How to Help your Student

How Can I Help My Child in Their Learning?

Parents play an important role in supporting their child’s learning. High levels of parental engagement are associated with better academic outcomes for students. Evidence suggests that effective use of thinking strategies and self-regulated behaviour when undertaking learning can lead to learning gains of +7 months over the course of a year. So, what does this mean? Effective metacognitive strategies enable learners to think about their own learning more explicitly, usually by teaching them to set goals, and monitor and evaluate their own academic progress (self-regulation).

To help students develop independent learning skills and manage their own learning, parents are encouraged to:

• Provide the right amount of support at the right time.
• Encourage students to persevere through difficult learning situations. Remember, learning doesn’t always come easy. Learning is challenging. They won’t ‘get it’ first time, every time. That is what learning is all about. If learning was easy, everyone would be making outstanding progress in every subject, every time. When it doesn’t come easy, it requires hard work and effort. It requires time, practice and ‘grit’. 
• Ask open-ended questions about their learning, strengths and challenges (see questions below). Instead of asking them what they 'did' at school, as them ‘what did you 'learn' today.
• Ensure students set clear goals for each study session, so they have clarity and purpose before they begin.
• Give the least amount of help first to encourage student's ownership of the task (Evidence for Learning, 2019a, p.15; Vaughan, 2018). 

Additionally, assist students to create a regular revision / study routine and encourage good study habits. However, be cautious about promoting direct parental assistance with homework (particularly for older children). This means setting up a flexible weekly routine where students are reflecting on each of their classes to evaluate what they learnt and determine whether they have learnt it. All students across year 9 - 12 have created a study timetable in Explore. This study timetable is about consolidating their learning through distributed study and practice over the course of the week. Instead of asking, 'what homework do you have', ask the following:

• What should you have learnt this week? How do you know what you have learnt?
• What evidence of learning can you show me this week? 
• Can you demonstrate what you learnt this week in 'subject ______.
• Where are you at with your learning in subject ______. Can you show me on your developmental rubric?
• Can you show me your learning progress on your developmental rubric for subject _______?
• What did you do well in class today / this week?
• What are you aiming to improve this week?
• What feedback to you need from your teachers today / this week?

Parents can also support their child by encouraging them to set goals and plan for when they are about to study. This will help them manage their time, effort, and promote positive emotions. This type of support can help children to regulate their own learning and will often be more valuable than direct help with homework tasks.

You might also like to set up a time when your child can ‘present’ their findings / learnings. This is a great tip for VCE students so they can demonstrate through retrieval practice what they have learnt based on the knowledge and skills in their developmental rubric. There are a range of ways students might like to demonstrate their learning and understanding. This includes: 

• Speech:  Prepare and deliver a speech to the family on what they have learnt in a subject (based on the knowledge and skills in their developmental rubric)
• Practice questions: Ask them to write up some practice questions, answer them and then check their responses based on their summary notes.
• Mind map / poster: Create an informative poster/ mind map to display what they have learnt 
• Report: Write a formal report outlining what they have learnt

David Black, Tim Pearson 

& Darren Hoogkamer

Senior School Leaders