Guelph
Tutoring

Personalized Programs Help Students Succeed

 Students aren’t all the same. They each learn at their own pace, have strengths and weaknesses, and ultimately need a specific plan to thrive academically. Kim Chapman, the Centre Director at Oxford Learning’s Guelph location, vividly recalls a young Grade 3 boy that arrived for help last November. He had a passion for learning but was frustrated because of the disconnect he felt in his classroom. 
“It was interesting to me that understood this,” says Chapman. “After a long chat with his Mom, we came up with a great program designed for him. We taught him how to follow directions first so that he could feel empowered to understand what was being asked of him, not just whip through it.

“He initially came in for writing, and he learned how to build a sentence properly, make it one complete thought without it being a run-on sentence, and use capitals and periods. His confidence grew. I had a meeting with his Mom recently, and she told me that she couldn’t believe how invested he was in doing the work. 
“He loves coming to Oxford Learning.”

Personalized programs are critical to Oxford Learning’s success with students of all ages. Chapman says that once kids realize they can do something, their effort increases. They try so much harder, and their abilities begin to breakthrough. Pulling that out is the objective at Oxford Learning, to see children switch from thinking they have to do schoolwork to wanting to do it.
Knowing what works for them is the key.

“Everything we do here, with every student, is an individualized learning experience,” says Chapman, who has a Master’s in Education and plenty of experience in understanding what learning styles work with different individuals. “We target exactly what’s going on, so they can begin to feel successful.”

The Plan

A lack of comprehension skills, be it reading, writing, or both, is usually at the root of a student’s struggles. Oxford Learning does an initial assessment of each kid that comes through the doors to pinpoint precisely what needs improvement. Depending on age level, it usually takes a kid about 30 hours of work to get up to speed. The further behind the child is, the longer it could take, which is why Oxford Learning offers packages with 100 hours upfront (approximately two one-hour sessions a week for a full year).

“That’s the way we build our programs,” says Chapman. “They are based specifically on their needs.

“We move topics or concepts around to fit together and build a strong program for each student rather than a program for the majority of people.” Chapman says that the environment at Oxford Learning is fun and energetic. It’s not like a classroom where silence is expected. There are typically about 120 kids, and all of the teachers know each of them and the specific theme songs that help them retain whatever is specific to their learning. They usually come three times a week, focusing on one subject in an hour to boost comprehension.

Often, the child works with the same teacher. Student planners are a major benefit of the coordinated system. This system gives teachers access to the individual programming for each student, even if that teacher has not worked with that child before. So, if a teacher is working with a student for the first time, they can see the individualized plan, including details to create dialogue. The teacher will know if a student enjoys soccer, and communication becomes easier. 

The Payoff

The longer a kid works at Oxford Learning, the stronger the connection between them and the teachers. Chapman has had one autistic student since he began in grade 2. He is now in grade 11, and though he might not function academically at the level of an average student that age, his growth over the years has been remarkable. One recent focus in his program has been money. Chapman says the idea was to use that new knowledge in planning a trip for groceries, which entailed the creation of a budget and research of a flyer to see what they could purchase.

His growing passion for math went beyond grocery shopping. The student planned a date with a friend and wanted to take her to Burger King. So there was a session on how much money he would need to buy specific items while also factoring in the tax.

“It was like a lightbulb was turning on,” says Chapman. “It was so interesting to watch his progression. Initially, he had some behaviour challenges, and he didn’t want to do anything. Then he learned how to read, and suddenly, the world was open.

“To see him now, knowing where he was even five years ago, has been the most rewarding thing I have ever experienced in education.”