kumon sucks: a retrospective

once upon a time, i had a blog with a fair bit of traffic. one of my most popular posts was kumon sucks about how, exactly, kumon sucks. let me continue.

for those of you that don't know, kumon is this program imported from japan that has spread worldwide like a stage 6 pandemic. it must've come here before 10 years ago because when i was 7 or 8 it was spreading from city to city. basically, it's this academic program where one can study english, japanese, or math through these packets. these packets have multiple problems on them. the kumon center will give you a number of these packets and it's homework. the next week when you go back to kumon, you turn in the ones that you finished the prior week and get back the packets that you did before, all graded. you have to correct the mistakes you made and then turn them back in, as well as get a whole new week's worth of packets.

see nothing wrong with this? on paper, it's quite simple and straightforward. however, these corrections start to add up and it becomes grueling to correct all of the corrections. i mean, okay, fine, if you had done all the questions right in the first place, you wouldn't have to correct them. true. however, the problem lies in the amount of problems. there are so many problems in a packet. so many. 

this isn't an average school homework assignment. these kumon packets have so many problems on a homework packet that are almost exactly the same. referring to the mathematics that they have, they have pages full of the exact same math problem, only with different numbers and variables substituted. this makes the whole process completely boring, completely rote, and completely brutish. 

doing the same problem, essentially, over and over will help you learn; i completely agree. however is this really the way that students should learn? is rote memorization the premiere way to grasp a concept? or is it more learning how and why the problem works? doing those problems, one after another, the prior problem exactly like the one after it, was hell. of course there would multiple corrections to be made on the previous week's packets: the student gets so bored with doing the same problem that their mind wanders off. through the exact mechanism that kumon tries to succeed, it fails. 

kumon is incredibly devious in it's educational manipulation and business strategy. kumon is based on the premise that you cannot learn without being firmly planted in the basics. there is nothing wrong with that statement, however, kumon uses that belief to keep students in the kumon program longer, allowing it to milk more and more money out of the student. how? they put you at a level lower than you actually deserve. while i was in algebra 2 in freshman year of high school, kumon placed me at a pre-algebra level, saying that i wasn't solid in it. they're statement was further supported by my numerous mistakes on the pre-algebra homework i was assigned--homework that i didn't bother to try on because of the mind-numbing uselessness of it all. by keeping me at a lower level, they hoped that i would stay in the program longer. 

the kumon director has the only say as to what level you should be at. no matter what you say, they will say, "you aren't solid in the basics" and put you at a level that they deem sufficient. and you pay for the shit. great business strategy. parents eat this shit up, too. the reason that parents enroll their kids in kumon in the first place is because 1.) they want their kids to "excel" in school or 2.) they want their kids to catch up to the rest of their classmates. kumon seems to be the answer because all you do is sit around and do problems and more problems--time spent "studying" rather than on the computer. well parents, it's not time well spent. brute memorization is exactly that--for brutes. we're human beings. we don't have to be conditioned to learn how to do long division. we don't have to be conditioned to learn to solve for x. 

sure, you may argue that sometimes doing problems over and over is the way to learn things and that kumon is just following a traditional learning outline. that's fine. however, kumon needs to re-look at their content and see that all of their problems are essentially the exact same problem. this may get the kid a's in math. it sure as hell ain't gonna get the kid very far in conceptual mathematics or physics. again, also, kumon's business strategy is to keep the student in the program as long as they can. this needs to end. parents, and students, should have a say where they are placed. 

i went through kumon for quite a number of years. after going through almost all of the packets to complete a level, allowing me to progress to the next level of learning (i.e. algebra => geometry), the director made me retake the level again, saying that i missed questions, and because i missed a certain number of problems, i "didn't get it." this didn't happen once; it happened numerous times. again, i was bored out of my mind, being forced to do problems that were for students 3-4 grades below me. my parents didn't really care: they were all for the kumon strategy, as i'm sure most are. 

i ended up collecting the finished packets that i had finished correcting and using those as answer sheets for the redo packets that i got. i learned to re-number packets and just not do packets. i learned to manipulate the graders and manipulate the system. i learned to think that learning wasn't fun. i learned that the only point of learning is for a goal, for a grade, for an achievement. i learned that learning is always graded. i learned that learning is always compared to other's learning. i learned that learning is composed of rigid levels. 
 
eventually i reached the age of reason and quit. i feel bad for everyone who's still in. telling your parents is pretty useless. if you can't quit, i suggest befriending everyone else in the program and setting up a system where each person saves their finished corrected packets for each level and exchange it with other students in that level so that they can have the answers as well. maybe you could even make some cash off of selling the answers. 

educational manipulation answered by capitalism. capitalism. the answer to the world's problems. 

98 comments:

Unknown said...

dude thank you fuck kumon

Anonymous said...

Man you obviously did not do Kumon right. You probably should have taken English too (their is not the same as they're).
Kumon is a great supplement for the public school curriculum which does not focus on actual skills so much as learning to respect authority and follow rules. What you did during Kumon was what I did during all of high school. (cheating, manipulating and hating it) But Kumon is different because there everything is individual and you do not move on until you know without a doubt the skills you need for the next level. I bet you could not do pre-algebra right now because you were too obstinate to realize how to use a good resource to your advantage.

Anonymous said...

You know what, I still haven't decided on what to say about kumon. It seems decent, but then again, like you said in your post, it seems to put you at a WAY lower level than you deserve. I started a few days ago, and after doing the test, apparently, I need to work on my "addition and subtraction, division and multiplication". I mean come on, ATM, this year I'm gonna go to high school, and for the past few years, my teachers have praised me for excellence in maths, and i have always been in extension classes. Yet I have to do numerous basic problems...

Anonymous said...

THANK YOU! I'm tired of all these freaking packets.. I started in eight grade doing addition when I was learning algebra and they gave me so many packets and I hated it.. I still do. I tried telling my parents to but that didn't work.. BLEH. Btw. I'm in ninth grade on level F. I moved up pretty fast but it's still a dumb program.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for your insight.
My 2nd grader is in Kumon. We started him 6 months ago. We're pulling him though. He is learning math facts. Since the start of 2nd grade he started learning adding 3's (in Kumon) and now at the end of the first 9 week cycle he is at 5's (a bit slow don't you think). The math facts with the 5 is always "X + 5 = " "Never 5 + X =" So he gets confused when you ask him what's 5 +15 rather than 15 +5. The first few packets in learning with a new number I get that. But Kumon needs to switch it up. Our kids need that. In second grade, he has to complete problems in school in a timed manner. He took a timed test which focused on adding 2's. He got everyone right,except when the 2's were first, and he missed every single one of those. The packets never switch. Also, when he gets a new number to add within the packet, after 2 or 3 days of the packet, he gets hundreds, but he stays on the packets for 2 more weeks. Than he gets a week of all the previous math facts he learned for about a week and he misses more than he should. Well duh, he hasn't had to recall them in quite a while since the 3 weeks of learning the new number in the packets (which never switch).
Another problem is that he's up to 5's right now in adding, but where is the subtraction? School math doesn't work that way. I have yet to see one subtraction problem. Instead of closing the gap to catch him up with school, I feel that keeping him in Kumon, will widen it. Currently I use Kumon math to supplement his learning math facts (as part of 2nd grade homework). I shouldn't have to do additional math with him. Afterall, my 2nd grader needs to have sometime to play and not do school math facts than do your Kumon packets...on top of learning 2nd grade spelling words, and then read a book to improve his reading.
The only positive thing I can say is that he's gotten much better about doing homework and Kumon packets. So me and him aren't going back in forth about completing it. I plan on quitting Kumon, and creating my own "packets" better suited to his needs.
Perhaps if he started with Kumon in Kindergarten, I would have been more impressed and he would be higher than his grade level. But catching him up with Kumon in 2nd grade...doesn't seem to be working.

Anonymous said...

OMFG THANK YOU! Kumon DO suck!
I started Kumon at grade 6 and i am grade 9 now. I am a straight A student. The reason my parents are making me do Kumon is because they think kumon gets all the credits for my straight As...I hate it. Why do grades matter that much!? Is it really THAT important!? I dont wanna be an honor student anymore!!...

Oliviagee said...

i completely 100% agree with you im 16 half way done with sophomore geometry but kumon has me doing fractions not just any fractions ,baby fractions like 300 a day its makeing me so angry and annoyed and they have myy dad so brain washed like this is what i need to be doing! ugh i hope kumon falls off a cliff!

Victoria said...

I'm mother of 15 and 14 year old girls, I was searching for good reasons to enroll muy daughters in Kumon, finding your opinions has made me really confused.

Anonymous said...

Victoria, most kids hate kumon. I detested it, and often found myself giggling as i flushed my worksheets down the toilet or tearing them apart. Yes, it was immature for someone of my age, but having to do pointless work every single day is tedious and sometimes frustrating--particularly is you have to focus on real homework that matters. I am now a student in a high tier university and i can say that kumon did NOT help me get here. Like I said before, kids hate kumon, but their parents love it and never listen when their sons or daughters want to quit. I've clashed with my parents many times, and it led to a somewhat strained relationship (they have a habit of enrolling me in crap without permission or consent). Please, consult with your children before considering wasting your time and money on kumon. Did i mention that kumon makes you repeat the same worksheets over and over again--they claim it helps the information to "sink in" when it's actually one of their strategies to suck out money from your pockets.
that anonymous guy from November 9 is clearly a parent who never actually did kumon. if you want real and meaningful advice, listen to the kids, and not the (sometimes self-righteous and unreasonable) parents who always think they know better than their kids.
Here's my advice: if your daughters are doing fine in school, do nothing but encourage and praise. If not, then get them a real tutor (preferrably a student from their school because they'd be more familiar with the schoolwork), and give them small rewards for good grades.

Anonymous said...

I hate kumon so shiting bad and my instructor is a fag who cons 160 bucks out of my parents every month and raises the prices on kumon and she bought a new friggin car and I do the exact same thing u do also I HATE KUMON and my parents make me do it even when I'm at the top of my goddamn class

Anonymous said...

Hey,

I have been a KUMON student for 4 years now and I don't think that it sucks but makes you dependent on KUMON. When I first began KUMON(for now lets just use 'K' for short) as a math student I immediately saw results within 2 years. But you've got to be very on point with this program though.The homework has got to be done on time, when you need help you have to wait in this long never ending line and you have to give up an hour or two every night just to do it. Now when I first began K I will admit I thought it sucked. But when my grades started improving I was like I'm never going to quit K, I thought I would finish it all the way. But boy was I wrong. I first started K when I was about near the end of 6th grade and that's also when I got my braces. Now I'm relating my braces to K because for me it's almost like I'm having a metmorphosis.Just today I got my braces off. After 4 long years of waiting I have finally seen my smile. I was so happy. As months passed and years flew by I thought when will I ever get my braces off? Finally today was when that happened. I felt like I was becoming who I really was and it was time for me to stick uo for myself and not be so dependent on something. For the past 4 years I believed that the only way I could graduate high school was K. I was wrong. THe reason why I bgan K in the first place was because I was so lazy. Which showed in my poor grades. But now I feel like I've finally began to find myself and it's time for me to leatn on my own. There are people in my grade who are excellent in academics and they don't do K. So why can't I. Was what I had thought.I feel like anyone can be smart as long as they put their mind to it. And for me now's th time that I quit going to K. I started math at 2A and now I'm in J. Infact I have barely even scraped the surface of J. But you know what I feel like I don't need to because now I have faith in myself that I can do good on my own. altough I do feel guilty for quiting K because that was where I got my first start to a part time job. This Thursday when I go back to K I will be quiting K. My instructor may say I will become a failure if I quit K. But i have faith in myelf that I can do it on my own. i don't need it anymore. This also may result in my termination. But in the end I have found something reater than frustration from doing kumon and wanting to burn my kumon sets. I've found true potential in myself and that i can do whatever that i set my mind to. Before I am possibly fired this thursday from my first part time job, I just wanted to say K is great to boost your marks(temporarily) but not forever. When you go to college or university, is K going to be there?, NO! Which is why it's so important for someone to become independent and to learn on their own. Dont depend on something that isn't going to catch you when you fall. well that's it I just wanted to let everything out from these past years and wish anybody that's still in this program to realize that you can do it on your own and that's what im going to do. Thanks.

Anonymous said...

ive been in kumon since i was 4, i started on level A and am now on level O and im 14, ive spent 10 years in that place, yes i admit math did help me alot. Reading not so much. I know a lot of things before i learn them in kumon but after a while i got tired of doing it, and since they have solution books i slacked off and didnt really learn anything that went on for a couple of levels and i know i shouldve tried a lot harder because they have now changed the system and to finish the program you have to have passed levels K-O to finish it and now im screwed. I admit it does help but if you want your kid to dread the days you go to it and slack off and cheat i suggest not to go there because its independent learning they give you an example and expect you to do all the other ones. i know if i actually tried and did good it would been better, but in a way it works at the beginning but after a while its just a distraction.

Kumon Child said...

I'm 25 years old, and I grew up on Kumon. I went to a private school in Houston, Texas, and Kumon was a daily activity. So, your time assessment in regards to Kumon's availability stateside, is incorrect. Furthermore, Kumon builds quality skills through repetitive exercises in the lower level packets. And, as the levels continue, it aids in garnering children's time awareness, skill building tools, and reasoning and deduction abilities. It is an EXCELLENT pre-pre-preparatory component for anyone who will be eventually taking timed assessments, such as: PSAT, SAT, ACT, GRE, MCAT, LSAT, etc.

Anonymous said...

Kumon works! It is the best. This program makes students the best in both math and reading. Sure, it takes time and a strong will power to get through the program, but the result is so much better than any program out there.

Anonymous said...

I feel sad for you all Kumon haters, it only means one thing you guys are academically challenge. I have a 4th grader doing same packets as middle schoolers and high school students.
You know why? because she learned the BASICS, she mastered arithmetic in 1st grade by 2nd grade she's doing fraction, 3rd grade basic algebra and now 4th grade linear eguation level H. Everyday homework establishes by kumon is now just a routine she spends at least an hour with her school work and kumon and she's done for the day. Kumon is not the problem it's you LAZY people. Goodluck with your life !

Anonymous said...

I hate how these idiot parents come on here and say all the Kumon haters are lazy. Kumon is a worthless piece of shit. Im in fucking PreCalclus doing fractions right now. What kind of bullshit is that?!?!?And its because my parents are like idiots on here that say Kumon is a godsend and is responsible for all my A's. I have to waste time on 10 pages of fucking bullshit fractions that are useless. If I want to know what a common denominator for 1/13 and 1/72 is I will USE A FUCKING CALCULATOR!!!

Fuck Kumon

Paul said...

Well I started Kumon at the age of 7. I started on level 4A. I thought I liked it because it was just counting, then I leveled up faster, by the next few months, I was on level D. I HATED it. They would make me stay up and correct my mistakes. Then the next few months I got stuck in D, so my mom let me quit. The following years, it was not until the fifth grade that I realized my grades got lower in Math. So I decided to give Kumon a chance. So I took the test again. Guess what? I started on A. Then by the next two months I got into D, I finished the level pretty fast. So then I got into E. It started to grow on me that the problems on fractions repeating over and over again got annoying, frustating, because one worksheet only features a lesson, so it did make it boring and repetitive. I finished E by the next two months. Currently, I am in the 7th grade, 13 years old and in level F. We are now studying algebra, advanced geometry. And I regret re-joining it. They won't let me go up, just make me repeat the worksheets. Its wasting my time on something that's not helping me at all, only used to, right now, algebra is kind of hard for me now. I keep telling my mom that she's just wasting her money on something that doesn't help. She thought my used to be high grades on Math were because of Kumon. So in conclusion, Kumon is best suited for younger children.

Anonymous said...

All these parents say "ooh my child is doing middle-high school math because of Kumon!!!", thing is that by the time they actually reach that in school they would have forgotten it HAHAHA

Anonymous said...

i'm currently thinking whether want to take Kumon franchise. anyone can give me advise?

David said...

Kumon sucks ass big time. Fuck all you dipshit parents thinking your child will "excel" in Kumon. It used to be ok for A WEEK before it was shit, and that was when I was 10 in 5th grade. Now I'm in 8th grade and I'm still in G, which is basically a bunch of bullshit pre-algebra. I have been stuck in G for a year, and I'm sick of it. HOW WOULD YOU FUCKING RETARDED PARENTS LIKE IT IF YOU WERE FORCED TO DO THE SAME THING FOR 365 DAYS??? YEAH DOESN'T SOUND GREAT DOES IT? FUCK YOU ALL, I'D RATHER KILL MYSELF THANKS TO KUMON.

Mandy in TN said...

David, please talk to your parents or a counselor and get some help. No one should want to kill themselves over math sheets.

Mandy in TN said...

Kumon isn't for everyone. It worked for two of my 3 children.

My oldest began Kumon reading in high school and finished the whole program pretty quickly. I can't recall exactly how long, but I know it was less than 2 years and perhaps less than 18 months. In even less time than that he went from level D to level I in math. It served its purpose. It reviewed skills quickly and got us over a hump academically.

In timed situations, my second son does not function where he is able. We tried Kumon briefly twice and it just wasn't a good fit. His work at the center was never representative of his ability.

My youngest is doing fine with Kumon math, but does not do Kumon reading. He is in 3rd grade and is moving through the second half of H. At my request, he is doing each pack three times and is given two weeks to finish them. He is having no problem, but I want to use the first time through a sheet to take forever and explain. The second time I want him to work alone, but not worry so much about speed. The third time he does the sheets he does 5 pages at a time on two visits to the center. He is also doing Algebra 1 outside of Kumon, so I am not concerned that he will forget. ;-) Oh, and FWIW, he begs to do Kumon reading on a regular basis and I consistently tell him no.

No educational product is going to work for everyone. However, in my years being part of the Kumon community, I have seen more than a few Kumon math kids grow into confident independent learners with really exceptional computation skills.

Anonymous said...

Im a parent who had (past tense) a child in kumon. I personally didn't like the rigid non flexible rules and the tons of repetitive homework. I was frustrated watching my kid do his work. It was basic stuff addition and subtraction and it was endless (and many grades lower than his capacity). I corrected the work for him and I became tired doing it every day non stop . Very time consuming too. I like flexibility. If a kid knows something in 10 minutes then there's no use for constant repetition . Just my opinion.

Anonymous said...

I'm an educator and have to wholeheartedly agree that Kumon "sucks".
Education should be about fostering creativity and developing imagination. Education should develop the natural human instinct to learn through challenging, thought provoking, yet fun, learning activities. Cramming useless information into developing minds is a crime.
Parents, please use your intellect and think of inspirational ways to encourage your children to think, read, and discuss. Don't send them to "education" factories like Kumon that will destroy your child's natural desire to learn.
How does a parent properly educate a child? There's not enough room in this space to answer that question, but it starts with having fun and using your imagination to help your child realize that thinking is indeed better than the alternative.

Unfortunately, Kumon achieves the exact opposite result.

Jason, The Review Man said...

Ok, so i'm a grade 8 student who gets hundreds in math with a really great teacher who teaches us the right way, not the stupid canadian education way :P no offence. but he's really good he has amazing concepts and helps me and my friends actually ENJOY math. he makes it fun and proper, not with integer disks and algebra tiles (idk how to use em still :P) well anyways to Kumon. I admit THIS IS GOOD FOR WHEN YOU WANT TO LEARN BASIC FACTS WHEN YOU ARE SMALL. but when you get into higher grades you dont need it! Im a honors with distinction student!! Like WTF is this?! ITS REPETITIVE ITS BORING ITS ANNOYING ITS STRESSFUL! I hate it, my parents won't listen, i've tried. Ill do it, but i know it won't help! Like it says in the beginning, HOW WILL THIS HELP ME IN ADVANCE MATH?! I'm already learning calculus btw. Khanacademy.org THAT WORKS AND ITS FUCKING FREE! try it out, its amazing, i use it and im learning calculus in grade 8 :O

Anonymous said...

Jeez. When i was in forth grade, i didnt do my homework and i think i really need to catch up in that level, but they said my math is at a second grade level! Now im stuck doing 2+2=4 kind of problems. I really got into trouble when they told my mom i was at a second grade level. She smashed the wii! I understand that i need to fill in the gaps but the area that they're making me work on is way behind. They also want to give me less work each time so i can stay there longer. Id rather just buy some kind of workbook for the summer. I have better things to do! Thankyou. Next summer im gonna ask my mom just for a workbook or something. It'll save us more money, time, and less boredom.

Anonymous said...

This isn't helping me much in math. Ive done this so many times i'm starting to dislike math and this takes so much of my free time from my life! Its getting really annoying and all the family fights start with this!

Anonymous said...

I am a sophomore in highschool, and I was just enrolled, unwillingly, into Kumon. I am in precalculus right now (2 years ahead of onlevel geometry) and I was started at the level for adding and subtracting fractions(F or G). I can honestly say that Kumon is the most retarded thing I have ever had to do. After less than a month I got to level J, mostly because the instructor is pretty laid back and does not care if I do all the packets. On level J alone, there are several things that are just so utterly useless, I can't even begin to explain. Take the Rational Root Theorem for example. First, you solve a quadratic (usually), and then you add the roots together and multiply them. For anyone who does not know, when you multiply them you get the c value, and when you add them you get the b value. That is completely useless since this was basically taught when I learned quadratics. Did I mention they have a hundred problems on this? Maybe Kumon would be helpful if they taught you concepts that mattered, for example application problems, which I have on every math test in school, are never in Kumon packets. Ever. This is critical, as knowing the math and knowing when to apply it are different. On top of that, I get around 4-5 packets a week (if I even go), and each one is about a hundred problems. Whether or not my parents believe it, I have actual homework that I do, like maybe MATH HOMEWORK. So i don't do them because I like to get sleep. I have tried to reason with my parents, although they don't understand, especially since they haven't been able to help me with my math homework since algebra 3 years ago. I am not a machine, I can not do all of these and still have time to do homework, especially since track has started so I don't even get home until 6. My Kumon center closes at seven, so I have to go straight from school to track to Kumon to home to do homework. I now make conscious efforts not to go to Kumon. Since I can drive, I purposely drive right down the street from my house, park the car, and wait. Even now I'm typing this hoping that it will somehow take my two hours (Kumon closes at 2 on Saturdays for me). It has made my relationship with mostly my mom awful. I have yelled at her so many times and vice versa, either because I did not do my packets, I don't/didn't want to go, or that I want to quit Kumon. My brother had been in the program for two years already and constantly complained about it. Now I understand why. He is in 8th grade (algebra), but in Kumon is graphing on Cartesian planes and determining points on the graph (ie. stating point A is at (2,5)). Kumon has not helped my math grade, which was about a 90 before, although probably because I haven't learned anything usefull or even somewhat similar to what I am doing now. And before any says "Give it time! It will help.", I am going to respond with a solid no. It most definitely will not. I like learning, I have taught myself everything ranging from Java to String Theory to Calculus basics. I do this on my own time, usually with books. I do not read the same page 10 or 100 times to figure it out. I read each page once, maybe twice and then I apply it to life or use it. Maybe rote memorization doesn't work for me, maybe it works for others. I couldn't tell you that. But anything you can learn in Kumon, you can just as easily teach yourself and save enough to buy any book you may need to learn. The trick is knowing what your school will teach in each level, that way you can focus on each concept specifically and then look at some of the tips and tricks that can be used to make it easier after you understand them. You can probably just talk to your math teacher and ask for tutoring if you need it, it's free and sure helped me. You might even be able to borrow a textbook from a higher or lower level to get practice. If you go to a public school (not sure about private), then this will all be free- besides paying for it with taxes

Anonymous said...

anyways (which you will do either way). Trust me, from Kumon I have learned nothing besides how to avoid doing something I don't want to do. If you are thinking about enrolling your child in Kumon, ask yourself if YOU have tried to help by learning the math (if you don't already know it) because most of the time it is not the student's fault, it is the parent's fault. I had to ask questions when I was doing homework, but the onlyperson who knew the answer was Mr. Google, who actually has helped me more than my parent's ever have. So PLEASE, try and learn this stuff before you force your child to do something as tedious as Kumon, you might realize you are the one who needs to go to Kumon.

Andrew McAdams, 16
Math level in school: Precalculus
Started at in Kumon:Level F or G
Started Kumon: This school year

Anonymous said...

I have been doing kumon since I was 6 years old. It is a total waste of my time. I am in the 8th grade doing 9th grade accelerated math which is algebra 1. Kumon is "supposedly" a program to help you be ahead in school. Yeah right? I am doing level I in kumon which is algebra 1 so I am basically doing the same thing at school as I am in this dumb program. Also, they give you the same stupid packets like 20 times before testing you. All of the instructors don't even help you. The manager at my center hires these dumbos who don't know ANYTHING! I am not even sure if their qualified in AP classes at high school.

LOL said...

My mom enrolled me in kumon, and my GRADES fell back!

Anonymous said...

I found an excellent alternative service that is new and seems to have a lot of promise. Its called Tabtor and its being used in our local library. The material is administered through iPads. My son has been using it now for over 5 months and he absolutely loves it. There is a physical tutor behind each student and they give you a weekly parent/teacher conference. Its great, and the work is personlaized to my son. I couldn't ask for more.

Their website is www.tabtor.com

and i saw this video on line which explains it better

youtu.be/48VmnZxZ74c

Unknown said...

Okay so I see it from both sides.
I have been doing for practically half my life and I am in the second to last year of high school.
I was not bad at maths, but when i started i started on B. it was depressing. to cut it short i am still on K. and if i had not slacked off i would actually be close to finishing but i dont think it really helps the individual. to all the parents out there is will help your child calculate problems faster but from where i am from highschool maths - majority is word questions. and by the time you get to my age 16-17 you use calculators. (I am from New Zeland, so i am not sure about American system).
Kumon is more helpful to children in kindergarden yes it will give them a head start, most of the kids are good and will excel but some will just not learn and doing this programme will not help. this programme works by starting you on a lower level to "build your foundation/basics" also recommended it for children a few years before going to highschool. but then again most kids cheat and waste their parents money. i will have to admit i didnt really do it for about 3months and i did both subjects. so thats about 600+ bucks down the drain.
i really recommed tutors/senior students at the school as they will know what is required and know the schools programme or national programme. you can seriously just make your own worksheets (esp. highschoolers)

Anonymous said...

this is my fith year in the hell whole. ive done about 2million books
and its still not helped me

K-Shit Hater said...

I have been doing Kumon since the 3rd Grade. Now i'm in the 6th, heading on to the 7th. So, Kumon, no i'll call it K-Shit. It has done nothing to me but torture me. To get through K-Shit, I started ripping out the back page of the 3-Pagers. Well that's what I call them. Anyways, I recently got in trouble by the "Evil Bitch", or our instructor, and threatened to call my mom. I'm like, who the fuck do you think you are? And you dumbass parents, 90% of all kids that go to K-Shit learn to hate it after a year or so. In fact, in the 5th Grade, my math grades started to FUCKING GO DOWN!!! I've recovered and my grades have gotten up. In summary, do not send your kids as it is a waste of time and money and will only get in the way of doing homework, not that K-Shit crap. P.S-To all haters, either fuck yourself up the ass with a knife or suck a 24 inch dick. If that exists. ~Noah Shin, Sixth Grader at Salt Lake Elem. I lives in teh island of Oahu and go to K-Shit.

Anonymous said...

My sister has been a Kumon instructor for many years now. I have partly financed her center and helped her build and assist her in runing her center for many years since the passing away of her husband, my brother-in-law. The income from the center has helped her raise her family single-handedly and put her kids through college.

In my humble opinion, the relationship between the company and the franchisees has always been good. The company has been instructor friendly until certain misguided individuals like you Nicole Smith set up the IAKF and misled my sister among other franchisees.

My sister, as with many of her fellow instructors has been constantly bombarded with factually incorrect and false information from the IAKF for many years. Unfortunately, if she speaks up against the IAKF in instructor circles she is admonished by elements of the IAKF within the area. I have advised my sister to stay away from this association. I truly believe that education of the students at her center is of primary focus. However, IAKF representatives within the area keep harassing her to arrange an activist meeting at her center. Even Area Managers of Kumon have informed us that the IAKF is a rogue organization that has been spreading lies and misinformation only to increase their membership. From my sister’s interaction with fellow instructors, rumors have come to her attention that the IAKF and its leadership aka Nicole Smith and an instructor from Minneapolis, Houston and New Jersey who are vocal militant members have been using membership dues for personal gain.

Recently, I read an article
where Robert Lichtenstein, corporate counsel for Kumon North America, based in Teaneck, New Jersey, calls the IAKF a “rogue” organization, and questions whether it has more than a handful of members. Kudos to Robert for rightly categorizing this organization and its leadership as “ROGUES.” The IAKF has brought nothing but shame and bad publicity to all Kumon instructors like my sister and has created a confrontational relationship with the franchisor. Thanks for listening. Xie Xie!!

CHUCK_NORRIS_IS_BOSS said...

Okay. I just started Kumon today! As soon as I walked in I was like oh crap this is torture! Oh and it was! I mean like the manager was oh no what are you doing? You don't show your work!!! No, no, no! and im like oh helllllllll no....... jk im like okay. sorry. and then when i was done with all the little packets shes like oh! heres 40 dollars! and im like OOOOO THIS JUST GOT INTERESTING..... then shes like in kumon dollars!

Anonymous said...

I was unknowingly signed up for Kumon by my infuriatingly self-righteous parents for getting a "C"on a test. A C!Most parents sign their children up so they can get good grades on the end-of year tests. However, KUMON PUTS YOU IN A GRADE LEVEL >4 YEARS BELOW YOURS! By the time the finals came around, I was still adding 1+1! Help for Algebra? I THINK NOT!

Anonymous said...

Kumon sucks.

Anonymous said...

My freaking asain mom heard about KUMON from asain her friends and when I started it (I'm in 8th grade and in lv H) they made me do PRE school stuff while I was in accel math (advanced 7 grade math...its when you do math one grade higher than you) I mean really...I know HOW to do 1+1. Why make me learn it again?!? I hate how KUMON tricks my parents and thanks to kumon, I am getting more and more stressed out on tests but KUMON is in the way. I wish KUMON doesn't exist and same with any other boring enrichment school

Anonymous said...

I studied at the center of Nicole Smith in Hamilton Ontario. She is a sick old nasty hag. I hate her, and other kids hate her too. She is not at the center most of the time, but when she is the kids just hate her. She dresses like an old bag lady, constantly rubbing her hands with sanitizer. We think she has some major disease. Her teaching sucks! Fuck you Nicole.

Anonymous said...

ONLY MORONS GO TO KUMON
ONLY MORONS GO TO KUMON
ONLY MORONS GO TO KUMON
ONLY MORONS GO TO KUMON
ONLY MORONS GO TO KUMON
ONLY MORONS GO TO KUMON
ONLY MORONS GO TO KUMON
ONLY MORONS GO TO KUMON
ONLY MORONS GO TO KUMON
ONLY MORONS GO TO KUMON
ONLY MORONS GO TO KUMON
ONLY MORONS GO TO KUMON

Anonymous said...

My Friend Was Molested by her Kumon teacher. Don't ever send your kids to a Kumon center. Even if the teacher is a woman there is every chance that the husbands, sons and other perverts lurk around at the centers preying on innocent children.

http://www.presstelegram.com/technology/20111114/victim-13-pleads-in-bellflower-court-to-give-convicted-molester-what-he-deserves

Anonymous said...

Dumb kids go to Kumon, smart kids have fun.

Anonymous said...

Children got MOLESTED at KUMON, don't you get it parents?

Do you want you kids to be molested at a KUMON center?

Search for "kumon molestation"

Fight_Communism said...

This blog is great. Kumon is an out dated lousy program. Old Chinese grandmas run Kumon learning centers. Staff at my Kumon center are potheads. Sex, Drugs and Kumon!!!

Anonymous said...

Fight_Communism you got a great sense of humor. Very true, I had Senior who worked at Kumon who was a pot-head and smoked marijuana. He only took the Kumon job so that he could go behind the center and smoke pot away from home. The Kumon center did not require him to take a drug test so he was fine.

Anonymous said...

Reading your blog I just realize that Kumon is just another facade for Pedophiles and drug peddlers to get to our kids.

Anonymous said...

Why KUMON is for dumb kids:

Bright children should start school at six, says academic
Formal schooling should be delayed by at least 12 months because an over-emphasis on the three-Rs at an early age can cause significant long-term damage to bright children, according to a leading academic.

By Graeme Paton, Education Editor
6:00AM BST 16 May 2012

Pupils should not be subjected to full classroom tuition until the age of six to off-set the effects of premature “adultification”, it was claimed.
Dr Richard House, a senior lecturer at Roehampton University’s Research Centre for Therapeutic Education, said gifted pupils from relatively affluent backgrounds suffered the most from being pushed “too far, too fast”.
He quoted a major US study – carried out over eight decades – that showed children’s “run-away intellect” actually benefited from being slowed down in the early years, allowing them to develop naturally.
Many bright children can grow up in an “intellectually unbalanced way”, suffering lifelong negative health effects and even premature death, after being pushed into formal schooling too quickly, he said.

John said...

Bad Math program started by World War II criminals that killed troops in Pearl Harbor.

Christina said...

so.true! there are parts that help, but others make it so tedious and extremely boring to do. I've been doing it for 3 years now and its really made me feel like shit. I feel like i have to do it everyday, and its even made me lie to my parents so much fucking more -and they tell me not to lie, when they are the reason i am lying. for the first year i thought it was ok. second year meh. now, i am trying to do everything i can to get out of doing anything. It cost so fucking much, and my school fees are already overwhelming. its so fucking ridiculous. really. my face now looks like that o on a daily basis because i know i have kumon later that day i need to complete.

MommyBlogger said...

Its just a PEDOPHILE PARADISE

"The serial killer has the same personality characteristics as the sex offender against children"
-Dr. Mace Knapp, Nevada State Prison Psychologist

• Child molesters know their victims. Some stalk their victims, observing their habits as they walk to and from school, learning center, day cares, parks etc. They often try to buy houses near schools or parks.

• Pedophiles have a strong, almost irresistible, desire to have sex with children. The average pedophile molests 260 victims during their lifetime. Over 90% of convicted pedophiles are arrested again for the same offense after their release from prison.

- http://www.sex-offenders.us/child.molester.list.htm

• 89% of child sexual assault cases involve persons known to the child, such as a caretaker, teacher, tutor or family acquaintance.
- Diana Russell Survey, 1978

• About 60% victims sampled report at least one of their perpetrators to be female.
- Mendel, 1993

• The typical pedophile begins molesting by age 15, engages in a variety of deviant behavior, and molests an average of 117 youngsters, most of whom do not report the offense.
- Dr. Gene Abel in a National Institute of Mental Health Study

• About 10% of violent offenders with child victims received life or death sentences and the average prison term was 11 years, somewhat shorter average sentences than received by those with adult victims.
- BJS Survey of State Prison Inmates, 1991

• 3 in 10 child victimizers reported that they had committed their crimes against multiple victims.
- BJS Survey of State Prison Inmates, 1991

• Like rape, child molestation is one of the most underreported crimes: only 1-10% are ever disclosed.
- FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin

• The behavior is highly repetitive, to the point of compulsion, rather than resulting from a lack of judgment.
- Dr. Ann Burges, Dr. Nicholas Groth, et al. in a study of imprisoned offenders

Anonymous said...

you do know you can copy the answers from the correct corrections to the homework to make the so called workout easier

vic said...

My Kumon teacher sucks...

http://www.pissedconsumer.com/reviews-by-company/kumon-math-and-reading/beware-stay-away-from-kumon-learning-center-20131212463307.html

Anonymous said...

Well, I am in 5th grade, and I finished Kumon reading, am in level J math. what do you say for that?

Anonymous said...

Well, I am in 5th grade, and I finished reading and currently on level J in math. What do you say about that?

Meg said...

Oh I hated Kumon. Many years ago I used to study at a Kumon centre in Pierrefonds, Quebec City. It was run by a woman named Nicole Smith. I used to loathe her, because she was a nasty fat bitch. She had bad personal hygiene and never wanted her coming near me. She had disheveled hair and dirty long un kept nails. The other kids at the centre hated her too and were only there because their parents forced them to. Nicole Smith used to fart really loud around the centre and the place always smelled of poo. She gave us worksheets that were dirty and I never even wanted to touch them not knowing what germs I might get. If any kid at the Kumon centre made a mistake or went to Nicole Smith for help with a Math problem, she would belittle us and make us feel stupid. My parents them moved to Vancouver, BC and I never had to see the face of Nicole Smith or Kumon again in my life. It was the greatest relief. Looking back I think Kumon was a complete waste of time. I sometime wonder who are the poor kids who are suffering at the hands of the fat bitch Nicole Smith.

Anonymous said...

More Criminals at KUMON

"She was a fashionable girl whom Prugo and Neiers describe as “spoiled” and “haughty.” She had troubles of her own; apparently she didn’t get along with her mother, Vickie Kwon, a North Korean immigrant and owner of two centers of the tutoring company Kumon Math & Reading. Prugo claims,“Rachel hates her stepfather,” whom her mother married when Lee was in her early teens.(Neither Lee nor Kwon responded to requests for comment.)"

Story of more criminals at Kumon Math & Reading centers

http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/features/2010/03/billionaire-girls-201003?currentPage=2

http://rokdrop.com/2010/03/06/bling-ring-leader-rachel-lee-daughter-of-north-korean-immigrant/

Anonymous said...

A Japanese family became involved in a high-speed chase in Utah caused by a cultural misunderstanding and the language barrier.

http://www.autoblog.com/2014/02/28/japanese-tourists-trigger-high-speed-chase/?ncid=txtlnkusaolp00000588

The pursuit began at 1:00 AM on February 22 near the Utah/Arizona border when the police spotted a car going 37 miles per hour and swerving. Suspecting a drunk driver, the Utah State Police followed the car and attempted to pull the driver over, but that is where the problems start. The area was already being monitored by police for impaired drivers, so three cars attempted to stop the car, while others shut down the highway. Instead of pulling over, the driver began acting erratically by weaving across lanes and by speeding up to 75 mph and then slowing down to 40 mph.

After the car hit spike strips about seven miles down the road, the police were amazed when instead of a drunk driver, a Japanese women in her 40s exited the car. "She would walk forward, backward, spin around - obviously she had no clue what we wanted her to do," Lt. Brad Horne, Utah Highway Patrol's DUI unit commander, told The Washington Post. Upon closer inspection, the police found the woman's terrified husband and seven-year-old son in the car as well.

None of the family spoke English, but after tracking down a Japanese-speaking officer, the police learned that the woman had no idea about American traffic laws. When she saw the lights, she thought she should speed up and swerve to get out of the their way. Nobody was hurt, and the only damage to the car was the flat tires. The family was driving to Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah. The police don't plan to press charges.

Karlie Montana said...

I was considering a learning centre franchise and Kumon franchise is one of the franchise options I am looking at but I am not sure Kumon is the right thing. I read that the Kumon franchise system is plagued with franchisees who have molested children and other sex crimes against children. Can anyone enlighten me. Thank you.

ufology said...

I agree, Kumon is a dangerous place for children. I used to study at a Kumon center and the older men at the center used to stare at the female students in the center with a nasty grin on their faces.

Anonymous said...

Don't be. The last thing you would want to see is your children being sexually abused and molested by pedophiles at Kumon centers.

Anonymous said...

I'll say eve. My dog did that

Anonymous said...

Ugh! Why do parents have their kids suffers at the hands of a Kumon bitch?

randy@west.com said...

My Kumon teacher was a pervert. I caught her once watching a porn movie on her cell phone when I went to ask her a question, during class. Horny Kumon bitch was not interested in helping kids like me at her center. I told my parents what I saw and they saved me from the BIATCH!!!

Anonymous said...

Whoever says kumon can help is gay, I've been going for 2 years and it is just frustrating me since now I'm in high school and homework is getting more intense. Like the guy said, they put you on a super low level and make you do things you know, it took around $600 worth of payment for kumon tpfor me to learn things that were actually useful

Anonymous said...

ironically, your post was in the same format as the kumon papers you hate so much.

you have one idea you state again and again simply replacing a word here and there, and you try to cram it into readers' eyeballs with sheer repetition.

Anonymous said...

The problem with Kumon Math & Reading is that sex scandals have been perpetrated by the Kumon family themselves. So who can blame many of the franchisees for sex crimes?

http://archives.starbulletin.com/2004/09/17/news/story2.html

When my sister first opened a Kumon center in Atlanta the son of the founder of the Kumon Math & Reading company was involved in a major sex scandal with a franchisee Debra Tajiri, who owned two Kumon Math & Reading centers in Manoa and Kailua. She later claimed that Hiroshi Kumon had ruined her life after they had an affair and began asking him for money over a 21-month period beginning in March 2002. An employee of Debra Tajiri, the Kumon franchisee, later allegedly extorted $150,000 from a son of the founder of the Kumon learning method in exchange for 2,000 "compromising" photos. Debra Tajiri and one Sean Yonehiro, whom she hired to work in her centers as an assistant, were later arrested and faced a charge of sending international extortion communications which is punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Both were arrested after Yonehiro met with an FBI agent posing as Kumon's attorney at Ala Moana Park and took from him a bag containing what he believed to be $150,000. At the time of the affair, Hiroshi Kumon was Director of Kumon Institute of Education in Japan, the parent company of Kumon North America, one of five regional headquarters worldwide responsible for operations in Canada, the United States and Mexico.

An individual who went by the name "Max Lee" and who had been e-mailing Hiroshi Kumon while he was in Japan threatening to release compromising photos of Hiroshi Kumon if he didn't pay for them. The complaint does not describe the photos but does say that Lee threatened to release the photos if Kumon also did not send more pornographic pictures of himself. More than five years after their affair, Debra Tajiri (the Kumon franchisee) allegedly began e-mailing Hiroshi Kumon asking for $500,000 to remodel her house, the complaint said. In those e-mails, she allegedly told Kumon that "you have taken a lifestyle from me," and that she was considering filing a lawsuit. She also accused him of infecting her with a venereal disease and said that he should pay for her medical treatment. Kumon allegedly paid her more than $350,000. Later Debra Tajiri, the Kumon franchisee, allegedly continued asking Kumon for money, saying electricity at her home was shut off and that she could not pay contractors to finish work on her home. Debra Tajiri, the Kumon franchisee, e-mailed Hiroshi Kumon again, saying she needed $550,000 to secure a building contract. When he didn't respond, she e-mailed him saying her life was "hell" and was over, and asking him why he had not sent money. Investigators learned that the e-mails sent by "Max Lee" came from an account belonging to Debra Tajiri and from her Nipo Street home.

One of three vehicles spotted at Kumon franchisee Debra Tajiri's residence was a white Ford pickup truck that was later seen at the Hawaii State Library -- the first meeting Lee allegedly requested for Kumon's representative to bring the money. A man was seen walking around the library on that day before leaving in the white truck registered to Yonehiro, who lists a Nipo Street address as his residence.



Mel said...

Hey guys, I read your posts and went over to the Kumon Math & Reading center of Hamilton Westend to see who "Nicole Smith" was.

Finally got to meet the woman. Went there on a pretex of enrolling my kids there. I should tell you the woman is an UGLY TOAD, dressed like Jabba from STAR WARS. I cannot imagine my kids being taught by this freak. Saw a few miserable souls painfully dragging their feet through some math worksheets there. But that was besides the point here. That wasn't why I was there. I went there expecting an Anna Nicole Smith not the Ugly Toad Kumon teacher Nicole Smith.

Anonymous said...

The only reason that I do not despise Kumon much is because I devised a brilliant cheating system that uses the iPhone's photo stream.

Anonymous said...

Kumon does suck, I started kumon at summer and it is HORRIBLE, PAINFUL, UNBEARABLE! It's driving me crazy knowing my friends are enjoying their summer playing video games, swimming at the pool, going to amusement parks while I'm staying at my house doing my homework from 12:00 in the morning to 10:00 at night! And I feel sorry for the other kids who go there, one time I sat next to this kid and he looked abused, was twitching, and looked like he was about to cry. And my first day was really bad I was put on level A and at school our teacher was teaching us way more advanced math (7th grade) so I had to stay for 4 hours doing the whole level and taking the test and doing the same next couple of days. Kumon basically just wants to suck out the money out of parents bank accounts while turning their child to a lifeless robot. Anyways I would love to tell more but I have to continue doing my work and turn to a robot myself. And kumon, fuck you.

Anonymous said...

Rather than listening to the norms of enrolling children in Kumon Centers, do give Beestar a try. Beestar would a great alternative at less or no cost compared to Kumon, where a big chunk of money is spent on workbooks and coursework combined. Beestar offers free math and multiple subjects as well, such as: reading, sciences, social studies, and writing. Instead of a load of homework to complete on their own, rather, Beestar assigns a manageable amount for the students to finish and give helping hands whenever they are needed. Needless to say, they also provide online management services for us parents to make it more convenient to check their progress wherever we may be. My son has been making progress ever since he's been enrolled with Beestar and it's been a good first year so far! We definitely would recommend Beestar!

Anonymous said...

Adults, please shut up about your children being geniuses. They don't have as much as stress as some other kids do. And Kumon, give students personal tutors, like Sylvan. You waste a lotta paper, Kumon.

Lil' activity: Go to Youtube and type in "kumon hate". Some Kumon haters. Sylvan is an electronic program that's educational. Type in "sylvan hate". How many Sylvan haters?

Anonymous said...

i am a kid hate kumon forever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!;D

Anonymous said...

I was studying Ap math in grade 8 and received a regional award and Kumon started me off in, get this, one- digit addition up to 5. Eg.4+3 1+2 3+4. Thanks to kumon. The unnecessary excess of work caused me to fall behind in school work and brought me down to a lower level of thinking, my average on my report card was just a measly 68 percent. Parents thinking of enrolling their child in kumon think about this. I went from having a regional award, to receiving the lowest report card in my life.

Anonymous said...

Omigod I hate Kumon so f-ing much jfc. I do Kumon in England, where your parents mark your work, this means that when (not if) they don't mark them for 6 weeks, you have to do 6 weeks of corrections in a few days, it's very painful. I also go to a top school, this means that even if I'm in the lowest maths set (which I am) I'd be in a top one in a normal school, my mum put me into Kumon because she says it'll 'get me back up' when I really don't need it! I have about 2 more years to go and I can't stand it. I understand their principles, but seriously? We don't even get a goddamn holiday! We need a break! it just seems never-ending and I feel like my parents should understand that. My parents act and think like Kumon is the best thing to ever happen to me, when really I would like to rip it up, burn it, bury the ashes, burn the filled whole to the ground, fill the whole up again with cement, blow up the cement, burn it, and then go at it with a chainsaw, before throwing 10,000 grenades at it, then launch a few missiles at it. Did I mention burn it?

Anonymous said...

Kumon is the greatest thing in the world. I am now top of my 6th grade class since I've already covered the topics I'm studying in school before in Kumon. Im on level j at moment soit will be a while before I am studying the topics I'm doing at kumon at school. It Is very repetitive but I think that is a good thing as you learn how to do sums fast. I seriously recommend doing Kumon. It helps a lot.

Anonymous said...

to all the people who appreciate kumon, ur just wasting your money. for people who said they have mastered and completed all levels of math, if I ask you a question in algebra or trigonometry can you solve? most of you would not. They don't concentrate of building the reasoning power, just memorizing.

Anonymous said...

Hello I'm currently a 11 year old enrolled in Kumon Math and English. For all the parents out there who say that we who complain about Kumon are lazy and that it did wonders for their children/child etc. (My child is in third grade and he's already in H) I would like to say that by the time they reach those subjects in school he would have long forgotten it. Now before some of you parents say that Im lazy or doing Kumon wrong, I assure you I'm not. I've already become a paid tutor for my Kumon center. My opinions on Kumon are mostly negative. Usually when you only have one subject Kumon seems terrible but when you have two subjects in kumon you have to do twice the work and it's a living hell. At first it's not that bad (I started when I was 5) for me but when you got to level H it turned to complete hell. For example the levels below G are like a warm bath, at G the water starts becoming colder and a draft starts blowing in. H+ is like you are sitting in an ice bath with a cold draft blowing in, and you are unable to do anything. For any parents using this as a review I would like to say Kumon Math is hard and makes you want to tear your hair out but it still works as long as your child has a ok-good memory. I have complaints about Kumon math though. My parents were never really good teachers and when I asked them to explain to me how to do a question it usually ended up with them screaming at me and me running upstairs my room, locking my door and crumpling the kumon, my complaint is that Kumon just didn't have enough examples.

Now let's get started on Kumon English I got two words to describe it pretty useless. Kumon english focuses on reading comprehension and while that is useful in the lower grades when you have to start writing essays though Kumon becomes useless, just completely useless as it doesn't teach much about essay writing, so I suggest to you parents that when your child/children start getting essay assignments in school quit Kumon english and enroll them for a writing tutor.

So yes as much as I hate to admit it kumon is useful though it is and will always be in my eyes a cruel hell. So Ill list out the goods,and the bads. The goods: Good english grades (until the essays start), and your child will be ahead their peers(most likely in math). The bads: Tutors don't are not certified teachers, they have been schooled in the Kumon ways but most of them are just plain bad at teaching. It's expensive. It's frustrating. For me I now have stress problems with me sometimes being brought to tears because I simply did not have enough time to do my after school activities do a last revision for a test, do my 20 pages of Kumon, and finish all my school homework. I have also been known to get extremely frustrated very easily and when I get too frustrated I start panicking and freaking out. Your children will hate Kumon and it might lead to tension between you and your kids.





Well I've given my view on that matter and it's up to you to decide. But parents please have mercy and if they really begging you to let your children off kumon. As a last reminder I would like to say CHILDREN ABSOLUTELY DDDDDDDEEEEEEESSSSSSSSPPPPPPIIIIIIISSSSSSEEEEEEEE KUMON.

Anonymous said...

I totally agree with you this Kumon bullshit school is the place only fucked up parents sent their children too. I have been part of this Genocide for 11 years can you FUCKING BELIEVE THAT?? Currently I'm taking Pre-Cal Honors during my current Sophomore year, now I'm studying about Derivatives and Integrations but lo and behold I'm studying fucking factoring at this bullshit kumon school. The fucked up piece of shit director keeps telling me to repeat for a stronger basic knowledge first of all fuck that deluded son of a bitch. She has no fucking knowledge in math and she is the one making decisions? That bitch should be doing something else not math and the worst part is my parents keep asking her for advice about my math. I have already told my parents I wanted to quit TWICE.. but every time my fucked up father would ask the director If I could quit. How pathetic is that?? I mean if you ask the damn director she would not let you quit cuz she wants to milk your money. Come on dad you can't be that stupid. And my mom keeps saying that " You can't quit... Even with kumon you're still getting a C in Pre-Cal" I'm thinking like " Well duh! I'm learning factoring at Kumon, but Integration and derivative in school you dumb bitch." The director has been eating up my money for quite a while now around $600 a year. I keep presuring my mom to make me quit this damn school and she keeps turning me down to talk with my deluded dumbass low IQ father who is so fucking stupid and pathetic. My life with kumon right know sucks donkey dicks and I don't know why my parents can't do something really simple. I mean even the average IQ would already know that by listening to this phrase "It's not related to my school lessons, and I cannot use my kumon knowledge at school!" I mean that is fucking simple and I hope someday my fucked up stupid dillusional father would actually understand the simple things that I am trying to communicate to him. GGWP guys I am so glad to hear that more people are part of FUCK KUMON, FUCK TORU KUMON, AND FUCK WHO EVER LIKES KUMON. PEACE OUT BROSSS..

Anonymous said...

Holy shit I'm glad I finally found a discussion on this piece of shit program.
Currently in 12th grade (18 and STILL doing Kumon, my parents are obsessive over this shit).
I spent 6 fucking years in this program. I slightly disliked it at first and basically learned to hate math overall as time passed.
The first center I was at (Mississauga Square One center) was fucking horrible. I was actually ACCELERATED through a few levels by the head instructor, some stupid bitch who's name I don't care to remember.
The one I'm at now is run by some Chinese grandma (who's supposed to be retired) and her daughter. They're nice people, but I just hate the program. It hasn't helped me at all, in fact I've been taking Academic math courses throughout my high school years and they've been progressively declining. In fact, my mom has the fucking gall to say 'why are you doing bad in math? You're in Kumon?'. Hell, my dad's the one forking out cash and he literally changed his reason for keeping me in there because it's supposed to 'help with my organization and time management skills'.
I've been skipping for 10 weeks so far, my mom knows it and doesn't even care. I ACTUALLY want to raise my math mark but I don't think Kumon is going to help me when I'm doing Calculus in school while I'm still on Level K (it's been nearly half a year).
All that Kumon has taught me is to try and cheat the system, manipulate the routine or you'll be forced to follow it every day.
I hate to generalize but from my personal experience, the only parents who obsessively defend Kumon are those with their own personal problems. My mom has a huge victim complex and my dad has some guilt complex about stepping out on my brother and myself when we were younger (I don't hate him for that, just for this bullshit way of trying to piece everything together). They had us in 12th grade and their families weren't exactly easy on them. Yet now they have the gall to force us into shit when we're actually trying to focus on school. I don't mind doing a few menial extra-curricular activities, but I'D LIKE TO PRACTICE MY INDEPENDENCE (I literally only got my community service hours because my mom forced us to volunteer at her work).
Hell, I mostly blame my mom because she's been the source of our problems lately. She's caused me to develop low self-esteem and anexiety issues (try living with your own mother telling you that for your whole life everyone thought you were weird and also tries to turn you against your friends by insisting that they don't want to hang out with you). She's been trying to get my brother FIRED from his new job because he had to miss a few classes of karate while he was TRAINING (he told my dad and myself that she actually visited his work a few times, probably to harass them).
So this may just be subjective and probably just a result of my personal experiences, but fuck Kumon. ANYONE who defends it is in my opinion either just a shill or a useful idiot.
Good day, you fucks.

Anonymous said...

My aunt owns a Kumon center.

Here is my story,
I joined Kumon at he age of 5. During this time I loved it, all you had to do was just tracing and reading passages.

Damn, that all changed once I got to level D. D for dicks, am I right? I had a lot of childhood friends in this program, they all quit on this level. My aunt had my mom(her sister) into this idyllic image where if I did Kumon, I could get into any college of my choice. Heck, I believed this too. BTW, as I am typing this out, my father is yelling at my brother for not doing 20 packets in a week
I am currently on level L as a freshman taking pre-calc. Luckily for me, the Kumon program is exactly where I am in school. So if I do the work, I get stellar grades.
Honestly, FUCK KUMON. I wish I could go back in time and kill Toru as a baby! I am put under extreme pressure every day. To wake up and know that I have to go to "school" for 11 hours. Since my aunt owns the center, she asks my parents if I am caught up yet. No! You dipshit. I literally have school to do. I don't have time for This Kumon Bullshit. I am torn, I believe that I could continue to be a stellar student without Kumon, but if I am wrong... I would be screwed. My cousin, who is my aunts daughter. Is an academic god. She finished the Kumon program by this year. Gets all A's. My aunt is continuously a douchebag by telling me that if I want to be as academically good as her daughter, I have to do Kumon. But like, why the fuck would I want to do Kumon... Right? It is complete horse shirt when you have a family member owning a center. She literally made my mom work for her, while she is on vacation with her family. Ungrateful bitch. It sucks when u are raised in an Asian background. All of my family went to Ivy leagues. It is complete bullshit. I don't want to be a doctor, I want to work on Wall Street as a finance guy. It is apparently illegal to pursue your dreams. I blame all of my family tensions and issues on KUMON.

8----------D Fuck Kumon,
yours truly,a Kumon hater

A poor victim of kumon said...

Hello.I am currently NOT doing kumon by WHY THE FUCK NOT?! DAMN THIS SHIT I HAD ENOUGH! I started just a month ago when my mom said that this POS was going to help me in my next school year. By now it is still summer in here and I'm starting to think that I will not have any good grades in Math EVER because of this SHIT. I was going to be grade 9(3rd year high school) next year when my mom enrolled me here. I took the hardest entry test (I was given three and they were all fucking grade 4 level!) and it was full of this BASIC FUCKING FRACTION SHIT! I felt like a fucking beaver because fractions were WAY BACK IN GRADE FUCKING FOUR and we were in FUCKING ADVANCED STATISTICS,RATIONAL EXPRESSIONS, AND ALL THAT ADVANCED ALGEBRA SHIT. so I got put in level A just because I failed the hard test. FUCK YOU KUMON STOP TRYNA MAKE FUCKING MONEY FROM YOUR "DEDICATED" STUDENTS, YOU MOTHERFUCKING GREEDY ASS THIEVES! YOU PUT ME BACK IN LEVEL A SO THAT I CAN STAY LONGER IN YOUR FUCKING CENTER AND YOU WILL LEECH MORE FUCKING BUCKS FROM ME AND MY PARENTS! fucking assholes. BECAUSE OF YOUR FUCKING "METHOD" I GOT FUCKING GROUNDED FROM GOING OUTSIDE, PLAYING VIDEO GAMES, OR EVEN FUCKING USE MY PHONE!
Parents, if you are reading this, DON'T FUCKING ENROLL YOUR CHILDREN TO THIS PIECE OF FUCKING STINKY ASS CHICKEN SHIT!
-a fucking victim of the Japanese matholocaust (aka kumon)

Anonymous said...

Let me just get straight to the point, Kumon is useless, and a waste of good money and good time. I was algebra 2 freshman when I started Kumon, straight A's before and never received a grade lower than an A-. They started me on addition of Fractions. Like who do they think they are? Paying for Kumon is pretty much paying for torture. It's really just throwing money away. Completely useless for your anyone who does it. The people there are not trying to help any student, they are just trying to take your money. If anyone sees this, please, please stop Kumon as soon as possible, and buy yourself a good textbook instead. It will save you good money, and help your math significantly

Anonymous said...

I do Kumon myself, and I hate it!! I don’t do maths though, but I do English, and it’s not helping me with school at all. Okay, let me explain how it all started:

I came to Australia when I was 11 years old (now i’m 14 and a half) and I didn’t know how to speak English, since it’s my second language. Anyway, I used to go to an English language school for a year and it helped me improve. When the teacher had this talk with my Mum, about how i don’t need anymore help, cause my English have improved enough, at some point, my mum asked her about a place called Kumon. The teacher said it’s a helpful place too but she didn’t know much about it. Anyways, my mum decided to look for a Kumon centre to enroll me and we found one that was approximately near us. I did English, and they put me in the 2A level, and it was okay for a bit. after a 1 year, I started stressing because I didn’t have time to do my schoolwork and used to get detention at school for not doing my homework much, all thanks to Kumon. And because I tried focusing more on school, it was worse, cause i’ve had my Mum asking me 24/7 if I finished my kumon. now you can see why I hate it so much. Cause it draws a lot of attention and interest to our parents, that it seems Kumon is more important than school. we never have time to finish our schoolwork, why? Because of Kumon. We never get to have a nice weekend without worrying about homework, why? Because of Kumon. And when school finishes, and we are meant to have a great holiday, we cannot, why? Again, all because of Kumon!! We can never have our freedom, we have to get homework every day and it’ll take half an hour to complete (i’m level f which is very difficult). So glad my mum is removing me from there

Anonymous said...

I completed the Kumon English program in year 8 in Aus, completing the maths program in late year 12.

I found the program very helpful - I am now at uni undertaking a degree in Economics at UQ. I will typically be the first to finish my mostly mathematics based exams and get some very respectable grades as well.

I put down a huge amount of this to the Kumon program, whilst doing pages on pages of algebra, trig and calculus isn't the most 'fun' learning experience it is highly effective and very useful in building such an excellent capacity to quickly solve complex problems.

Anonymous said...

Kumon is fucking gay shit I’ve been doing it for 4 years and each day was painful as shit. I’m in 6th grade Pre-AP Math and in GT and Kumon didn’t do shit to help me get there. I have learned something at Kumon though. You can cheat and hate learning as much as you want and no one does shit to actually try to understand you. My gay dad makes us do our damn Kumon when we’re asleep at 2:00 A.M. I’ve had to see a fucking therapist because of that gay piece of crap. WWIII better end Kumon centers around the globe. I get straight A’s in every subject and Kumon almost fucked my grades up. The lady at my center is ugly as crap and walks like a fucking penguin saying “Do your work or we’ll call your parents” She’s so cruel every 5 year old at my center is already depressed. All stupid Kumon lovers should die in hell.

Anonymous said...

really needed this like WTF KUMON."give your opinion on blah blah blah" on reading and doesnt give any info on what youre supposed to give opinions on

Unknown said...

KUMON SUCKS KUMON SUCKS KUMON SUCKS AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Unknown said...

If you start at a young age it might help you but my parents put me in kumon at 8th grade! I started with addition and rn it's the 2nd semester and Im only at multiplication. In school we have already finished learning about slope and there is no way kumon will help me.

Anonymous said...

KUMON SUCKS I AGREE

Anonymous said...

I've been to Kumon for a little over 4 years, and I'm still currently in it. I have mixed emotions about Kumon. To be fair, repetitively doing sheets can help you excel in some units, but it takes the fun away from Kumon. In Kumon, you just do the work without knowing why you do it and what it means. Another thing I also dislike about Kumon is that one question will be extremely hard to do, but the formula would be explained in the next question, and the formula is what you'd need to help you in the first question. (Hopefully you understood that explanation). I used to do the Kumon Reading Program, but quit because it was too much money. I'm currently in level I, almost at level J. My goal is to get the J by 6 award. I have to admit though, Kumon is the reason I love math so much. It has helped me in many ways, but I don't know if I'll be able to quit anytime soon. If convincing my parents works this time, then hopefully I'll be able to get out since I will have a lot of school work to do and not enough time to do Kumon.

Anonymous said...

i agree with you when you said kumon is money-hungry. my parents would've had 14k+ if they didn't spend it on kumon

Unknown said...

Honestly, Kumon isn't that bad. It takes your math to a higher level, so then you can get the ones that you do at regular school correctly. It also helps me do my math fluently. You also shouldn't be complaining, because some math programs are worse than Kumon. You should be grateful that you have math in your life. You need it for jobs and school, and even other stuff like making video games.

Unknown said...

KUMON LITERALLY A PIECE OF SHITTY CRAP! IT'S BASICALLY HELL'S MATH!

Unknown said...

I'm a Kumon Tooter, and I honestly think Kumon is bad. So, I quit the job. It's so bad there and the boss is so nice to parents, and then so mean to their child. I saw children getting bossed around. Their look on their faces... So then I quit.

Unknown said...

YA KUMON IS BULLCRAP AND A BUNCH OF FLAMING COW TURD IT SUCKS ITS SHIT

Anonymous said...

Yea I have To agree kumon made me wander off in the fourth grade and when I got in the sixth grade I got bad grades and I wonder why and the in the next year after the summer I had no kumon I go in a nhs From straight As so I agree if every thing you tipped