National Education > Tuition Advice

How to find a good tutor

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Stick:
Find the perfect tutor for you

By Stick
What type of person does it take to be a tutor?

There are so many tutors out there vying for your business and finding the right person for you can be a daunting and tedious process if you are unfamiliar with the system. They will all show off their fantastic VCE results and will offer you free first lessons, but not all tutors are the same. A lot of the tutors out there are in it for the quick money and will not care about your academic success. Just because they got a study score of 50 in Specialist Maths doesn't automatically mean they will make a great Maths tutor. Being able to understand, but also convey, the theory and information successfully is far more important. It is one thing for them to be able to process the information themselves in their head, but how successfully will they communicate this to you so you will understand? Good tutors are understanding, patient, show initiative and adapt to your style of learning. They are positive thinkers and encourage you to do your best.

There are so many tutors out there. How can I shorten the list of potential candidates?

The first and most important thing you should check for if the tutor has a Working with Children Check. By law, all tutors are required to have a Working With Children Check. If you are found out to be employing a tutor without a Working With Children Check, severe penalties apply to both you and your tutor. Very few tutors out there will bother to get a Working With Children Check, so looking out for this will eliminate the vast majority of your list. Tutors that have taken the time to complete a Working With Children Check are trusted by the police to look after minors and furthermore have demonstrated dedication for their students' learning.

If none of your potential candidates have a Working With Children Check, do not continue down the avenue of hiring a student tutor. It is far more advisable to go through a tuition agency and find an experienced qualified professional teacher with Victorian Institute of Teaching Accredition. While they are a far more trustworthy alternative, however, they will charge like wounded bulls (approximately $60-$75 per hour). It is regrettable that so few tutors make the effort to complete a Working With Children Check, but hopefully with more awareness, more tutors without Checks will be caught.

Another way to shorten your list of potential candidates is to create your own personal 'Wanted' advertisement. Make clear what you expect of your tutor and what they should know about you and provide contact details. Make sure your advertisement is clear and concise. You will find that a smaller number of tutors will respond your advertisement. Check their resume and take note of their spelling, punctuation, grammar, tone and clarity in their response. Also make sure they respond to your comments. Why are they the solution for you?

The same goes if you are checking through tutors' advertisements. These little measures often tend to reveal the good communicators from the poor communicators.

I think I've found a suitable tutor! What do I do now?

Congratulations on finding a suitable tutor. The majority of your hard work has been completed. Now you will need to go through what you expect of your tutor, as well as what they should expect of you.

I highly recommend meeting the tutor in a mutually agreed public place, such as a cafe, to arrange this. At the very least, you should be completing this process by phone. Many tutors will use emails and text messages to hide poor communication skills. By physically meeting your tutor, or at least talking to them, you are able to see their communication skills in action. Go through with them what you expect of them and you would like from them. Are you a high achiever and is looking for extension work, or are you struggling and looking for extra help? When and where will you be tutored? This all needs to be made clear so they can organise classes and resources appropriately.

A courteous tutor should try to work around your preferred times and locations, rather than making you fit their schedule. Try to agree on a time and place for you to be tutored.

I've had my first session with my tutor and I don't think they are the right person for me after all. What should I do about this?

Whatever happens, do not tell your tutor you are not happy with them right in front of their face. Instead, thank them for their time and tell them you will think about their placement over the next couple of days, and will get back to them later. Remember that this might be the tutor's first session and they might feel a bit unsure of themselves at first. Instant disapproval can be confronting for anyone, let alone someone trying their absolute best to teach you. Instead, leave a message politely explaining you have decided to look for someone else. Again, thank them for their time and wish them the best of luck in finding another placement.

Finding the perfect tutor for you is not going to be a walk in the park. But a good tutor-student relationship can make all the difference in your education and will set the foundations for your success.

Please feel free to ask questions or leave advice. I will be sure to include more important information in this guide. :)

Stick:
Minor editing changes made. :)

ggxoxo:
^Great advice :)

Stick:
Thanks! :)

LOLs99:
Thanks but can I get a yr 11 as a tutor

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