Integrating Soft Skills into Test Prep to Improve Academic Performance

“Soft skills”- non-technical, essential, social skills - is a major buzzword for professional achievement. That’s no surprise, as many of these skills are vital to productivity and success. In fact, having a range of soft skills on their resume unquestionably makes an applicant stand out in any application pool, in every vocation. If these skills associated with professionalism and achievement can aid those already on their careers paths, imagine what they can do for your test-prep students. Incorporating these integral skills into your clients’ test-prep plan will teach them requisite skills they need to build a solid foundation for improved academic performance and future success.

In this post, we’ve compiled a list of the most important soft skills that we feel are vital to our students - both personally and academically - that will pay dividends now and into their futures.

1. Organization

The bedrock of soft skills, organization is the foundation in which many of these essential skills build off of. Teaching your students how to organize their time, schedules, tasks, and communications will help them lay the groundwork for their academic success.

Students have a lot going on in their lives - academically, extracurricularly, and socially. Helping them to create a way in which they can keep it all coordinated and ordered will not only make their lives a bit easier to manage, but will lessen their stress.

Keeping things tidy with the use of calendars (paper or digital), planners, checklists, RAM charts, note-taking methods (e.g., Cornell note-taking system) are just a few methods that will help students keep track of their everyday schedules and tasks in an efficient and organized manner.

2. Time Management

Students come to depend largely on the built-in structure of their school day to help them learn time management. However, many students struggle with managing their academics during their own time (e.g., prioritizing tasks, completing homework assignments and projects, studying for exams, etc.). Teaching them how to effectively and efficiently manage their time autonomously is vital to self-sufficiency and better academic performance.

Moreover, once they move on to college, that built-in structure that they’ve come to rely on during the school day is essentially non-existent. So, teaching them how to best manage their time effectively now will reap benefits for them in perpetuity.

3. Work Ethic

Work ethic is an integral part of a successful test-prep plan. It takes more than a dedicated tutor to achieve a positive end result. From the start, make it abundantly clear that the success of every tutoring session and every test-prep plan hinges on the student’s work ethic, and hold them accountable for their commitment to their academic success. The harder a student works and the more committed they are, the better they will perform during tutoring sessions, in school, and on test day.

4. Teamwork

Tutoring sessions are a collaboration; between students, test-prep professionals, and parents. Everyone involved must be on the same page working together toward the same goals in order to have a successful test-prep experience. Help your clients build teamwork skills by working jointly with them and their parents. By involving students in creating their test-prep plan as well as encouraging their input as their prep plan progresses, students will feel more like they’re a part of the team and less like they’re fruitlessly following someone else’s plan (i.e., their parents’).

5. Communication

Arguably, communication is one of the most difficult skills to learn if it doesn't come naturally to you; however, it is also one the most invaluable. That said, there are 2 prime methods in which students can build on their communication skills through test prep:

Verbal communication: Start off on the right foot with your clients by emboldening them to openly discuss their goals and objectives as well as the areas in which they are struggling the most. Establishing and maintaining an ongoing line of verbal communication is key in making sure that your clients know that their voice matters and that they have a large role in their test-prep plan. This, in turn, will help you to better maintain a current benchmark for their progress.
Additionally, helping students to strengthen their verbal communication skills will help them build on other imperative communication skills: e.g., active listening, eye contact, asking questions, and carrying on a conversation - all crucial means for effective communication.
Written Communication: Effectively communicating in written form takes practice. This is where teaching students to successfully write in essay form can be essential. Through writing essays, students can learn how to effectively communicate their perspectives and views. Whether persuasive, narrative, expository, descriptive, reflective, personal, or simply through compare and contrast - students will be able to learn and build on the vital skill of written communication.

6. Problem Solving

Problem solving does not just apply to math and science, but to all aspects of academia. As a tutor, you typically teach your clients a variety of ways in which to tackle a problem, and in doing so provide your clients with a collection of tools that they can use to find a solution. Make it a point to practice using diverse methods of looking at and solving problems so that students can confidently problem solve when faced with an obstacle while on their own.

7. Flexibility

Learning to be adaptable is an oft-overlooked skill and yet a major component to success. In tutoring, it’s important to remain flexible even when you’ve already established a solid test-prep plan. In order to have positive results, tutoring sessions must be effective. That means that there will be times when you and your students may have to spend more time than planned to work on a particular issue. Setbacks are normal and every student learns at a different pace. When you help your students learn to be flexible and adaptable, they come to accept and understand that hurdles can be overcome; you just need to remain focused and committed.

How You Can Help Your Students Develop Soft Skills During Test Prep

As professionals, most of us already have a firm grasp on how to utilize soft skills. We have the calendars, planners, and filing systems that best suit our needs and help us navigate through our daily lives - both personally and professionally. Integrating soft-skills training into your test-prep instruction can be achieved in a variety of ways. Here are a few suggestions that we have found to be helpful:

Teach Your Students to Establish and Maintain a Learning Mindset

Nobody knows it all - not even test-prep gurus. However, understandably, many of our students come to us feeling overwhelmed - and even a tad defeated - with their academic shortcomings. To remedy this, students must be encouraged to approach their test prep with an open mind. Be sure to convey to them that everyone has weak points, but that those weaknesses can be strengthened over time.

Ultimately, students must be receptive to undertaking test prep with a positive and productive mindset to maximize their potential for growth and your overall effectiveness.

Expanding Knowledge and Understanding Must Be a Continuous Goal

In the same vein, help your students stretch their conceptual knowledge and understanding; most pointedly through reading. Consistently sharing our tips and tricks in this area will only strengthen your students’ academic muscles.

Here are a few of our favorites:

Encourage Self-Reflection and Provide Ample Opportunities for Feedback

Every test-prep session should include some self-reflection and constructive feedback. We touched on keeping an open dialogue with your clients to help with their verbal communication skills. Incorporating time for students to regularly assess their progress while providing advice and pointers will help students further advance in between their sessions and better achieve improved academic performance.

While each soft skill we’ve discussed has its own merit, it’s learning to foster them all in concert that reaps the most benefits. That said, it takes time, patience (one everyone’s part), and practice to really hone these skills for maximum benefit.

As always, we here at Clear Choice Prep want to help you, your test-prep business, and your clients attain success. The best way that we can support you is through our 100% custom-branded test-prep curriculum and materials. Our tools empower tutors to create effective and tailored test prep experiences for all levels of students.

Click the link below for a free demo and consultation to see how our white label test-prep solutions can help you take your brand, your company, and your clients to the next levels of success.