Welcome to BL Tutoring

Your Path to Success in SAT and Math

For the past two years, education has experienced unprecedented interruptions as the world has grappled with the COVID 19 pandemic. In 2020 when schools were forced to shutter abruptly, many did so without the infrastructure to fully support students through virtual learning. Math skills, in particular, were vulnerable to the ‘COVID slide,’ and studies based on data collected from computer-adaptive tests predicted that students could learn half or up to a full year less math in 2020-2021 than they would in a typical school year. It was estimated that students could experience more than four months of lost learning in math compared to a month or two in reading. To a large extent, these predictions came true. Comparing 2020 test results from more than 4.4 million students to those from the fall of 2019, the Northwest Evaluation Association confirmed an average 5 to 10 percentile-point difference in math.

This learning regression is attributed to the fact that math, more so than reading, is almost always formally learned at school, and parents tend to be less equipped to help their children with math. Up to 1 in 5 U.S. adults report severe math anxiety, and 67% of teachers say students’ math anxiety is a challenge. Stress impacts learning and retention; therefore, increased pandemic-related stressors may magnify these anxieties and negatively impact learning even further.

Luckily, there are effective ways to counteract ‘COVID slide,’ and tutoring is proven to be one of them. A collaborative evidence review conducted by Northwestern University, University of Toronto, and MIT indicated that tutoring programs consistently lead to significant improvements in learning outcomes. While the added instructional time inherent to private tutoring certainly helps, customized instruction that can adapt to each student has a powerful impact on learning. Tutoring also allows for increased engagement and rapid feedback missing in the traditional classroom setting. In this time of social distancing, the mentor relationship formed between student and tutor can also improve academic performance.

Although we certainly hope that we are nearing the end of the pandemic, the impacts on learning are likely to persist. Tutoring is a proven effective tool that can help make up for lost time and help your student excel despite the challenges of the past two years.

References –

Evidence-Review_The-Transformative-Potential-of-Tutoring.pdf (povertyactionlab.org)

Kids Are Behind in Math Because of COVID-19. Here’s What Research Says Could Help (edweek.org)

“It is widely accepted that we learn approximately 10% of what we read, 20% of what we hear, 30% of what we see, 50% of what we see and hear, 70% of what we discuss, 80% of what we experience and 95% of what we teach others. Collaborative learning is vital for enhanced learning in the classroom and pupils who demonstrate lower levels of achievement improve when working in diverse groups.” Grace Kelly – “Two (or more) heads are better than one.”

Once families decide to seek academic help, they have several options: individual tutoring, group sessions, or even large review classes. Each option has its own unique advantages, and it is worth considering which is right for you.

On one hand, one-on-one tutoring offers unique advantages: the student works with one educational professional week after week (often over several months or years) who is devoted to helping him or her achieve success and who develops a sense of the student’s individual learning needs. This type of arrangement includes academic mentorship and the fostering of positive academic skills and habits.

On the other hand, group tutoring sessions offer their own unique benefits to students and their families. When working in groups with peers, students learn from each other and benefit from the various learning styles in a group. Adolescent students are often highly motivated by each other, and experienced tutors are able to promote positive environments of scaffolded learning where students push each other to achieve their own goals. Additionally, group tutoring options offer financial benefits to families in the form of discounted hourly rates.

Our tutors have seen the benefits of both one-on-one and group instruction with experience working with students individually, in small groups, and in groups of up to 40. We recognize the individuality of every student and are happy to help build a program to fit your unique needs.

Often it is not a lack of intelligence or an understanding of subject matter that stands in the way of student success. Rather students simply need help strengthening their executive functioning skills, which are basically self-management tools.

Executive Function Skills:

• Paying attention
• Organizing, planning, and prioritizing tasks
• Starting tasks and staying focused
• Managing emotions
• Keeping track of what you have accomplished

Executive function skills fall into three main categories –

• Working memory – the ability to hold onto information and then put it to use
• Cognitive flexibility – the ability to think about things in more than one way
• Inhibitory control – the ability to ignore distractions and self-regulate

Now more than ever, with the realities of virtual learning and increased distractions, executive functioning skill development is so important. Developing these skills is just like working out. You have to put in consistent time and effort in order to see results, but that hard work really pays off! Strong executive function skills never stop being useful and will serve students throughout their academic and professional careers. Check out our Services page to see how we approach executive function coaching.

Can you solve this math puzzle??? Test your skills and give it a go!

Answers will be posted on Friday 🙂

I saw this puzzle in Scientific American. Apparently it was designed for Taiwanese 9 year-olds. Dust off your multiplication skills!

A, B, C, D, and E represent digits (0-9).

Post your solution!

This joke comes from one of my calculus students:

Q: “Why were the Romans so good at Algebra?”

A: “Because X was always 10.”