Advice about on set tutoring

[lesleyhat]

HELP. My ds has just been confirmed on a seties for cbbc which will take 3 months to film. I have been told he will be tutored but given no more details. I dont want to seem like an annoying parent before we even get on set but his school are asking questions about the structure of the tutoring and how it will work. How many hours, how work will be set and marked etc. Does anyone have any experience of this that they can share with me?. I would be most grateful. PLEASE

[francescasmum]

Have sent you a pm

[lesleyhat]

Thankyou francescasmum. It hasnt come through yet. I will look out for it. Any advice I can get will be most welcome. He has only ever done shoots lasting up to a week so I have no experience at all of this and I feel like I should be asking lots of questions but not sure who to ask. Thanks again x

[francescasmum]

It took longer than I thought it would to write, better get yourself a cup of tea before you sit down to read it!
Feel free to ask anything else.

[fartoomuchtodo]

We've had a few experiences of tutoring on set. One was just for a few days (I think that if there are more than 3 consecutive days filming they are obliged to supply a tutor) the others were occcasionally joining in on shows which were mainly a child cast and had a tutor permanently on set for all the cast.

The first experience was not very good. We sat, my DS the tutor and I, in a tiny 3-way and I listened to him bore my DS to death! Despite speaking to me on the 'phone first the work he brought was totally inappropriate (too young) and I could have done better myself. That said - I did contribute on days 2 and 3 and it got better.

The tutoring on the other show was better but did rely heavily on the kids bringing material from home/school and that they should know what they needed to cover. Speak to school and ask for work - my advice is to ask really early and keep pushing for work - teachers see it as an extra bore to provide out of school work and most, but not all, need some encouragement!

My experience on the 4 O'Clock Club was that most of the kids will do anything to get out of tutoring but the chaperones do make sure they go. There are a set number of hours that the production co's are required to provide each week for each child (I think it was 15 hours a week?) and the time sheets that chaperones keep should show this.

Sorry its a bit scrappy info - hope it helps a bit.

[admin]

The issue of tutoring is a fraught one. Some tutors are excellent others are merely fulfilling the relevant legal requirements. If you have a child doing exams, common entrance/gcse etc it can be a problem because very few teachers have all the necessary skills in place.

Be sure to ask the school for lesson plans, of course if you are filming over the summer holidays its less of an issue, but if you are missing school work, and the school is academically rigorous it could pose a problem.

Don’t be scared to stress the need for a competent tutor, and the BBC can call on many. If you want more individual info please feel free to PM.

[lesleyhat]

Thank you everyone. Its all really helpful info. It seems that the more I take
control the better it will be. School are being very pro active and will provide work for him. We will see how it goes.

[mumtomil]

Hello, we are doing the same series, and i'm in the same position! Especially as DD is almost 14

[francescasmum]

I've forwarded the pm i sent to lesleyhat to you millyzero

[lesleyhat]

Hi millyzero. I have also sent you a pm regarding info I have had today

[paulears]

My own experience, as a volunteered tutor was quite sticky.

In my case, it wasn't. TV work, but I was Company Manager for a husband and wife team - both well known performers, who love their kids dearly, and couldn't face being away from the kids. School were willing to allow the extra three weeks before the Christmas holiday. The school were willing to set work, but wanted a proper qualified teacher. So I was asked if I'd give them 2 hours tutoring a day - which I agreed to. The school tried quite hard and supplied me with work to cover, and one of them was on a programme with specific content, being a little older, so they sent the spec and a scheme of work that I could modify to fit what we were doing.

I'd expect any qualified and experienced teacher to be able to deliver what was required - but it needs the school teacher to do quite a bit of one to one planning and design, and I'd bet not every teacher would want to do this. In my case, it also needed me to do quite a bit of research in my own time to be able to fill the holes in my own knowledge. What did I know about native American Indians - as in Cowboys and Indians? Not a lot - and I discovered some pretty awful history while researching. I then looked at a girl in her early teens and wondered how deep the school wished me to go - no clue.

I guess what I'm saying is that the more info the tutor has of the course, the content and the existing knowledge and understanding the student has, the better. I'd not assume the kids are replacing what they would have got in school, because they won't be. However, a good teacher will devise interesting, stimulating and worthwhile lessons, with the schools support - so that's where I'd start.

[angeline]

My son toured with the UK tour of The King & I and was tutored and chaperoned by CATs (Chaperones and Tutors Ltd). He had a fantastic tutor and a wonderful time. His school were very supportive and his class teacher sent work for him on a weekly basis. The chaperones are strict about tutoring as it is a legal requirement and he worked hard as school support is needed for future licence applications. In fact he worked so hard that at the school prize giving he was awarded the year prize (for boys) for general excellence! I'm sure that with the BBC tutoring will be good. Preparation is key so give your school plenty of time to prepare work for the tutor. Hope your son has a fabulous time . Enjoy the experience as it all passes so quickly.

[francescasmum]

I would say they get through a lot more work when they have a tutor. One time my dd was given work for a week by her school, she completed it in 3 days with the tutor, then when she went back to school she had to sit in the corner reading for two days whilst the other children caught up!
So pack some extra things for them to do, books to read, revision books (the type you get from WH Smiths/Waterstones), quiz books etc oh and plenty of pens and pencils!

[Panda]

Well done to your DCs LesleyHat and Millyzero Hope they have a wonderful time