffordable to many like private tuitions.

Some Famous Tuition Centers in Singapore

1. The Learning Lab – This is a very popular and well trusted brand to parents in Singapore for the last 15 years with several branches spread across the country for preschoolers as well as college going teens. Their teaching style comprises of the following factor-knowledge, skills to pass the exams, develop the interest of learning within children.
2. Mavis Tutorial Centre – This is another popular and yet affordable option to send the kids to if they are studying somewhere between the primary school level and A ‘levels. This, too like the Learning Lab, have branches all across the country.
3. True Learning Centre –  It employs NIE (National Institute of Education) ,exclusive school that trains teachers-to -be here in Singapore. As they have already held important positions and won several teaching awards in their careers before they joined the center-the curriculum of the center is being exclusively designed by them that ensures the students are receiving the best help possible.

Reliable Tuition Agencies

At first glance, it appears that tuition agencies tend to offer the same service. However, from our experience, some companies go above and beyond and offer more than others. Our personal recommendation is SmileTutor. They are among the best and the most trusted private tutor agency here in Singapore. Here are the reasons why it is the best

1. Tuition coordinators work around the clock to make sure that the assignments are being fulfilled on time by the pool of active home tutors from the whole range starting from Kindergarten to Junior College.
2. The tuition matching system does ensure that the tutor being chosen does fulfill all the criteria demanded by the parents of the children.
3. The highly qualified private tuition assignment coordinators do select the home tutors based on the home tuition rates and fees as requested by the parents.
4. There is no contract being signed between the two parties which gives the parents the flexibility to change the tutor if they think the tutor is not appropriate for the child. Also the fees are being paid when the classes are being conducted hence no extra agent fees.
5. The tutor contacts the parents within 6 to 24 hours after the request is being made.

 

Financial Comparison between Private Tutors and Tuition Centers

There is an average difference of not more than 10 SGD between the private tutors and tuition centers. The median range of the tuition fees for primary section is about 30 SGD per hour, 40 SGD per hour for the Secondary section and more than 55 SGD per hours for Junior College Section.

However for the private tuition, the rate depends on the qualification of the teacher. For a degree holder the rate is usually 30 SGD per hour for the primary section 40 SGD for the lower secondary section, 50 SGD per hour for the upper secondary section and 60 SGD for the Junior College. ,

The rates are however different if the private tutor has been trained from a MOE affiliated institute ,compared to the degree holder teacher who has not trained from NIE all the rates rise by 20 to 30 SGD for each section

 

Ending  

Parents do always the best for the children expecting them to excel in every stage of life. Therefore tuition or extra classes are not an exception when they notice their kids lagging behind in their academic pursuit. If spending an extra few bucks apart from the usual schooling fees can push up the grades from B to A for instance, they would not think twice to enroll their kids for extra classes. But as there is famous saying, “cut your coat according to your cloth”-an idea about the financial expenses of enrolling them for extra classes would help them decide the type of tuition that suits their economic budget.

 

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