The How To's of Selecting a Tutor

As a parent there may come a time in which you realize that your child needs academic support. This could be for remediation, enrichment, test prep, college prep, or just to make better grades. It is up to the parent to know what to do when this comes up so we will answer questions about how to select a tutor today to support you in finding the best fit for your child.

Step 1: Is There a Need?
The first step is to find out what your child actually needs in a tutor. Again a personal tutor can be hired for several different reasons and we will go through a few of those with you.

• Enrichment - This is for the student who is succeeding at grade level and wants to move forward focusing on increasing knowledge and preparation for the next level.
• Test Prep - This is for the student who has any type of standardized testing that they will have to take such as the state grade level standardized tests, SAT, ACT, Compass, etc.
• Maintenance - This is for the student who needs assistance in transitioning from one school to the next, one class to another, or one grade to another. Maintenance focuses on those skills that are not taught in school such as time management, note taking, organization, and study skills that they can apply to their current coursework.
• Remediation - This is for the student who has either forgotten a skill or just never really learned it. Usually parents get hit in the face with remediation, in other words the child comes home with an unexpected F. With remediation the child is tested on grade level and provided with a prescription of how to get caught up and catch what was missed in the past this in turns allow the student to succeed in the future.
• Remediation/Maintenance (a hybrid of sorts) -This usually works for older students and allows half of the tutoring time to be devoted to remediation while the other half is devoted to maintenance.

Step 2: How to Find a Tutor:

• First, check with other parents in your neighborhood. Chances are a good tutor is working right next door!
• Check with your child’s teacher or school principal, guidance counselor or learning specialist.
• Look in the yellow pages for learning centers.
• Check flyers in the local library, pediatrician’s offices, children’s consignment stores, coffee shops, parent teacher stores, and any other kid friendly business.
• On-line searches may result in locating tutors in your area as well but make sure you research the tutor  by simply doing a Google search and checking out social media sites as well as asking for references that you can contact.

Step 3: Evaluate the Tutor (The Application) - The tutor should be evaluated in the following areas:

• Qualifications - When looking at qualifications there are a few things you should look for. Your tutor should have a college degree and some tutoring or teaching experience. Ideally you want someone who is a certified teacher or has a tutoring certification.
• Personality - Most students resist tutoring so you want someone who has a great personality and have the ability to put the student at ease. The tutor should be able to determine what will and will not work for your child and help determine their strengths and weaknesses.
• Communication - The tutor should provide consistent feedback on the goals for the student and how these goals will be achieved and measured.They should also communicate with the teacher to make sure that the student is getting everything that they need in and out of the classroom.
• Cost - This is probably the most important factor for parents and the one thing I remind parents of is you get what you pay for. Tutoring can be accomplished in a one-to-one or small group setting. I believe the method used depends on the student and whether or not they can concentrate with another student there.One-to-one tutoring will be more expensive than small group and in-home more than going to a center. It is up to the parent to determine what is best for the student and go from there.

Step 4: The Interview: 

Questions to ask your tutor:

• How many years have you been a tutor?
• Are you, or is your company, a member of the Education Industry Association?
• Can you provide references?
• What assessments do you use?
• What supplies and materials do you provide? What will my child need to provide?
• Will you provide private (one-to-one) tutoring?
• What are your qualifications?
• What is the cost?
• Are there additional fees?
• Will I have a contract?
• Can I get out of the contract?
• How will you know what my child’s needs are?
• Do you have a particular teaching philosophy?
• How will you communicate with me?
• Will you communicate with my child's teachers?

Step 5: The Interview Part II: 

What your tutor needs from you:

• What seems to motivate your child?
• Does your child like school? What are his/her favorite subjects? Least favorite?
• How does your child feel about being tutored?
• Do you have samples of the work that I can view?
• May I speak to the teacher regarding your child?
• Does the school agree with your assessment of your child?
• How does your child feel about standardized tests? Does s/he get anxious? What are his/her past standardized test scores like?
• Does your child have any specific organizational/study skill issues?
• Does your child have any  learning disabilities that you are aware of?

What questions do you have about selecting a tutor or tutoring in general? 

Leave your comments below and we will answer each of them.