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While anyone can start teaching, it takes a certain skill, understanding, and experience to be an exceptional teacher who has a transformational impact on their students. In this section, we've curated Best Practices for tutors to help them impart a highly effective teaching experience to their students
While anyone can start teaching, it takes a certain skill, understanding, and experience to be an exceptional teacher who has a transformational impact on their students. In this section, we've curated Best Practices for tutors to help them impart a highly effective teaching experience to their students
Best Practices
Are you a tutor struggling to see a wink of spring on your student’s bored, sullen face? Well, every tutor faces this struggle at least once in each student’s learning cycle. Luckily there are a few easy ways to tackle the problem of boredom.
Let’s begin by taking you through our top 5 tested methods of combating demotivation or simply lack of motivation and zeal in students:
Needless to say, boredom or the daily rut can make any student fall prey to demotivation. This lack of drive can be avoided by using creative ways of teaching, for example:
a. Use videos or simple animated content instead of using textbooks all the time
b. Change the setting - take them out for a lesson under the open skies once in a while
c. Use games, visual cues, flash cards, creative tests, etc. wherever possible
d. Give unexpected offs at times to switch from predictable routines
Never make the student feel like an instruction taker. Keeping your lessons participative is the key to keeping demotivation at bay. Plan the month with the student, ask them about their likes and dislikes while studying. Some examples are:
a. Let your student decide the total number of questions or practice sets that must be covered in a week
b. Participate with the student while they tackle a problem or an assignment, motivate them to think in multiple ways while solving a problem
c. Seek feedback from your student every week or so (keep the conversation informal, ask them what you could do better or more for making the learning more effective)
Spend time talking to your students about their interests and hobbies. Knowing them better will help you get creative with your teaching modus operandi. For example, if you know your student is a football fanatic, make things interesting by naming people in math word problems after famous football players!
You’ll see an instantaneous spike in the student’s motivation levels, try it to believe us! We bet, this works the fastest of all tricks.
There are different kinds of students when it comes to their intrinsic motivation behind learning. The surface learners for example are students who are motivated to only avoid failure. While strategic learners on the other hand are motivated by rewards and recognition, the keen or impassioned learners are motivated to learn more than what the book offers. Here’s a reward strategy cue for each type:
a. Surface learners: good incremental performance in small tests can be a major motivation booster. Give such students more of small daily or weekly review tests in increasing order of difficulty to keep them interested in performing better over time
b. Strategic learners: reward them by offering competition or physical rewards like a goody bag once in a month or a major prize if they score better than your other students in same grade
c. Impassioned learners: they are self-motivated to learn however going beyond syllabus to discuss real life application of the concepts and theories discussed can keep motivated longer
Lastly, using the carrot and stick model in the smart way is of pivotal importance. It’s quintessential that you be free with praise but use constructive feedback in moderation especially with a demotivated student.
Always keep your tone optimistic while addressing issues like missing homework, not paying attention to detail, etc. Your attitude towards a student and your outlook whether you consider them a bright student or not will reflect directly in the student’s motivation. Hence, we say, be ultra careful with not only what you speak but with also how you speak (and it includes having an affable body language too!).
And now, are you a passionate tutor looking for the students who might be in need of someone just like you? Without thinking for another jiffy, log on to Talentnook.com and create your tutor profile. We connect students and teachers in the neighborhood forming the one of its kind student-tutor network. With Talentnook you can connect with thousands of prospective students in a few clicks!
Are you a tutor struggling to see a wink of spring on your student’s bored, sullen face? Well, every tutor faces this struggle at least once in each student’s learning cycle. Luckily there are a few easy ways to tackle the problem of boredom.
Let’s begin by taking you through our top 5 tested methods of combating demotivation or simply lack of motivation and zeal in students:
Be unpredictable, make things fun while teaching
Needless to say, boredom or the daily rut can make any student fall prey to demotivation. This lack of drive can be avoided by using creative ways of teaching, for example:
a. Use videos or simple animated content instead of using textbooks all the time
b. Change the setting – take them out for a lesson under the open skies once in a while
c. Use games, visual cues, flash cards, creative tests, etc. wherever possible
d. Give unexpected offs at times to switch from predictable routines
b. Change the setting – take them out for a lesson under the open skies once in a while
c. Use games, visual cues, flash cards, creative tests, etc. wherever possible
d. Give unexpected offs at times to switch from predictable routines
Give the student sense of control
Never make the student feel like an instruction taker. Keeping your lessons participative is the key to keeping demotivation at bay. Plan the month with the student, ask them about their likes and dislikes while studying. Some examples are:
a. Let your student decide the total number of questions or practice sets that must be covered in a week
b. Participate with the student while they tackle a problem or an assignment, motivate them to think in multiple ways while solving a problem
c. Seek feedback from your student every week or so (keep the conversation informal, ask them what you could do better or more for making the learning more effective)
b. Participate with the student while they tackle a problem or an assignment, motivate them to think in multiple ways while solving a problem
c. Seek feedback from your student every week or so (keep the conversation informal, ask them what you could do better or more for making the learning more effective)
Make an effort to know your student better
Spend time talking to your students about their interests and hobbies. Knowing them better will help you get creative with your teaching modus operandi. For example, if you know your student is a football fanatic, make things interesting by naming people in math word problems after famous football players!
You’ll see an instantaneous spike in the student’s motivation levels, try it to believe us! We bet, this works the fastest of all tricks.
You’ll see an instantaneous spike in the student’s motivation levels, try it to believe us! We bet, this works the fastest of all tricks.
Reward the students according to their learning style
There are different kinds of students when it comes to their intrinsic motivation behind learning. The surface learners for example are students who are motivated to only avoid failure. While strategic learners on the other hand are motivated by rewards and recognition, the keen or impassioned learners are motivated to learn more than what the book offers. Here’s a reward strategy cue for each type:
a. Surface learners: good incremental performance in small tests can be a major motivation booster. Give such students more of small daily or weekly review tests in increasing order of difficulty to keep them interested in performing better over time
b. Strategic learners: reward them by offering competition or physical rewards like a goody bag once in a month or a major prize if they score better than your other students in same grade
c. Impassioned learners: they are self-motivated to learn however going beyond syllabus to discuss real life application of the concepts and theories discussed can keep motivated longer
b. Strategic learners: reward them by offering competition or physical rewards like a goody bag once in a month or a major prize if they score better than your other students in same grade
c. Impassioned learners: they are self-motivated to learn however going beyond syllabus to discuss real life application of the concepts and theories discussed can keep motivated longer
Use praise and feedback in right proportion
Lastly, using the carrot and stick model in the smart way is of pivotal importance. It’s quintessential that you be free with praise but use constructive feedback in moderation especially with a demotivated student.
Always keep your tone optimistic while addressing issues like missing homework, not paying attention to detail, etc. Your attitude towards a student and your outlook whether you consider them a bright student or not will reflect directly in the student’s motivation. Hence, we say, be ultra careful with not only what you speak but with also how you speak (and it includes having an affable body language too!).
And now, are you a passionate tutor looking for the students who might be in need of someone just like you? Without thinking for another jiffy, log on to Talentnook.com and create your tutor profile. We connect students and teachers in the neighborhood forming the one of its kind student-tutor network. With Talentnook you can connect with thousands of prospective students in a few clicks!