ask expert tutors

ask expert tutors

The Role of Expert Tutors in Academic Success

1. Introduction to Expert Tutors

Private tutoring and expert tutoring have been scattered throughout the history of formal education; indeed, in Western education systems, the dominance of peer-based tutoring has been the exception, crafted by the Common School Movement of the 19th century. Emerging from this shift was distilled tutor skill in normal schools / teacher education programs. To reference educated, often upper-crusted youth, and later female leaders broadly. Meanwhile, tutor training has been developing within institutions for over a hundred years. Arguably, the aim of teaching-tutoring has been to address students’ perceived deficiencies—deficiencies that would be less cumbersome for the school, for the family, and for society. How do peer and expert tutoring re-focus school-based teaching/tutoring? What of tutoring that happens unexpectedly for tutors?

In the context of this theme issue focusing on expert and peer tutors, this article introduces the contributions and points of view of the co-editors. Evening the playing field in STEM disciplines demands expert tutors. Expert tutors can support students’ learning in many ways: they can help students to engage with complicated, counter-intuitive concepts, and they can support student development of skills not solvable through memorization techniques. An expert tutor can also help students to cultivate their metacognitive skills (e.g., the ability to self-assess what they know, and what they do not). In the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), however, the relevance of expert tutoring remains vexed. Measurement elucidates an affirmative relationship between tutor presence for academic support and student academic success. Additionally, expert tutors can help to cultivate interpersonal awareness for a range of students.

2. Benefits of Engaging with Expert Tutors

Equally important are comments about the value of expert tutors from both those being tutored and those doing the tutoring: the one being tutored greatly benefits from expert, one-on-one input on precisely what needs to be done while those doing the tutoring gain confidence through the process, as they come to understand how much expertise they now possess! In short, tutoring is extremely beneficial to both parties.

Many of us have encountered times in academic courses or in the process of learning a new concept when we get stuck, can go no further, or are confused on significant issues. Over and over, experts will tell you to go see a tutor. Indeed, much research has demonstrated the significant difference a tutor can make in a student’s success in a class. Many studies have confirmed that just meeting with a tutor can mean an entire letter grade (or more) difference in how one is doing in a class. There are a great number of related studies indicating that those who engage with a tutor in a one-time individual tutoring appointment are much more likely to maintain level-appropriate or better grades at the end of the term in comparison to those who do not engage in such meetings. Furthermore, many other studies, in fact, have demonstrated that the more students engage with a tutor (either in one-on-one appointments or drop-in tutoring, group tutoring, or in a learning center setting), the higher they are likely to continue to perform in a class.

The benefits of meeting with expert tutors

3. Qualities to Look for in Expert Tutors

Ways to assess whether a tutor meets the above qualities include checking their qualifications and how many years of experience they have in their area of expertise (this is not exhaustive, nor are the two necessarily related). Taking the time to observe the tutor teaching before hiring them is essential; this provides information on their teaching style, adaptability, and empathy. Considering how well their references and prior students recommend them is also a good place to start. Expert tutors require adaptability and expertise and must know when to be compassionate and when to push their students. The key to an expert tutor is communication.

An expert tutor should have a deep understanding of the subjects that they teach, being either experts in their field or well-versed with respect to the target examination. For any teaching and learning environment, good communication is important. Expert tutors need to communicate with the student in a two-way process: asking questions and giving them a chance to understand and appreciate the process. Expert tutors need to listen, adapt, and communicate effectively. No two students are alike. Therefore, the skills of an expert must include adaptability. They cannot have a script that is pre-programmed for each student. Expert tutors adopt a more holistic approach, catering to the learning style of the student, constantly monitoring the overall development of the student. It is also essential for tutors to know when to provide the student with an emotional push or when to express empathy. They must be compassionate and kind, yet convincing. Although those in the top 1% percentile of a field of study typically perform poorly in teaching because they cannot empathize with those who do not understand the topic, it is also important for an expert tutor to understand the student and what they are going through to a lesser extent.

4. Effective Strategies for Working with Expert Tutors

Effective strategies in the use of consultation for working with students provide the tutor with an overview of relationship-building and specific techniques for enhancing short-term and long-term decision-making with students. It is important not only to individualize and focus the session on problem-solving but also to have the student take an active role in consulting on solutions if a problem arises with using a systematic review method. We also emphasize what you likely already know, plus a few new and different approaches to add to your knowledge base. Ensuring that students are actively engaged in their own learning, invested in the relationship, and hopeful, as well as helping them feel empowered and needed are key elements in this relationship. Effective strategies in the use of consultations have shown to be effective with challenging students. Tutors and mentors need to be engaging, patient, supportive, and, most importantly, be satisfied with small victories. Let students determine their successes, do not measure success from your standpoint.

Effective strategies for getting the most out of working with an expert tutor involve engaging students in setting specific goals, facilitating their active participation in the work with their tutor, and encouraging them to engage in key conversations, especially in partner problem solving with the tutor. The initial strategies encourage conversations that promote a working partnership. Using strategies that require conversation in collaborative problem-solving can help to break through resistance and frustration. When students are not being successful, it is especially important to have them establish for themselves both short and long-term goals. Specific examples of these types of exchanges are an initial goal-setting conversation, the use of prior positive experiences to build hope and motivation, setting of immediate goals or directions for each meeting, as well as looking at long-term goals and basing decisions regarding progress on changes in patterns. Basing the continuation of services on conversations with students about their proactive success balance is also considered effective.

5. Case Studies and Success Stories

In the final section, we will generally present case studies and success stories. Under this heading, we will provide testimonials and accounts of academic success. This will create a powerful picture of the real-world difference that working with an expert tutor can make. Case studies may show how one-on-one tutoring turned around an individual’s academic performance. Success stories like these will convince new students that they can succeed in higher education! This concludes our guide on how to structure your writing on ‘What I Wish an Expert Tutor Had Told Me’ published earlier. This resource is designed to assist our writers in creating high-quality tutorial content and case-study transcripts for our online course, What I Wish an Expert Had Told Me. We encourage our writers to familiarize themselves with the guide and use it to structure their writing effectively. Familiarize themselves with the guide and use it to structure their writing effectively.