Case study
Online Homeschooling for a US Middle School Student
Seattle, Washington
Location
Online Homeschooling
Category
A family sought an exceptional team of online tutors to work with their 14-year-old daughter through a full academic year, running until the end of Grade 8. The student had previously done well across subjects, and in particular the STEM disciplines, however but her stalled and she was some way short of the record she needed for admission to her chosen high school. She remained motivated in her studies and academic career; but found trouble with concentration, confidence, and exam technique. The family wanted an online solution to fit around the student's sporting and social commitments, with subject specialist tutors on a flexible weekly timetable managed by Witherow Brooke.
Role of the Tutors
Witherow Brooke built a timetable of study with subject specialist tutors highly experienced in the Grade 8 curriculum, maintaing oversight and communication with all tutors to provide a flexible and adaptive programme until the end of the year.
Beyond the experience and expertise to teach their subject, and a demonstrable history of raising the ability of theor students, each tutor was selected for their emotional intelligence and exceptional communication skills, as well as personalities to best engage with the student. The student needed educators who could rebuild her confidence as well as her grades, able to inspire interest in the subjects themselves, and a joy in learning more general.
Each tutor buit a bespoke curriculum for their subject, taking into account the student's current level, as well as gaps in her current knowledge and technical skills. These programmes included frequent testing under timed conditions to improve the student's ability and confidence under exam conditions. From the outset, explicit attention was given to teaching the student how to revise and undergo independent study and work as key educational habits, alongside information retention, written and oral communication, and logical reasoning.
The subjects taught covered English Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, US History, Geography and French, alongside preparation for standardised admissions testing. As well as coordinting the team of subject specialist educators, Witherow Brooke maintained support and oversight, providing extended quarterly reports to the family to highlight progress and where additional focus would be beneficial.
Tuition ran to approximately 15 hours across four weekdays each week.
Outcome
The student's grades moved from the low band she had been sitting in to comfortably above the threshold her chosen school required, with the strongest gains in Mathematics and English Language Arts. Her standardised test scores improved substantially between the diagnostic and the real sitting. The student was ultimately awarded a place at her first-choice school. The family noted that the more lasting change was in how she worked: she had learned to plan a week, to revise deliberately rather than by rereading, and to manage her own attention without supervision.