Different students will look for different things when they want to choose a private tutor. There is a wide range of options when it comes to tutors, with each having different levels of experience and different backgrounds. There are some with teaching qualifications, while there those who don’t, so it will all rest on the parent or student to decide the most important factors to determine the tutor to choose.
The tutors we have on the directory are educated to at least degree level or they are currently on their final year. These qualifications exceed the minimum requirement, and this is one of those things that every parent or student must find out before they can begin the lessons. The directory seeks to find the ideal tutor in your area, for example if you are looking for maths tutors in Birmingham that is what your search will return.
Below are some questions that you need to put into considerations when choosing a tutor best suited for your needs.
What Qualifications do they have?
There are no legal requirements in place for tutors that state the level of education and there are no official qualifications they can get. This means you are left to decide if the tutor is qualified enough to tutor on a given subject.
Do They Have a DBS Certificate?
DBS is an abbreviation for Disclosure and Barring Service, and they are usually needed for voluntary work and certain jobs. Before working with children, working in healthcare, or applying to adopt or foster a child, a person might need to go a DBS check.
What happens during lessons?
Different tutors have different approaches on education, and this is why it varies from one to another. Which subjects do they teach at what time of the year? The tutor you are going to choose must be able to explain the plan they have in place and show an appropriate structure in the lesson plans. The subjects being studies is going to determine the content of the lesson.
Subjects like English an Art will often involve answers that are open to interpretation or more subjective, and this is why you can expect them to be in a discursive form and will involve a little less of methodical practice. Subjects like science and math tend to follow a more logical approach and you can expect it to have practical examples throughout the lesson.
The time of the year that the student is starting the course of tuition is also going to have some part in what is going to happen in the lessons. If it is the start of the academic year, many tutors usually focus more on class-related tuition, because they are going to supplement the coursework in the school curriculum. Starting from January, tutors are at a high demand because many students are preparing for their exams, and most of the lessons during this time focus more on the coming exams.
How is the tutor keeping up to date with the school curriculum?
This is an important question to ask since not all tutors are teachers, and this means they have to get information from somewhere else. A good tutor will keep up to date with the curriculum because he/she has a wide range of sources. If the tutor is already tutoring when you meet them, then there is a good chance they have a good understanding of the curriculum. Tutors tend to have teachers as friends, and this is important because it will help in clearing up any uncertainties during the lesson. The National Curriculum website is a great source of information that is up to date that can be used by tutors.
How much are they charging?
It is important to know how much you are going to be charged before the lessons can start. Many tutors will charge you an hourly rate, but there are some that usually give out a discount for parents who are able to pay for a certain amount of hours over a given period of time. Many tutors will charge you £15 – £70 an hour, with some charging lower and some higher than this. Their charge will be mainly determined by qualifications and experience. There are some tutors who will provide lower rates when there is a small group of students who want to be taught together.
Do they have references?
A good tutor should be able to give a list of phone numbers of previous parents and students. It is a good idea to call up these numbers before you agree to pay for the lessons. Calling will help you know whether the references they are providing are genuine. People who are getting started in the field of tutoring might not have any references to parents and students they have worked with, and if this is the case, then you should check out the references they have provided you with.
There are different options when it comes to references for tutors starting out, with the most common being previous employers or university lecturers. There are some tutors who are going to provide you with written testimonials from previous parents and students. These testimonials should have the contacts of the referee.
