SMART HOME EDUCATION

How to boost child’s confidence and put them in the driving seat!

“Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.” (George Bernard Shaw)

Home educating parents/carers are recommended to encourage their children to take control of their learning. If a child feels they are in control of their learning, they derive much more satisfaction from the results they produce. By having a specific action plan in mind, home-educating students are often able to see the ‘light at the end of the tunnel’ in their learning a lot more easily.

Action Plan

The purpose of the parent creating an action plan is to ensure that their child feel they are taking responsibility for their own learning. As part of reviewing progress of your child’s learning, ask them to write down which areas they feel confident in, for each subject and in general. Begin your action plan on a positive note by helping them celebrate areas they are doing well. This way, you are acknowledging that although they need extra help with their studies, they are already achieving in other areas of the subject(s) they are learning.

Then, ask your child to write a list of areas they feel they need improvement in. Have a look over this plan and give your input, based on examples you have seen of their work or feedback they have received from their learning platform. Learning platforms such as Doddle provide test results on individual topics and can be used as a basis for this review exercise

SMART Objectives

At this stage, try adopting a ‘coaching’ mentality and talk through with them, each specific area that have been highlighted. Writing down how your child intends on improving performance allows you to keep track of their progress. One way of setting such objectives is using the SMART objectives methodology.

Used by project managers throughout the English-speaking world, this approach to personal development can also be used to empower your child’s learning. Objectives are 'SMART' if they are specific, measurable, attainable/achievable, realistic/ relevant and time-bound.

Specific

A specific goal is more likely to be achieved than a general goal. Specific goals must be clear and unambiguous. Discuss exactly what your child wants to accomplish and give specific reasons for wanting to do so.

Measurable

Discuss how you will monitor the progress of each of your goals. If your goals are not measurable, you won’t be able to ascertain if they have been achieved. Discuss how you will know when your goals have been achieved.

Attainable

Goals must be realistic and achievable. Your goals should be seen as challenging but not so much such that they seem impossible. When your child identifies their most important goals, they will begin to think of ways these can be achieved and start developing the attitudes, abilities and skills required. Once your child starts to see themselves as worthy of their goals, they will start to feel more confident in their own ability.

Relevant

As well as being achievable, goals also have to be relevant. It’s important to bear in mind the final outcome when setting goals to ensure that any progress being made is heading in the right direction. When setting a relevant goal, it may be a good idea to ask, ‘Does this seem worthwhile?’

Time-Bound

By asking your child to set a deadline, you ensure that they are committing to focusing on their goal. A deadline makes sure that goals are not overtaken by other commitments. The effect of setting a timescale is that it encourages a child to work with a sense of urgency.