CultusMy son’s in his first year of high school right now and it’s actually been a really tough year for him, and for all of us. In elementary school he was such a happy student. But in Grade 7 something happened. I don’t know if there were some lessons that he didn’t understand or if it had to do with something else. All I know is that around that time, it was clear that my son wasn’t enjoying school like he had before.
He began coming home with frustration all of over his face and began complaining to me about doing his homework at night. It got so bad that at one point my son wouldn’t get out of bed on weekdays because he didn’t want to go to school.
My wife and I were concerned. We tried sitting down with our son and helping him with his homework. But, it was so frustrating, it didn’t seem to lift him back on the right track.
A friend of mine, a fellow mother who had a daughter struggling in school too, told me about Academy one learning. Saying how great their online tutoring programs were and how much they had helped her daughter understand her schoolwork.
It was certainly worth a shot. My son was having a really hard time with math, so we signed him for their math wiz program. I have to admit that at first we were not convinced it would work. But, skepticism set aside, we decided to dig into the program. The Academy One Learning assessment test was really valuable because it allowed us to see where our son’s math skills were and which level of program would be best for him. The personalized lesson plans that he has been receiving since the assessment have been a real winner for him.
The results came pretty quickly. It didn’t happen overnight. But, within weeks my son’s math skills improved. My son’s enthusiasm for studying math improved too. He really loved how the concepts were explained so clearly and creatively. And he loved that the questions the tutorials asked matched his abilities. It’s very important to us that his self-esteem and overall confidence improve as he progresses.
But, I think what really sealed the deal was the fact that academy one included an incentives program in their tutorial. Having the opportunity to win prizes and earn reward points that can be redeemed for movie tickets and iTune vouchers has done more to motivate our son to study than anything else.
“This is awesome!” That’s what he said after he won his first prize, a pair of pretty nice Skull Candy headphones. To hear him say “awesome” again about his school studies has brought such a relief and a joy to me and I have Academy one to thank for that.
By Tommy Buer
