Is tuition necessary?

Was talking to a friend yesterday about her son's CA results. She sought my advice as her son did rather badly in his English CA. She was thinking of sending her son to a tuition centre near her house to save time. However, she was in a dilemma as her son was piled with homework every day and the form teacher told his class at the beginning of the year, "All of you must see if you can cope with your work before enrolling for tuition classes. There is no need for you to go for any tuition classes this year."

Hence we started discussing if tuition is necessary. As an educator, I told her that NOT every kid needs tuition. Yes, I believe so even after I have set up a learning centre. However, the rest of the kids need or choose to attend tuition classes for different reasons:
(a) Some kids are weaker and need reinforcement of the concepts in a smaller group
(b) Some parents think that their kids have potential to do better and hope to stretch their kids' potential
(c) Some parents are not able to coach or guide their kids at home due to their work commitments or their lack of knowledge of the primary school syllabus
etc
There are various reasons.
For my friend's case, reasons (a) and (c) apply. Hence I think it would be advisable for her son to seek some help.

My friend was in a dilemma because of the teacher's advice at the beginning part of the year. I think the form teacher was trying to pre-empt the class about the sheer amount of work the kids will have this year so that the kids will prioritise their activities. Her intention was good. However, she might have overlooked the fact that the kids in her class are not homogeneous. Some of them may be weaker in certain subjects although they are in one of the top classes.

Parents, do not feel anxious if your child is not attending tuition classes. This is especially so if you feel that it is not necessary for him or her. However, if you think that your child needs tuition due to one of the reasons listed above, try to seek help earlier. Do not wait till the crucial PSLE year. I think the foundation years are very important.