2. ALLOW STUDENTS TIME TO
WORK
• AS A TUTOR, YOU MAY FEEL
YOU MUST TALK THROUGHOUT
THE SESSION. THE STUDENT,
HOWEVER, MUST HAVE TIME TO
THINK, WORK, AND RESPOND.
AVOID THE TEMPTATION TO
TALK ALL THE TIME. WHEN Y0U
ARE TALKING, THE STUDENTS
ARE NOT INTERNALIZING WHAT
THEY HAVE LEARNED.
3. PLACE THE BURDEN OF WORK
ON THE STUDENT, NOT ON
YOURSELF • RATHER THAN SAYING, “YOU NEED
A COMMA HERE,” SAY, “YOU LEFT
OUT A PUNCTUATION MARK
BETWEEN HERE AND HERE; CAN
YOU FIND IT?” RATHER THAN
SAYING, “I’LL LOOK UP THE
INFORMATION BETWEEN NOW AND
OUR NEXT SESSION,” SAY, “YOU
RESEARCH THAT BETWEEN NOW
AND OUR NEXT SESSION. I’LL BE
READY TO CHECK WHAT YOU HAVE
FOUND.”
4. HELP STUDENTS UNDERSTAND
WHAT THEY NEED TO
ACCOMPLISH• STUDENTS NEED TO
UNDERSTAND THAT THEY HAVE
A RESPONSIBILITY TO
ACCOMPLISH CLASS WORK
BETWEEN SESSIONS. SOME
TUTORS HAVE FOUND IT
HELPFUL TO MAKE A
“HOMEWORK CONTRACT” OR
“WEEKLY TO-DO LIST” WITH
STUDENTS, OUTLINING THEIR
RESPONSIBILITIES EACH WEEK.
5. BE FLEXIBLE!
• THERE IS USUALLY MORE THAN ONE
WAY TO DO THINGS. STUDENTS
DON’T HAVE TO DO THEIR WORK
THE SAME WAY YOU DO. YOU MAY
STUDY MOST EFFECTIVELY WITH
BACKGROUND MUSIC, BUT THEY
MIGHT NEED TOTAL SILENCE.
CREATE OPTIONS FOR THEM AND
LET THEM CHOOSE WHAT THEY FIND
MOST EFFECTIVE. SHARE WITH
THEM HOW YOU LEARN, THEN
ALLOW THEM TO EXPLORE AND
PERSONALIZE THEIR OWN STYLE.
6. BE PATIENT
• STUDENTS DON’T HAVE TO DO
THINGS RIGHT THE FIRST TIME
THEY TRY. GIVE THEM THE
TIME AND THE
ENCOURAGEMENT.
7. GROUP TUTORING
• IN A GROUP SITUATION, YOU SHOULD
CIRCULATE TO EACH STUDENT TO SEE HOW
THEY ARE PROGRESSING. YOU SHOULD NOT
ALWAYS WAIT FOR STUDENTS TO ASK FOR
ASSISTANCE. ONE EFFECTIVE TECHNIQUE
THAT TUTORS CAN EMPLOY AS THEY
CIRCULATE IS TO ASK HOW THE STUDENT
PERFORMED ON THE LAST ASSIGNMENT.
THIS APPROACH USUALLY ELICITS A
RESPONSE, WHICH OFTEN LEADS TO A
DISCUSSION OF THE DIFFICULTY THAT THE
STUDENT IS PRESENTLY ENCOUNTERING.
8. IF YOU DON’T KNOW…
• YOU SHOULD NEVER TRY TO
“BLUFF” A STUDENT.
WHENEVER A STUDENT ASKS A
QUESTION TO WHICH YOU DO
NOT KNOW THE ANSWER, THE
STUDENT SHOULD BE GUIDED
TO THE APPROPRIATE
RESOURCE OR TEACHER FOR
ASSISTANCE.
9. ABSENCES AND TARDINESS
• YOUR ABSENCES AND TARDINESS
SHOULD BE KEPT TO A MINIMUM
BECAUSE YOU ARE A VITAL PART OF
THE LEARNING PROCESS.
TARDINESS AND FREQUENT
ABSENCES ARE A BAD EXAMPLE,
PREVENT EFFICIENT OPERATION OF
THE SESSION, AND DENY STUDENTS
THE FULL BENEFITS OF THIS TYPE OF
INSTRUCTION.
10. YOUR “COACHABLILITY”
• YOU MUST BE ABLE TO ACCEPT
AND ACT ON SUGGESTIONS
FROM THE TUTOR
COORDINATOR, LEARNING
SPECIALISTS AND GRADUATE
ASSISTANTS. YOU SHOULD
DEMONSTRATE FLEXIBILITY TO
ADJUST TO UNEXPECTED
CHANGES AND STILL WORK
EFFECTIVELY WITH STUDENTS.
11. Tutoring Situation #1
• Tutoring Situation:
Student-athlete comes
late, has no material
and basically has no
idea what’s going on in
class.
What do you do?
12. Tutoring Situation #2
• Tutoring Situation:
Student-athlete comes
in saying, “I don’t get
this class. I’m never
going to get it.” He/she
has pretty much already
given up.
What do you do?
13. Tutoring Situation #3
• Tutoring situation:
Student-athlete has to
meet with you because
the academic counselor
has deemed it so. They
resist participating in
the session and seem to
not be paying attention.
What do you do?
14. Tutoring Situation #4
• Tutoring situation:
Student-athlete lets you
know he/she is going
pro and none of this is
really important. The
class he/she is taking
has nothing to do with
their future aspirations,
according to him/her.
What do you do?
15. Tutoring Situation #5
• Tutoring situation:
Student-athlete is
extremely high anxiety.
He/she is stressed about
balancing academics,
athletics and everybody’s
expectations. You are
having a hard time getting
them to concentrate.
What do you do?
16. Tutoring Situation #6
• Tutoring situation: The
student-athlete is just a
naturally quiet person
and doesn’t ask
questions. You are not
sure if he/she is getting
everything that you are
covering.
What do you do?
17. Tutoring Situation #7
• Tutoring situation: The
student-athlete has
figured out that if
he/she shuts up, you
will do most of the
work. You sense that
he/she is becoming
more dependent on
you.
What do you do?
18. Tutoring Situation #8
• Tutoring situation:
Student-athlete comes
in stressed out because
a big assignment is due
tomorrow.
What do you do?
19. Tutoring Situation #9
• Tutoring situation:
Student-athlete comes
to tutoring session
wanting you to do
everything. They have
an assignment due and
are waiting on you to
tell them what to write.
What do you do?
