How to Maintain Positive Tutoring Relationships to Adolescents

Jul 15th, 2009 | By webucation | Category: Education

Before starting a tutoring program, it is a good idea to talk to your tutee either personally or through phone. Construct a tutoring schedule and explain how much time you are supposed to tutor given your program requirements. You must report to your mentor teacher about the strengths and weaknesses of your new student and assess how you can offer help and achieve goals on developing his or her literacy. Then ask your mentor teacher to introduce you to your new student/s formally.

When you are in the classroom, explain your purpose and ask the students to call you not with your first name. In that way, students will realize that you are a professional rather than a peer. Make notes of your observations in your tutee’s class but be sure that you keep your notes to yourself.

According to Cathy Roller, “there are two general principles of effective tutoring: (1) establishing a warm, supportive environment, and (2) scaffolding children’s learning. Roller recommends tutors to:

1.) Get to know the learner like his or her interests, strengths, and needs.

2.) Give specific praise as this will increase his or her confidence.

3.) Keep the session moving. Don’t focus too long on one activity as it will bore your tutee and make it less that he will want to work with you.

4.) Be a model. Model your own enjoyment of reading and writing. if you demonstrate your engagement with literacy, you let your tutee realize the advantages of improving his or her skills.

You must keep in mind that your tutee has a number of other important activities and commitments in addition to tutoring. You must be aware of, and sensitive to, these activities and commitments. Be yourself and don’t try to be a peer to your tutee. See yourself as a professional and not a pal, in that way, you will make more progress and gain positive results.

Gather information about the existing literacy program for your tutee. Examine materials from classes and ask him to explain what is going on in class. His explanation can provide considerable insights on how he perceives both the work he is being asked to do and his own skill levels as a literacy learners. You can also ask his teachers some additional information on what the classroom program looks like and how you could support it. You are better equipped as a tutor if you can understand your tutee’s school approach to literacy. In this way, you can incorporate and reinforce learning better rather than distract the existing school literacy instruction of your tutee.

It is very important that when you are doing your first interview to your tutee that you try to know something about your student’s hobbies, musical tastes, friendships, sports, family, favorite books, school performance, and career aspirations. In this way, your tutee may come to trust you more quickly. Sometimes it’s hard to get young people to open up so you must develop ingenious ways to trade information.

Listen carefully when your tutee is answering your questions. Don’t insert your own words and push too hard in eliciting information. Talk about topics your tutee is willing to discuss and then move on. You will learn more over time. Some adolescents need to develop a long-term relationship before they are willing to share too much. Start each session day by asking how is she? But don’t spend the entire session discussing personal matters.

Remember, that you and your tutees relationship is basically for learning and literacy and not for counseling.

Bookmark and Share
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,



Student Part Time Employment

Site Build It!

Start a Profitable Online Business That Grows With You... And At the Same Time Develop A Resume-Buffing Skillset! Follow a step-by-step plan and use tools and services with a proven record of success.

Are you thinking of ways to pay for tuition, school supplies, books, and rent, not to mention fun & games... without having to get into debt? Are you looking for a way to generate income all year-round? You can actually build your own thriving online business and a winning resume at the same time. And the best thing is there's no work experience or technical knowledge needed... just a positive attitude and ideas to share.

Site Build It! is perfect for students and young entrepreneurs, which is why it's also taught in over 25 colleges and universities and highly recommended in MBA programs and curriculums of major institutions such as the University of Arizona and the Citadel Military College.

Not only does it beat flipping burgers, it gives you a skill set on your resume that is irresistible to your future employers... proven Internet marketing skills, creativity, competence, and the ability to work independently.

And with SBI!, you don't even have to sit through or pay for a very expensive classroom course. Complete step by step videos detailing the proven process as well as all the tools you'll need are already included for one affordably low price... Check it out by clicking here.

One comment
Leave a comment »

  1. I like the ideas presented here! Thanks so much for your great information! Successful teaching or tutoring is indeed atwo way street.