Start with the problem, not the product
“Struggling with maths” can mean very different things. Before choosing any kind of help, it is worth working out which of these is closest to your child’s situation.
They understand it in class, then forget
Homework goes fine on the night, but the same skills are shaky a few weeks later in a topic test. This is mostly a practice and retrieval gap.
They make the same mistakes repeatedly
Sign errors, a missed middle term when expanding, the wrong trig ratio. The method is mostly there, but specific steps keep breaking. This is a targeted practice gap.
They cannot start most questions
Even with a worked example, a whole topic does not make sense, or earlier skills (fractions, negative numbers, basic algebra) are missing. This is an understanding gap.
They avoid maths altogether
Homework does not get started, tests bring tears, or your child says they “just can’t do maths”. This is often a confidence or accountability gap, sometimes alongside the others.
Your child’s teacher is the best first source here. A short conversation about recent tests usually tells you which of these is going on. Our maths homework guide covers how to raise it.
App and tutor, side by side
This is a general comparison. Individual tutors and apps vary a lot, so treat it as a starting point rather than a verdict.
| Consideration | Study app | Tutor (online or in person) |
|---|---|---|
| Best at | Frequent practice, spaced review of past mistakes, quick worked solutions | Diagnosing why a student is stuck, re-teaching a topic, adapting explanations in the moment |
| When it is available | Any time, in short sessions, including the night before a test | At booked session times, usually weekly |
| Accountability | Depends on your child’s habits and your routine at home | Built in: someone is expecting them each week |
| Seeing the working | Checks answers and shows methods, but cannot watch your child think | Can watch the process and spot exactly where it goes wrong |
| Cost and time | Generally a lower ongoing cost, no travel | Generally a higher cost per week, plus travel for in-person sessions |
| Match to school | Varies; check it follows the Australian Curriculum and Australian terminology | Varies; ask whether they know your child’s year level and state curriculum |
When an app is the right tool
An app is a good fit when your child is roughly on track and the bottleneck is practice. Often, marks in Years 7 to 10 are lost on skills a student has been taught but has not practised enough to recall under test conditions. Two well-established learning habits help most here:
- Retrieval practice: trying a question from memory, rather than re-reading notes, strengthens recall.
- Spacing: coming back to a skill over days and weeks works better than doing a lot in one night.
Both are hard to organise by hand. Many students do not keep a list of what they got wrong, and fewer still come back to it a week later. That is the gap a study app can fill.
What to look for in a maths app
- Australian Curriculum alignment so practice matches what is being taught this term, in the same order and language.
- Practice on your child’s actual mistakes, not just generic question sets.
- Worked solutions that show steps, so your child sees the method, not only the answer.
- Similar questions, not the same one, so they practise the skill rather than memorising an answer.
- Some visibility for parents, so you can see whether it is being used and what is improving.
How Tuterly approaches it
Tuterly is built around the questions your child gets wrong. They snap a photo of a wrong question from homework or a marked test; it is saved with a worked solution; Tuterly generates fresh questions on the same skill; questions return until they are mastered; Fix my mistakes drills the questions they got wrong with fresh versions, and a weekly review tests the week’s trickiest; and before a topic test, they can test themselves on that topic, with anything they get wrong going into their bank. It covers Years 7 to 10 maths and is designed by Australian educators at Bayside Academics. See snap a question and Topic check.
When your child needs a person
Some problems need someone who can watch your child work, ask questions back, and change the explanation on the spot. Consider a tutor, or extra support through the school, when:
- They are significantly behind. If earlier skills are missing, more practice on current topics will not stick until the foundations are rebuilt.
- The process needs diagnosing. Answers keep coming out wrong and nobody can quite see why. A person watching the working can usually spot it.
- Anxiety is getting in the way. A patient adult can rebuild confidence in a way practice alone cannot. If worry is affecting school life, talk to the school too.
- Accountability is the missing piece. Some students simply work better when someone is expecting them at a set time.
- A high-stakes step is coming. Class placement for Year 10 or senior maths choices can make targeted help worth it for a term.
Before paying for tutoring, ask the school what support already exists. Many secondary schools run homework clubs or maths help sessions, and teachers can often point you to the specific skills that need work.
Using an app and a tutor together
The choice is not always one or the other. A hybrid often works well, because each covers what the other cannot:
- The tutor uses session time for re-teaching and diagnosis, not for drilling questions your child could practise alone.
- The app handles practice between sessions, on the specific questions your child got wrong that week.
- Your child brings their saved mistakes to the session, so the tutor starts from real evidence rather than guessing.
A common pattern is to use a tutor for a term while a big gap is closed, then step back to app-based practice once your child is keeping up again. The school stays in the loop throughout.
Questions to ask before you decide
Ask your child
- Which topic feels hardest right now?
- When you get a question wrong, do you know why?
- Would you rather practise on your own or with someone?
Ask the teacher
- Is this a practice issue or an understanding issue?
- Are there gaps from earlier years?
- What support does the school already offer?
Ask any app or tutor
- Does it follow the Australian Curriculum for my child’s year?
- How will I know if it is helping?
- Can it work from my child’s actual mistakes?
Whichever you choose, check the topics your child is studying on the Years 7 to 10 guides, and give it a fair trial of several weeks before judging it.