Online tutoring has become an increasingly popular option for extra support outside of traditional classroom settings.
By offering students a safe, convenient, and personalised resource to draw on when extra academic help is needed, online tutoring with experienced tutors can provide the support required to bridge knowledge gaps in core subjects and push performance levels further.
In this post, we’ll explore the benefits of online tutoring and share practical tips to help you make the most of your sessions.
Top 5 Benefits of Online Tutoring
Online tutoring benefits are an extremely versatile, convenient, and cost-effective way for students to receive personalised assistance with their studies.
From traditional one-on-one video sessions and group chats to automated instruction, such as apps and online tutoring programs, there is a vast array of options available on an online platform to support student learning.
Whether you prefer face-to-face interaction or a more structured guided experience, online tutoring services can provide instruction from a qualified tutor within various fields of study.
Moreover, with this type of help available at any time and place, students can access the online learning modules they need quickly and in a convenient way that is difficult to do with in-person tutoring.
1. Accessibility
Through online tutoring platforms, students can access high-quality services without geographical constraints or transportation issues. Even rural areas now have access to the same benefits and resources of online tutoring as students living in larger cities because support is only an internet connection away.
This means that no matter where you live in the world, you can access the benefits of online tutoring and online learning as a whole from tutors whose tutorial style matches your own learning style. The tutoring experience is not only about national curriculum learning material, but a good tutor will also provide students expert advice and engaging lessons any time of day or night.
2. Time Saving
Time-saving is one of the key benefits of online tutoring programs, as the entire lesson can be completed whenever it's most convenient for the student, at their own pace, no matter where they may be. This helps make studying feel like less of a chore to students with even the most active social lives when it fits seamlessly into their busy schedules.
3. Cost Savings
Another online tutoring benefit is the money it can save. By utilising an online tutoring platform, students can access a learning experience tailored to their needs and quality private tutoring without the expense associated with in-person tuition. This allows them to take online lessons and control their own educational progress and study habits without fear of debt.
4. Flexibility
You can have online tutoring sessions at any time that’s convenient for you and your tutor. This makes it easier for a student to fit tutoring into a busy academic or extracurricular schedule, especially with the flexibility of online classrooms.
With online tutoring, you’re no longer tied to a physical classroom or location, you can learn from anywhere, anytime; all that’s required is an internet connection.
Online tutors can also offer specialised expertise and knowledge that may not be available in your geographical area.
5. Comfort
Online tutoring offers amazing opportunities to explore knowledge in an online classroom, providing a convenient, flexible, and positive learning environment. From the comfort of your own home, or any location that suits you, online tutoring allows students to access expert tutors without travel hassle or disruption.
Students can benefit from interacting in real-time with experienced professionals who provide clear instruction, answer questions, and offer timely feedback.
Online Tools to Improve the Learning Experience
There are a number of resources available on online platforms to help both students and tutors get the most benefit from the online learning experience. These tools can help improve engagement, organisation, and payment processing.
Video Calling Tools
One of the most important things for online tutors is to be able to connect with their students on a personal level and in virtual classrooms. That's why video calling tools like Google Meet and Zoom are such valuable resources.
These tools allow you to see your students' faces and body language, as well as screen sharing, which can be helpful in gauging their understanding of the material.
Additionally, video calling tools make it easy to share your screen so you can show your students presentations, websites, or other materials that will help them learn.
Interactive Online Whiteboards
Another great tool for online tutors is an interactive whiteboard. This type of software allows you to write or draw on a digital canvas, which can be helpful for explaining concepts or working through problems with your students.
Many interactive whiteboards also come with built-in features like a virtual calculator or graphing tool, which can be handy for math and science tutoring sessions. There are even some interactive whiteboards that allow you to record your session so your student can go back and review the material at a later stage.
Tutor Management Tools
Finally, there are tutor management tools available that can help you stay organised and efficient. For example, our tutor management software is a tool that helps tutors with everything from scheduling and payments to progress reports, marketing, and managing learning resources.
These types of tools can save you time by automating some of the more tedious aspects of online tutoring so you can focus on what's really important: helping your students learn.
Pros of Using Online Tools for Educational Support
- They can help personalise learning, increasing engagement and motivation for some students.
- They can make it easier for students to get access to the very best tutors, as well as content and online resources, providing a level playing field for all students, regardless of their background or ability level.
- They can help save time on tasks like grading and lesson planning so that tutors can focus on teaching and make assessments more accurate and efficient.
- They can allow students to take more control and learn at their own pace by easily connecting them with experts from around the world.
- They can provide real-time feedback that can help accelerate learning and facilitate communication between parents and educators about student progress.
3 Tips to Find the Right Online Tutor
If you are keen to give online tutoring a go but are not sure where to begin, here are some important tips for getting started.
When it comes to finding the right online tutor, it is important to do your research and find someone who not only has a good track record of providing effective tutoring but also has the same learning goals as you. Here are some practical tips that can guide you in your search.
- Conduct a detailed review of the tutor's background and qualifications. Check to see if they have experience in teaching the material you need help with and read reviews or ratings from other people who have worked with them before.
- Be sure that their communication style aligns with what works best for you. A great way to assess this is to jump on a call for an initial consultation and see if you feel comfortable asking questions and getting feedback from the tutor.
- Discuss with them an appropriate timeline for when to achieve your tutoring goals so both parties understand their expectations clearly.
Evidence for the Benefits of Online Tutoring
An interesting survey by Bramble found that the majority of their users found online tutoring more or as effective as face-to-face tutoring. The survey, which represents 2,000 users in a total of 38 countries, gives great insight into all sections of the tutoring industry.
Our team is always interested in seeing how new teaching tools can help businesses; therefore, we have written a short summary of Bramble's findings below.
How has online tutoring helped users?
The first key finding of the Bramble survey was that students overwhelmingly found online tutoring effective. In fact, 84% of students reported that online tutoring was more effective or as effective as in-person tuition. Furthermore, 73% of parents and 72% of tutors agreed that better grades resulted for students who learnt online as opposed to in-person tutoring.
Along with some general questions about the benefits of online tutoring, the survey also identified more specific benefits users experienced. All users (tutors, parents, and students) agreed that a key benefit of online tutoring was increased flexibility. Furthermore, they found that working online, lesson recordings, and a more flexible/casual attitude created a beneficial learning environment.
There was also some indication that certain students and tutors found they were able to cover more topics online than in person. This may play a key part in why some students reported online tuition to be more effective than face-to-face tutoring when it came to the learning process.
So what does this mean for future online tutoring?
Arguably one of the biggest changes caused by the Coronavirus pandemic is people's attitude towards connecting with others remotely. Therefore, it is not surprising that this change can also be seen within the tutoring market, where students do not have to visit a tutor's house.
Online tutoring work in the online world has several advantages for students with learning disabilities, providing an essential alternative for those other students who have some educational challenges when working with tutors in person.
In the past, some worried that online tutoring may be less effective or may cause certain aspects of the tutor-student relationship to suffer. But from this survey and our own customer feedback, holding lessons online can clearly have a large number of its own benefits. Having the option to teach or learn from anywhere in the world, at any time of the day, means tutoring is increasingly accessible to all, now more than ever.
Conclusion
To conclude, online teaching offers a diverse range of advantages, such as greater flexibility and convenience. It’s scalable, customised to the individual learner, and makes learning fun and interesting.
Online tutors can help learners attain higher levels of proficiency in subject areas and reduce learning gaps. Plus, online lessons allow anyone from anywhere in the world to access valuable resources they otherwise may not have access to.
Ultimately, creating a learning plan with measurable goals between the student and tutor will help create success and reap the benefits mentioned above.
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Want to learn more about tutoring online? Read some of our tutoring blogs here!