Is It Right For You? Exclusive Tutoring is the Way to Go

Is It Right For You? Exclusive Tutoring is the Way to GoExclusive tutoring has opened many doors for students. They can learn in their own way, with their own time, and with a reliable and well-connected tutor. If you are interested in one of these, it is very important to understand the market.The traditional classroom has an edge over online tutoring and all the gadgets out there today. Students will have all the equipment needed and a step by step process. But, if they can get this back in their hands, where they can put in their resources, it will give them the benefit of this instructional method. This would mean that they can work at their own pace and be their own teacher.Working with tutors can sometimes be daunting. There are so many people out there that charge a fortune and promises. The first thing you should check is that they are an experienced tutor or coach.Based on the amount of money they are charging, how are their client base and their past record? It would help i f you can connect with a tutor who is working as a tutoring coach and find out if they can support your child.Most importantly, it is important to find a reputable person. You have to know how to deal with this person. You should be able to communicate with him so that he can keep you updated and learn the child's progress.This means you should be able to build up a good relationship with him, so that you can learn how to make him like you. A good leader of the tutoring team can help you build this relationship as well.Starting up an exclusive tutoring is something that everyone needs to do. Getting one can really be worth it when your child will gain a lot from his lessons and work.

4 Quick and Easy Italian Grammar Exercises

4 Quick and Easy Italian Grammar Exercises Brooke Neuman One of the keys to learning Italian is practice. Below, Italian teacher Nadia B. provides some quick and easy Italian grammar exercises to help get you on the road to success Despite what you may think, mastering Italian grammar isnt impossible. In fact, its as quick and easy as putting the rules youve learned into practice. The following four exercises will have you perfecting Italian grammar in no time! Remember, learning a new language takes time, so dont get discouraged if you stumble along the way. Its expected! Exercise 1: Interrogative Words In Italian, interrogative wordssuch as che  (what),  chi  (who),  quando  (when),  perché  (why) and  come  (how)are used to form a question. Practice using interrogatives by forming a question using each word above. Doing so will ensure that you can quickly produce the correct interrogative when needed to ask a question. See examples below: Che vuoi fare oggi? (What do you want to do today?) Chi era quelluomo? (Who was that man?) Quando arriva Giovanni? (When does Giovanni arrive?) Exercise 2: Telling Time Write down a series of times (for example, 2:24 p.m., 3:00 a.m., 8:00 p.m., and 9:45 a.m.) and then practice saying the times out loud, concentrating on your pronunciation. After youve mastered that, try working on your time expressions next. You can include di mattina  (in the morning), del pomeriggio (in the afternoon), di sera (in the evening) and di notte (at night). See examples below: Sono le nove e quattro di mattina.  (It is 9:04 a.m. in the morning.) Sono le sei e ventidue di sera.  (It is 6:22 p.m. in the evening.) Sono le undici e trentacinque di notte.  (It is 11:35 p.m. at night.) Sono le undici di mattina.  (It is 11:00 a.m. in the afternoon.) Dont forget that you also have the option of using the following phrases as well: a quarter before (meno un quarto), a quarter past (un quarto), half past (mezzo/a), noon (mezzogiorno), and  midnight (mezzanotte). See examples below: Sono le sette meno un quarto di mattina.  (A quarter before seven in the morning) Sono le otto e un quarto di mattina.  (A quarter  past eight in the morning) Sono le otto e mezzo di mattina.  (A half past eight in the morning) Exercise 3: There is vs There are There is and there are are indispensable in Italian, and its easy to practice using them correctly. Look around whatever room you are in, and use cè   (there is) and ci sono (there are) to describe the objects you see. For example, if you see a white chair in the room: Cè una sedia bianca. (There is a white chair.) You can even take it a step further and describe the quantity of each item to practice the numbers in Italian. Ci sono dieci libri e tre cuaderni. (There are 10 books and three notebooks.) Exercise 4: The Definite Article There are two main forms of the definite article in the singular, il (masculine) and la (feminine) and two alternate forms,  l,  for any noun starting with a vowel, and lo,  for any masculine noun starting with s- plus a consonant, ps-, or z-. Singular  masculine  noun: il Singular feminine noun: la Noun starting with a vowel: l Masculine noun starting with  s-  plus a consonant,  ps-,  or  z-  : lo Remember,  i  for plural masculine,  le  for plural feminine,  gli  for plural masculine beginning with a vowel, s- plus a consonant, ps-, or z-. Plural masculine noun: i Plural  feminine  noun: le Plural  masculine  noun beginning with a vowels-  plus a consonant,  ps-, or  z-:   gli To practice using definite articles, write out a list of singular nouns and then assign each one the appropriate definite article. Then, do the same for plural nouns by writing out a list of plural nouns and assigning each the correct definite article. See examples below: Singular mattita la matita (the pencil) zaino lo zaino (the backpack) uomo luomo (the man) Plural mele le mele (the apples) uomini gli uomini (the men) bicchieri i bicchieri (the glasses) With these Italian grammar exercises, you should be well on your way to a thorough and accurate understanding of basic Italian grammar. If you practice these quick and easy Italian grammar exercises regularly, youll start to notice that youre making use of these grammar concepts in an easier, more rapid, and accurate way than ever before in conversation and in writing. Nadia B. teaches Italian in New York, NY. She graduated summa cum laude from New York University, with a double degree in Italian Language and Literature and Classical Music Performance.  Learn more about Nadia here! Interested in Private Lessons? Search thousands of teachers for local and live, online lessons. Sign up for convenient, affordable private lessons today! Search for Your Teacher

How can I improve my English

How can I improve my English Learn English for the price of a cup of coffee Students often ask me this question. They want to practice their English, but they dont have anyone to practice with. Whenever I am asked, I am tempted to tell them my friends solution to the common question, How can I improve my English? I had a friend named Joseph who moved to Montreal from Czech Republic in the 1990s. He worked as a janitor and spoke very little English at the time. After work and on his days off, Joseph would go down to the local doughnut shop on Sherbrooke Street, in the Notre-Dame-de-Grace neighbourhood of Montreal. Every day, a strange woman would arrive, buy a cup of coffee, sit down and talk to herself. After she finished her coffee, she would get up and leave. One day, Joseph saw that she had finished her coffee and was about to leave, so he bought her another cup and asked to sit with her. The woman accepted the coffee and kept talking. She could talk and talk on any topic, provided there was a cup of coffee in front of her. Sometimes he would ask her questions. Sometimes he just listened. Since she spoke more than she drank, he said it only cost him about a dollar an hour for crazy conversational English practice. He spent about $3 a day on coffee for about a year and learned so much English by the end of it that he went on to become an English Second Language teacher. Joseph told me this story after class in a Grammar for Teachers, a course we took together at Concordia University  in 2001. I have never forgotten it. I am not sure whether going in search of crazy conversation partners is a good idea. However, it demonstrates that languages are learned primarily through the repeated exchange of meaningful messages with a focus on form. In Josephs case, he focused on form at home by studying grammar books in the evening. Please follow and like us:

The Sutton Trust praises Tutorfair

The Sutton Trust praises Tutorfair Private tuition remains to be the “hidden secret of British Education” says the Sutton Trust. The social mobility think tank, founded by Sir Peter Lampl, annually polls young people and educators through Ipsos MORI on their experiences of private tuition, helping to lift the curtain on tutoring. In this year’s report the Sutton Trust has also worked closely with Tutorfair, a website where parents can find and book a local tutors. With 40,000 tutors on their website, Tutorfair holds some of the most extensive data available within the tutoring industry, and this information was shared with the Sutton Trust in order to help inform the Trust’s findings. Almost 25% of 11 to 16 year old state school students have received private tuition - that’s over 700,000 young people in England and Wales. In London this figure rises dramatically to 40% of students. Tutorfair reports that the most popular tutored subjects are Maths and English (in that order), followed by science, musical instruments and foreign languages. The Sutton Trust’s report reveals that nearly half (43%) of state school teachers have tutored outside of their main teaching role at some point in their career. Top Tutorfair tutor and qualified teacher, John N comments, “I was a teacher on the Teach First programme, teaching in a challenging school in Kent. However, I've found tuition far more rewarding as a career in education. I love teaching, but the reality of teaching in schools is that too often there is a lack of respect and appreciation for teachers. Too much time is spent dealing with behaviour, social care or superficial bureaucracy, and academic rigour comprises a remarkably small part of the job. Tuition is entirely different, where academic rigour is a core aspect of the role and the focus is truly on high performance teaching and learning. Tutorfair represents the most socially responsible way of providing tuition, enabling tutors to help students whilst also providing support to students from less privileged back grounds who really appreciate and benefit the support that tutors can offer”. A meta-study into one-to-one tutoring by the Educational Endowment Foundation, shows that it provides 5 months additional progress over untutored pupils. This makes it one of the most effective forms of education that parents and teachers can use to support learning. Although tutoring is incredibly effective, it remains to be the most expensive, with tutors across the UK costing on average £27 per hour. Therefore, private tuition is mainly accessible to be those who can afford it. Privately educated students are almost as twice as likely to receive tutoring as state-educated students. So students who receive private tutoring disproportionately come from families that are already advantaged. Both the Sutton Trust and Tutorfair want to highlight that there are many important social mobility issues caused by this inequality within the industry. The Sutton Trust calls on more tutoring agencies to follow Tutorfair’s example and offer free tuition to disadvantaged students â€" with the aim of “levelling the playing field within education”. Andrew Ground, founder of Tutorfair “We welcome the Sutton Trust’s findings. Tutoring is very beneficial but action is needed to ensure it’s fair. We welcome more positive engagement on how tutoring can be good for everyone.” Tutorfair includes a donation from their paying students’ lessons, and develop free tuition programmes to support disadvantaged students. Their website cites the DfE 2012/13 figures that “61% of children on free school meals received a “D” grade or lower in their mathematics and/or English GCSE” and Tutorfair call for change. Tutorfair partners with schools that have a high proportion of students on free school meals, and gives free one-to-one and small group tuition to their students. They have so far helped 5,562 disadvantaged students, involving 675 tutors across 14 partner schools. Make a difference by recommending Tutorfair to students, parents, teachers and schools. Tutorfair’s socially responsible mission shines a light on the ‘shadow education’ industry, making tutoring both fair and transparent for all. If you would like to know more about Tutorfair and their mission, please contact them on support@tutorfair.com

Car Windows Potentially Unsafe

Car Windows Potentially Unsafe Photo Via: http://kenrobertsautoglass.com Your car’s windshield may be doing an okay job at blocking the son, but it’s probably not protecting you against any of the sun’s harmful rays. In fact, a recent study suggests that it’s important for drivers to protect against these rays, and to stop assuming that just because they are behind a windshield, they are safe. The study recommends that drivers wear sunglasses, sunscreen and utilize any other protection against the sun while driving in order to protect yourself from the sun, just as you would at the beach. According to the study, ultraviolet radiation emitted from the sun isn’t actually being blocked by your windshield, and your windows aren’t much better. In fact, some of the rays (tied to problems such as cataracts and skin aging) aren’t protected against at all. According to Dr. Brian Boxer Wachler, a researcher from the Boxer Wachler Vision Institute in Beverly Hills, California, in a statement to Reuters Health, “Some cars were as low as 50 percent blockage. Even cars that came with factory tint, there was no guarantee that would protect against UV rays.” For those not as familiar with UV rays, they may not be the most abundant of the sun’s rays, but they are extremely damaging to human skin. And according to the Skin Cancer Foundation, UV-A rays “are the most common and penetrate most deeply.” And now, driving a car is linked to these harmful rays. According to Boxer Wachler, as written in JAMA Ophthalmology, “Because drivers in the U.S. have their left side exposed to sunlight, UV rays have been blamed for the increased number of cataracts and skin cancers that occur on the left side.” So evidence would suggest that these rays are having an effect on drivers. Why is this? Rays are so powerful they can easily pass through clouds, which means they can easily pass through glass as well. So how do you know if your windows are safe or not? Getty Boxer Wachler had the same question. He used a UV-A light meter to test 29 different cars at a car dealership on a cloudless day in May of 2014. These 29 cars came from 15 different manufacturers all made between the years 1990 and 2014. The results were as follows: “On average, car windshields blocked about 96 percent of UV-A rays. The protection afforded by individual cars ranged from 95 to 98 percent.” Side doors, however, had a different result. “The percentage of UV-A rays blocked varied from 44 percent to 96 percent. Only four of the 29 cars had windows that blocked more than 90 percent of UV-A rays.” So while windshields offer a decent level of protection against the sun’s rays, side door windows offer very little protection, putting the driver at risk. According to Boxer Wachler, “It had no correlation at all with the cost of the car, high-end car or low-end car.” Dr. Jayne Weiss, a commentator on the study and director at the Louisiana State University Eye Center of Excellence, clarifies this problem by explaining that windshields have to be more protective than the door windows because they’re made of a different material (laminated glass as opposed to the door windows’ tempered glass) in order to prevent shattering. She says, “Don’t assume because you are in an automobile and the window is closed that you’re protected from UV light. For the eyes, your best bet is to get sunglasses that block UV-A and UV-B light and wrap around the face.” pexels.com And on the other side of things, Dr. Paul Nghiem, a head dermatologist at the University of Washington not involved in this study, claims that car windows allow in enough rays to have an effect on the skin as well. He says, “Wearing long-sleeved clothing, or sunscreen that is broad spectrum, would be extremely effective and seems indicated on long drives on sunny days.” As an added tip, Boxer Wachler suggests drivers obtain clear UV filters, which can be added to their car filters to protect against the damaging, UV rays. So if you care about your skin and your overall health, avoiding the tanning bed is no longer enough; you need to actively protect yourself from the sun, even in situations you otherwise wouldn’t be concerned about, such as driving your car to and from school or work five days a week. Using sunscreen before driving to work? It may sound crazy, but this study shows it may also be necessary. So whether or not you take these problems seriously now, it’s about time to reconsider how you feel about the problem at hand, especially as weather changes become far more extreme all over the country. So at the very least, be aware of the problem and do what you can to avoid future health problems while you still can.

Beijing SMIC Private School and Kindergarten

Beijing SMIC Private School and Kindergarten Beijing SMIC Private School and Kindergarten BJ SMIC Private School is a Preschool through 12th Grade institution. Currently, there are 1650 students and 260 full time teachers from 16 nationalities. The School stresses each students holistic development and also emphasizes the importance of moral integrity in education. As we expand into more classes, we continue to hire qualified staff throughout the year. Overall, we have one of the lowest rates of teacher replacement you will find in China, especially among local staff, but also among our expat teachers. Our teachers are committed to their students, and enjoy deep friendships with their coworkers. Administrators make every effort to place teachers where they can refine their teaching skills and develop professionally, with opportunities for advancement to those that desire it. Working for a growing company with $1.7 billion in annual revenue has definite benefits; you never have to worry about delayed salary payments or layoffs due to budget cuts. SMIC Private School offers salaries more than sufficient to cover the low cost of living in Yizhuang. Living in Yizhuang is getting easier every year as well. Whether, cycling, driving, taking the bus or subway, Yizhuang is less congested and easy to get around. Two new shopping plazas have opened nearby, Lippo Plaza and Creative Life Plaza (with a Sams club, Papa Johns, Starbucks, and bilingual movies). McDonalds, KFC, Subway, and a half dozen pizza restaurants serve Western food nearby. On weekends, teachers fellowship in each others homes or attend a nearby church, the subway and express buses reach the downtown expatriate fellowships and districts (CBD, Sanlitun) in less than 1 hour. Yizhuang has many square miles of parks, lakes, rivers and natural areas to enjoy, and Decathlon has plenty of international-standard sporting goods. There are many volunteer opportunities nearby as well, including New Day Foster Home and Shepherds Field Childrens Home within a short drive. View our Brochure

Salaries, bonuses and negotiations getting paid to teach overseas

Salaries, bonuses and negotiations getting paid to teach overseas Money might not be the main motivator that inspires people to teach abroad, but one thing’s for sure?â€"if you’re setting off on the adventure of a lifetime you’ll want to make sure you’ve got enough yen, euros or dirhams in your pocket to enjoy it. But at the same time, you’ve probably heard stories of some teachers saving up small fortunes overseas while others get around the globe on a shoe-string budget. So why do teach abroad salaries differ so much from job to job? How do you make sure you get a fair salary when you’re moving to teach in a new country? And how can you ask for a raise when you think you deserve it? Read on to find out... How much do teachers make abroad? There are literally as many answers to this question as there are countries in the world! At the top end of the scale, teaching abroad can pay a salary that allows you to live well and save money, and at the lower end, it can entail budgeting and working for multiple schools to make a full salary. It really depends on where you go to teach. As such, it’s important to consider your motivations before you choose where you go. Are you looking for a cultural experience, a chance to make money, or a mix of both? If having a high salary is a high priority for you, you can quickly narrow your search to destinations that fit the bill, such as the United Arab Emirates or Japan. But if you’re more concerned about living in a particular country or city overseas, you’ll have to accept the norm for teaching salaries in that area. Having said that, it’s important to consider your potential salary in context. A seemingly low salary might actually stretch further than you think depending on living expenses in the city you are living in. How do I know if I’ll make enough money teaching abroad? Start researching online and ask schools you’re interviewing with what your living expenses will be in any places you expect to work in. (Sometimes during the hiring process, you're not sure which city you will be placed in until a job offer has been made). Compare your potential salary to the cost of living to really understand how your monthly payments will translate in real terms. Also, take into consideration whether the school provides housing, health insurance and airfare for their teachers. Next, you’ll need to work out what “enough money” means for you. Obviously, you will have to pay phone bills, buy groceries and have some money left over to do things you enjoy in your free time. But beyond that, think about the lifestyle you want to have overseas. What do you see yourself doing on the weekends? Will you take lots of trips to nearby cities while you’re living there? Will you need to fly home at any point? Basically, what are the non-negotiables that you want your salary to cover? And if your salary doesn’t cover them will you have the time, permission from your main employer and visa rights to take on extra work elsewhere? How do I know if I’m getting a fair salary? Once you’ve worked out whether your salary will be workable in the country you’re going to, it’s time to take a closer look at your contract. Here are some things to look out for: Will you be paid purely for classroom teaching hours or does your salary also cover other tasks like lesson planning, report writing, admin and watching students at break times? Check with your school to get a full idea of what your weekly responsibilities will be. Can you stand by all the clauses in your contract? Sometimes final month salaries or bonuses are dependent on you completing a 12-month contract or hitting certain targets. If you want to supplement your income, take a look at whether your contract allows you to work for competitors or provide private or online tutoring. Take a look at the standard salary for teachers in the country you’re working in and what kind of benefits teachers are usually given. How does your contract compare to this? What can I expect to bepaid with my education and experience? This really depends on where you plan to teach. Some organizations have very clear pay scales (such as South Korea’s EPIK program) and others may not. It’s fair to say that most schools around the world will at least pay more for a teacher with qualifications such as a TEFL certificate. Teachers with a teaching license or bachelor’s degree in education also open themselves up to the possibility of teaching in international schools, where salaries are generally comparable with what you would be earning at home. Do you have a master’s degree? That's even better! A good first step is to research what the average salary bracket is where you’re going and place yourself in that bracket based on your teaching background. Then bring up any experience and qualifications when you’re interviewing with individual schools and ask them what their pay scale is. I don’t think I’m being paid enough. How can I negotiate a raise? The big awkward question: how do you ask for more money? Should you even try? To put it simply, yes! Not being paid what you’re worth is demoralizing and infuriating, but negotiating a higher salary can be easier than jumping ship to an entirely new school. In fact, some would say it’s worth trying to negotiate your salary, even if you are happy with it because there’s no harm in asking. How to ask Having said that, how you ask is crucial. Some cultures might consider it rude that you’d ask for more money before you’ve signed a contract with them and proven what a great teacher you are in person. Others expect you to haggle a little over the details of your contract. Whatever your relationship with your school is, be polite, friendly and choose the appropriate moment to bring up the subject. And do a little research into how salary negotiations are typically approached in this particular country. During the hiring process If you are trying to negotiate a raise during the hiring process it’s best to wait until you’ve been offered a job. Make sure you know the average salary for teachers in the area to give you an idea of how far to push your negotiations and don’t shy away from talking up any experience, qualifications or other strong points you have. Another technique you could try during the hiring process is to seek out a few different job offers in the same country or city. Let your current employers know that you’re in demand from schools that pay higher wages and that could push them to pay you more. After you’ve been hired If you are already working for a school and want to renegotiate your salary, make sure you have a strong performance record and can give clear examples of what makes you a valuable employee. Rather than putting too much pressure on yourself, be patient and think of the first negotiation as a way to open a conversation. If your first request for a raise is refused, ask what criteria would make them agree to a raise in the future. Then put a time frame in place so you can go back in 2 to 6 months, with all the criteria they ask for and make your request again. More than money Another thing you could consider is negotiating for something other than cold, hard cash. Your school might not be in a position to pay you more but maybe they could increase your benefits by offering extra holiday days, a nicer apartment or guaranteed placement in an area you want. Thinking beyond money could result in a win-win negotiation for you and your school. Work for great schools Finally, aim to work for schools who value quality. Seek out employers that are firmly invested in their school’s values and community, and they’ll be more likely to know that it’s worth investing in and hold onto great teachers.