Luxury of Homework

Homework Helpers Focus Students’ Attention - NYTimes.com: "If a student finds French grammar or algebra incomprehensible, a tutor in those subjects can help. But if the problem is a child who will not budge from the Xbox, or pens doodles instead of topic sentences, some harried parents with cash to spare have been turning to homework helpers who teach organizational skills and time management, or who sometimes just sit there until the work is finished.

As schools have piled on expectations and as career paths have sucked in both mothers and fathers, this niche industry is catering to “students who are capable of doing the work” but “need someone there who can just be there with them to consistently do the work in a regular manner,” said Mike Wallach, who along with Ms. Kraglievich runs the service Central Park Tutors.

But it has also led some educators to question whether this trend might simply be a subcontracted form of “helicopter parenting,” depriving children of the self-reliance they will need later in life.

“I think it really came about as a result of very, very busy parents who needed some additional care given for their children after school and saw the opportunity to meld that with some academic support,” said Robert Lauder, the principal of Friends Seminary, a Manhattan private school. But, he said, “with any kind of support, there is the possibility of it becoming a crutch.”

One of those very busy parents is Benji’s mother, Debra Sternberg, who has four boys ages 7 to 15 and, like her husband, Marvin, works full time. She says the service is a lifesaver, preserving tranquillity in the short hours that she and Benji have together after work and before bedtime.

“I don’t want to have friction between the two of us,” she said, speaking of homework. “It made more sense for me to step out of it.”

At a recent session with Benji, Ms. Kraglievich dug through his papers for assignments and encouraged him to write more slowly. She uncrumpled work sheets and read the questions to Benji. But mostly, she sat next to him as he pecked away at a writing assignment, urging him along when he got bored.

She has helped him create filing systems, though he still scribbles some assignments on the back of his hand. “She helps me get my priorities straight,” Benji said.

Sometimes the homework helper is responding to deeper issues than a busy parent, said Cynthia Neuman, the director of All Ivy Tutors in Manhattan. Chief among them, she said, is attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

And in some cases, Mr. Wallach of Central Park Tutors said, “if a child is having organizational problems, they are actually having academic problems that they are hiding with a lack of motivation or organization.”

A good homework helper can also be a switch-hitter, playing subject-matter tutor as the need arises. All Ivy, for example, has some helpers with backgrounds in subjects like music theory who watch over — but do not teach — a student’s piano practice, counting off beats and making sure the student is playing accurately, Ms. Neuman said.

“If you can afford the luxury, it’s worth it” said Ms. Sternberg, who reported that her son’s grades and organizational skills improved and that parent-child conflicts declined after she hired Ms. Kraglievich.