3 Analyze Approaches to Tutoring

Now that you have been tutoring for a while, how do you see yourself as a tutor? What methods and approaches have you used that seem to work particularly well for you and your tutees? As you know, tutor roles include:

• Promoting independence in learning;
• Personalizing Learning;
• Facilitating tutee insights into learning, and learning processes;
• Providing a student perspective on learning and university success;
• Respecting individual differences;

We are not all the same in our approaches and there is not one single approach that is the “best”. Research has shown that there are particular categories and types of approaches that work often and good tutors use a combination that suits their tutee’s needs, and both tutor and tutee styles. The following approaches should be considered and combined as you develop your tutoring style.

Facilitating

Facilitation is about making it easy to have a discussion. Being curious about what the tutee knows/believes about the material can lead them to deepen their explanations and to identify connections and cross applications. Help them make linkages and pathways that will improve their retention and recall of information.

Challenging

Tutors can challenge tutees in their thinking by using Socratic questioning to help the tutee look for answers at a deeper level than their current understanding. This promotes critical thinking, analysis, and evaluation as it is focused on the subject at hand.

Coaching

Watching the tutee work through a problem or situation and giving small signs along the way as to direction to pursue or processes that may be fruitful for the tutee.

Leading

Sometimes the best approach is to provide information and resources for the tutee to study. It is hard to draw out information that is not there in the tutee’s mind.

What I’ve Learned by Tutoring Activity:

Describe some of the approach(es) you take to setting goals – for yourself and for your tutoring sessions.

In what ways do you model effective study skills and student behaviours for your tutees?

Explain a few of the most significant things you have learned from your tutoring experiences? Why are these significant for you?

What are some of your strengths as a Tutor in regards to your approach?

What weaknesses or gaps are you aware of? What concerns do you have?

Identify several areas for future growth as a tutor.