One of Thirty: The Dilemma.
We’re going to get a little creative here, I want you to think back to the last time you looked at your child’s grades. It doesn’t matter if they’re in Elementary, High school, or University. What matters is that you were surprised, but not the good kind of surprised. A littler closer to the “Oh… oh okay interesting” kind of surprised. You ask them how class is going and they say, “Fine.” You poke a little more and ask them if they understand the material, they say, “Mostly.” You ask if they’ve talked to their teachers or professors, and they go quiet (The silence hits different when you had to pay for their textbooks).
Here’s the ugly part of the school system that nobody wants to say out loud: your child’s teacher is giving it their all and in fact, they are overworked. The problem is that when they have to manage 30 students at once, the bottom falls out. Everything resorts to the median. The students that are struggling or think differently fall through the cracks. The students who are exceptionally gifted and need to be challenged more are not being pushed. This is the reality of large class sizes, and they aren’t getting any smaller.
The Reality Of A 30-Student Classroom
I have stood in front of University lecture halls for over 6 years. I have watched students nod along, write notes, and look completely fine. It takes a trained eye to identify the students in the room who are understanding almost nothing (Trust me, I’ve gotten good at spotting the ‘What is going on right now?’ face). Keep in mind, these are adults who had to apply, beat their competition for a spot in the program, and pay large amounts of tuition fees to be here.
Now let’s imagine we’re even a little bit younger, maybe 15 or 16 years old, sitting at the back of the classroom, a little lost, a little embarrassed to ask for clarification in front of their peers, surrounded by 29 other students who (appear to) have it all figured out. That is not a struggling student, that is a student who is stuck in a system that is not designed to reach everyone.
How Students Fall Through The Cracks
It’s rarely the dramatic cases that get missed. In fact, it’s often the quiet students. The ones who are ‘mostly’ getting it. The ones who are passing by with their grades and don’t trigger the alarm bells. These are often the students who say, “I’m good” and try not to make a big deal out of it. These are the students that aren’t failing loudly, they’re fading quietly to not get in trouble, to not get too much attention drawn. By the time the knowledge gap becomes obvious, it’s usually grown into a much bigger issue than it should have been and the hole to dig out of has become DEEP.
Why Small Group Cohorts Can Change Everything
What happens when we improve that student to instructor ratio of 1:30 down to 1:5? Well, the first outcome is that they can’t disappear because there is nowhere to hide. But more importantly, there’s no reason to hide anymore (Unless you forgot to practice. In that case, there’s still nowhere to hide, but at least we’ll figure it out together). The pressure drops off their shoulders in a small group, they ask more questions because they’re not embarrassed, and the learning actually starts.
The research on small group learning is overwhelming, students retain more, they ask more questions, they are more engaged, and they build more confidence when they’re not performing in front of a large crowd. Peer learning begins to kick in naturally, students are encouraged to build a small community with one another. Students build off of ideas from other students questions, and everyone benefits from it.
While small-group tutoring is not for everyone as some students still prefer one-to-one lessons, it does bring a little healthy energy to the table. A little extra caffeine to the conversation and a little bit of collaboration between peers. Some of that, “Oh, okay great, so I wasn’t the only one who didn’t get that.”
Main Takeaway
Your child’s grade is not always a reflection of their ability of their effort. Sometimes it is purely a reflection of the environment they are learning in. The good news is that is something you can change.
Curia Tutoring
At Curia, our small-group cohorts cap at five students per session, and are led by Dr. Grant James (PhD Biomedical Engineering). This isn’t a study hall, it’s a purposefully designed learning environment that was built to actually reach every student in the room. Five seats, one expert, and zero reason to say, “I’m fine”when you’re not. Explore our group courses and book your spot today.
