Imagine How Your Child Will Feel Ending Up Here

It’s fairly common for schools – especially in the suburbs and especially in middle school – to offer study skill classes. Sometimes for a full semester. If not, then at least a Saturday morning seminar for a weekend or two.

There are three problems we see with study skill workshops that take place before dinner. Sometimes the curriculum is inappropriate, but usually not. The problems we see are structural, not curricular:

1. When material is presented to a group, some members within that group are going to feel the pace is too slow, while others will think it’s too fast.
2. The presence in the group of already-successful students (and/or belligerent ones) tends to drain motivation in the other members of the class, the ones who, ironically, are the students who would most benefit from the material being offered.
3. The ‘coach’ who suggests a study skills plan during the day is a different person from the coach who then tries to help IMPLEMENT that plan in the evening.

We have found it is far more effective to teach the at-home coach how to design an effective study plan, than it is to expect a daytime coach to be responsible for implementation at night.

Not only does the coach have to be you in a practical sense, as an added benefit, it’s better for your relationship with your child if you are.

We see too many families where students and parents find themselves stuck in a pattern of working AGAINST each other’s goals. Even when it’s clear – in the long run – both would be far better served by working TOGETHER towards a shared set of goals.