Bridging the Learning Gap: Helping Your Child Keep Up with the Curriculum

Many parents' biggest concern about their child’s education is whether their child is keeping up with the curriculum. Students may experience academic performance issues and learning gaps for various reasons, including disruptions associated with COVID-19, missing school due to illness, and difficulties with core subjects like Maths and Reading.  

Young child struggling with homework

If your child is struggling at school,  you’re certainly not alone. Many parents face similar challenges. There are numerous ways you can provide appropriate assistance to help your child recover from setbacks in their education and even outperform. 

What are the causes of Learning Gaps?

Students experience a gap in their learning when their knowledge level or skills do not meet age or year-level expectations. The more common reasons include:

• Disruptions to schooling:  The COVID-19 pandemic created significant disruptions in learning, which, together with routine absences for illness and other reasons, generated learning gaps. 

• Difficulty with specific subjects:  Some children experience more significant challenges with subjects such as Maths and English.  Students who do not have a solid foundation in these subjects struggle to cope as more complex elements of the syllabus are introduced. 

• Lack of personalised learning: Teachers work hard to support their students. However, a classroom environment with 25 or 30 students makes personalising learning and providing individual attention difficult. As a result, students who need focused 1:1 support to help grasp the content often get left behind.

• Confidence and self-efficacy: Students who struggle with schoolwork may lack confidence in their abilities, which can lead to decreased engagement.

Possible Indications of a Learning Gap:

Here are some common signs to watch out for if your child is falling behind:

• Avoiding homework or evading discussions about school.

• Declining academic performance as demonstrated on school reports or assignments.

• Difficulty grasping core concepts: Students who struggle with basic literacy skills such as reading and comprehension or numeracy abilities like addition and multiplication tend to experience problems in their overall academic journey. For instance, if your child is having trouble understanding the concept of fractions in Maths or is struggling to read and comprehend a paragraph in their English class, these could be signs of a learning gap.

• Anxiety about school:  Children who display anxiety about school attendance or show a lack of enthusiasm may be experiencing feelings of being left behind.

Seven tips on what you can do to help your child:

Here are seven tips on what you can do to support your child who may be falling behind academically:

1. Talk to your child's teacher:  Try to determine the specific areas where your child’s learning gaps exist.  Ask questions such as: Are they struggling with memorising facts? Do they have the foundational literacy and/or numeracy skills?  How do they cope with reading and spelling?  Precise identification of problems enables targeted solutions.

2. Develop a structured learning routine:   Set aside a specific time and place in your home (“learning time”) for your child to do their homework, make notes, read their textbooks, complete assignments and prepare for tests.   Try to keep learning time manageable and regular, with shorter durations for younger students.  Assess how they manage with this structured routine, then slowly increase the time, depending on their individual needs and capacity to remain engaged.

3. Personalised learning:  Try to identify your child’s learning needs -  this can be done by reviewing the details on their reports and speaking with their school teacher.  Try to encourage them to focus on those areas where they need the most support.  For instance, if your child is struggling with reading comprehension, you can provide them with books or online resources that are at their reading level.  Online tutoring services like Cluey Learning deliver personalised and adaptive one-to-one learning programs with targeted support. These programs are designed to meet your child's unique learning needs, providing them with the extra help and attention they need to overcome their learning gaps and succeed academically.

4. Develop a growth mindset: Remove the stigma attached to struggling with schoolwork by explaining to your child that learning challenges are common and that their results can improve through effort, learning, and persistence.

5. Core skills:  All learning builds on the essential literacy and numeracy skills students need to acquire. These skills can be enhanced through regular reading, writing, and Maths exercises through everyday problem-solving.

6. Get help:  Given the complexity of the curriculum and parents’ sometimes limited ability to assist their children, if you identify significant learning gaps, you should consider personalised tutoring services such as Cluey Learning. 

7. Don’t procrastinate. The longer you leave the problem, the harder it will be to resolve. Early intervention is key. Actively participate in your child’s learning and seek help when needed. As a parent, you know your child better than anyone else.

Addressing your child’s learning gaps starts with identifying them early and taking proactive steps. Through open dialogue with teachers, personalised support, and structured routines, parents can help their children conquer academic difficulties. Early intervention and appropriate resources allow children to build fundamental skills through setbacks, which serve as growth opportunities for achieving long-term success.