School Support in Switzerland — When Your Child Knows More Than Their Grades Show
A child moves to Switzerland.
Before the move, school was going well. Mathematics was not a problem. Science made sense. The child could learn, solve tasks, explain ideas and receive good grades.
Then the new school begins.
The grades fall.
The natural conclusion is often:
“The problem is German.”
Sometimes it is.
But sometimes the child understands German reasonably well — and the grades still do not recover.
Then another conclusion appears:
“The child needs a tutor in the subject.”
That may also be true.
But there is a third possibility that is easy to miss:
The child knows more than the school can currently see.
The problem may be neither German alone nor mathematics, biology, physics or another subject alone.
The missing element may be the bridge between knowledge, language and the expectations of a new school system.
Knowing the Subject Is Not the Same as Showing What You Know
School performance is not a direct measurement of everything a child knows.
Between knowledge and a grade, several things have to happen.
A learner must:
KNOWLEDGE → understand the task → identify what kind of answer is expected → formulate the answer → use the appropriate academic language → follow school conventions → demonstrate knowledge → receive an evaluation
A difficulty at any point in this chain can change the final result.
This is why two very different students can receive the same low grade.
One genuinely does not understand the subject.
The other understands it — but cannot yet demonstrate that understanding in the form expected by the new school.
Those are not the same educational problem.
They should not automatically receive the same solution.
“But My Child Understands German”
That is important.
It is not always enough.
A child may understand a teacher in everyday classroom communication and still struggle with:
the wording of mathematical problems;
instructions such as begründen, erklären, beschreiben, vergleichen or beurteilen;
the difference between giving an answer and showing a method;
subject-specific terminology;
longer written explanations;
the structure expected in tests;
unfamiliar ways of presenting familiar material;
deciding which information in a task actually matters.
So the question is not simply:
“Does the child speak German?”
A better question is:
“Can the child use German to demonstrate what they know in this subject and in this school context?”
That is a much more precise problem.
For families dealing specifically with mathematics, our page on learning mathematics in German explores this language–subject connection directly.
For a broader approach across subjects, see Learn German Through School Subjects.
The Opposite Problem Also Exists
Sometimes the child speaks confidently.
Parents hear fluent German and assume that language is no longer an obstacle.
But conversational fluency can hide gaps in academic language.
A student may easily discuss friends, hobbies and everyday life but struggle to:
explain why a mathematical solution works;
describe a biological process;
compare historical developments;
interpret a graph;
justify an opinion;
distinguish cause from correlation;
formulate a scientific conclusion.
This is not a contradiction.
Everyday communication and academic performance require overlapping but different language resources.
Sometimes the Problem Really Is the Subject
We should not explain everything through language.
A move can expose genuine gaps in subject knowledge.
The previous curriculum may have introduced topics in a different order.
A concept may not yet have been studied.
Notation may differ.
A student may have memorized a procedure without understanding the underlying idea.
Or the new school may expect a level of independence that the learner has not previously needed.
In such cases, more German practice will not repair the real problem.
The child needs work on the subject itself.
This is why we also teach mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, geography, economics, programming and other academic subjects as subjects — not merely as vocabulary themes inside a language lesson.
And Sometimes the Problem Is the Bridge
This is the most interesting case.
The child knows the concept.
The child understands much of the language.
Yet something breaks between the task and the answer.
Consider a simplified mathematics example.
The student can perform the calculation.
But the task requires the learner to decide:
what the situation represents;
which mathematical model applies;
which information is relevant;
how to show the reasoning;
how to formulate the conclusion.
The arithmetic may be correct while the school performance remains weak.
That is why we distinguish between learning a subject and learning to work with a subject through another language.
The broader model is explained on our page Learn Languages Through School Subjects.
What Changes After Moving to Switzerland?
A child does not move with grades.
A child moves with knowledge, habits, strategies, language resources and previous educational experience.
The new school then evaluates that learner inside a different system.
This can affect:
classroom expectations;
assessment criteria;
terminology;
task formats;
independence;
pace;
written work;
oral participation;
the amount of explanation required;
the way ability is interpreted.
This is why a sudden drop in grades after relocation should not automatically be interpreted as a drop in intelligence or ability.
We examine this problem in detail in Your Child Was Good at School Before Moving to Switzerland. Why Are Their Grades Lower Now?.
For families trying to understand the wider educational structure itself, see How the Swiss School System Works for Immigrant Families.
One Low Grade Can Have Several Causes
Suppose a child receives a poor result in biology.
What should the family do?
It depends on what actually happened.
Case 1: The concept is missing
The learner does not understand the biological process.
Primary need: biology.
Case 2: The concept is understood, but the German terminology is missing
The learner can explain the idea in another language but cannot work with it confidently in German.
Primary need: German + biology.
Case 3: The terminology is understood, but the task is misinterpreted
The learner knows the material but does not understand what the instruction requires.
Primary need: academic task interpretation.
Case 4: The learner knows the answer but cannot demonstrate it in the expected form
The problem lies in explanation, structure, academic language or assessment conventions.
Primary need: bridge between knowledge and performance.
Case 5: Several problems occur together
This is common after migration.
Primary need: integrated support rather than one generic tutoring solution.
Why “More Tutoring” Is Not Always the Answer
If the diagnosis is wrong, additional lessons can increase effort without solving the bottleneck.
A child who understands mathematics but struggles with German mathematical tasks does not necessarily need more calculation drills.
A child who speaks German but lacks the mathematical concept does not necessarily need more German.
A child who knows both may need help understanding how the new school asks questions and evaluates answers.
So before increasing the number of lessons, it is worth asking:
Where exactly does the chain from knowledge to demonstrated performance break?
That question changes the entire learning plan.
Language, Subject, or Language + Subject?
At Levitin Language School, we use three different educational routes.
1. Language
When the main obstacle is German itself, we work on the language.
This may include general German, academic language, reading, writing, comprehension and communication.
2. Subject
When the learner lacks the academic concept or skill, we work directly with the subject.
Mathematics remains mathematics.
Physics remains physics.
Biology remains biology.
The lesson is not turned into a vocabulary exercise.
3. Language + Subject
When the child understands the subject but struggles to operate with it through German — or when both areas need development — we work with them together.
This may mean:
solving mathematics through German;
learning biology terminology while understanding the biological system;
interpreting physics problems rather than memorizing translated words;
practising the kinds of explanations required at school;
moving between languages when this helps reveal whether the difficulty is conceptual or linguistic.
This is not simply bilingual tutoring.
It is a way to locate and strengthen the connection between what the learner knows and what the learner can demonstrate.
From Understanding to Real Progress
Our starting point is not:
“Which course should we sell?”
It is:
“What is actually preventing this learner from succeeding?”
We may examine school tasks, textbooks, tests, teacher feedback and the learner’s own explanations.
A useful diagnostic sequence is:
Can the learner solve it?
If not, we examine the subject.
Can the learner solve it in another language?
If yes, the concept may already be present.
Can the learner understand the German task?
If not, we examine language and task interpretation.
Can the learner explain the solution in the form the school expects?
If not, we work on the bridge between knowledge and academic performance.
The purpose is not to simplify school indefinitely.
The purpose is to make the learner increasingly independent inside the real educational environment.
School Support Should Reveal the Real Problem
A lower grade is information.
It is not yet a diagnosis.
The same visible result can come from very different hidden causes:
LANGUAGE
SUBJECT KNOWLEDGE
TASK INTERPRETATION
ACADEMIC LANGUAGE
SCHOOL CONVENTIONS
ASSESSMENT EXPECTATIONS
or several of them together
Effective support begins by separating these possibilities.
Because the goal is not merely to help a child complete tonight’s homework.
The goal is to help the child understand the new system, demonstrate real knowledge and gradually need less external support.
Online School Support for Families in Switzerland
Levitin Language School works online with children and teenagers in languages, academic subjects and combined Language + Subject formats.
Support can be built around the learner’s actual school programme rather than a separate generic course.
Depending on the situation, lessons may involve:
German;
mathematics;
physics;
chemistry;
biology;
geography;
history;
economics;
programming and computer science;
other available subjects;
or a combination of a subject with the language through which the child studies it.
The first question is therefore not:
“Does my child need a German tutor or a subject tutor?”
The better question is:
“What exactly is preventing my child from showing what they know?”
Once that is clear, the learning route becomes much more precise.
Levitin Language School
Global Learning. Personal Approach.
Telegram: @START_SCHOOL_TYMUR_LEVITIN
WhatsApp / Viber: +380 93 291 34 29
© Tymur Levitin. All rights reserved.
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