Parents can be faced with a difficult decision when it comes to choosing a tutoring program for their child. With many options available, it can be confusing to understand which program is best. Naureen Shivji and Al Shivji, Executive Directors of Huntington Learning Center in Cedar Park, realize how important the choice is and strive to help parents understand the differences in tutoring programs.

“Huntington is the oldest homegrown tutoring in the United States since 1977. What differentiates us is we do one-on-one and small group in person tutoring with certified teachers,” said Naureen.

The big picture

Huntington Learning Center in Cedar Park only hires teachers with bachelor’s degrees and who are certified either through Huntington or through a school district. With over 44 years of experience helping students build confidence, motivation and academic skills, they have the tools and know what it takes to achieve success.

“We understand the holistic picture,” said Al. “We have over 60 years of experience combined within our administrative staff. And when you add in the more than 30 teachers with 20 or 30 years of experience, it really starts to add up.”

A closer look

Huntington is geared to help students K-12 whether they are struggling with a subject or just want to get ahead. Subjects span a wide range from reading and writing to math and science along all grade levels.

During an in-depth 3-4 hour academic evaluation, the “academic x-ray” detects any gaps in learning the child may be experiencing. From that point, an individualized program is created based on the goals to be achieved.

“One of the tests we give is an oral reading section that is monitored and the teacher can see the patterns, the types of errors that are happening and gain more insight than a pencil-and-paper test or a computer test would show,” said Al.

“We use technology to help us track and monitor student improvement but it’s not a substitute for a human teacher,” Naureen said.

A personal approach

In addition to tailoring an academic curriculum, Huntington also works with the parents and students to create an individualized schedule flexible for busy lives and outfitted to work within a specified budget. They also share tips with students about how to organize their schoolwork and their homework.

A child’s unique strengths are recognized by the teachers as well as their areas of improvement. By implementing Huntington’s proprietary and proven teaching methods, teachers are able to help students reach their full potential. Time spent with teachers varies according to the needs and goals of their students.

“We have an appropriate amount of time that leads to progress,” said Al. “We don’t compromise on that. The whole idea is for the student to do the work in front of a coach or teacher so they’re getting that full attention.”

Standardized testing

Expectations are rigorous for standardized testing. Huntington Learning Center understands this and focuses on helping students attain the skills necessary to be successful with these tests. That means not just having a strategy for how to approach them, but genuine understanding in reading and comprehension and confidence to do the writing and math portions.

Huntington also prepares students for taking the digital SAT and ACT tests in a one-on-one environment.

“We’ve had some crazy success stories from those,” Naureen said.

Open communication

Directors at Huntington conduct monthly progress meetings with parents to discuss where the student started and how they are progressing. They show evidence of the student’s work and talk about future goals. Huntington also communicates with the student’s teachers during the semester to make them aware of the progress the student is making.

“It’s not just about the grades. It’s the after effect of how the child comes into the center very shy but then leaves with their head held high,” said Naureen.

The Huntington Learning Center Difference

The Huntington Learning Center in Cedar Park focuses not only on the student and their current grade level and goals, but also prepares them for what lies ahead.

“We understand what they need to be successful beyond 12th grade. We’re able to backtrack that into elementary and middle school to establish what their needs are. We understand the holistic picture of what a child needs from the very beginning of their education,” said Naureen.

The Huntington Learning Center is located at 1335 E. Whitestone Blvd, Ste. D125, Cedar Park, 78613. Contact the center for more information at 512-986-7796 and visit their website huntingtonhelps.com.

The above story was produced by Community Impact's Storytelling Multi-Platform Journalist Victoria Schaefer with information solely provided by the local business as part of their "sponsored content" purchase through our advertising team.