Here are five easy ways to find the best tutors for your child. The simple principles listed below are designed to guide you in finding the right tutors for your child’s needs.
1) Have a list of questions prepared in advance
The more you know about what you are looking for in a tutor, the more you can provide your child with the best possible chance of succeeding. The right questions provide the right answers for your child.
A few good questions include, but are not limited to:
- “How long have you been tutoring?”
- “What is your area of expertise?”
- “What is your biggest weakness as a tutor?”
- “What is your tutoring plan?” Note: Listen for how you will be included in the plan. This should not fall solely on the tutor.
- “Why do you believe you can help my child?”
Do not forget to ask specific questions regarding your child as well. The questions above are an outline to get you started.
2) Ask for references
You do not want your child to be the guinea pig for your tutor. Instead, you want experienced mentors, who know the best path to increasing their education.
Ask for at least two references of past clients. This way you can compare the answers from both clients to determine the quality of your tutor.
Additionally, the more references you speak with give you a better perspective on how to work with the tutor. Speaking with multiple references provides you a better understanding of the tutor.
3) Ask friends and family for referrals
Find out what tutors the parents of other kids in your child’s class use. Ask your neighbors, family, and friends. You will be amazed at how many of them have good (and bad) stories of tutors. Moreover, using a referral gives you another, honest evaluation of a tutor.
4) If you can’t find anyone who can make a recommendation, use online directories to locate one.
With the power of the web today, you can conduct full investigations into tutors without leaving the comfort of your home. They have a wide array of tools to help you make educated decisions.
Here are some sites to get you started:
- Preply.com ~ They were the only one that made it obvious they offer an introductory free hour of tutoring to make sure you made the right decision about your child’s tutor.
- Care.com Find a Tutor ~ Tutor search engine
- UniversityTutor.com ~ Tutor search engine
- WyzAnt Tutoring ~ Tutor search tool. First hour refundable if you’re not completely satisfied with the tutor you choose.
Services like these help you confidently evaluate the quality of a tutor.
5) Keep communication open with the tutor
Setting clear expectations to the tutor is crucial. The tutor is helping your child, but they work for you. Remind them that that you want to be kept stay in the loop onf your child’s progress.
The more proactive you are in your child’s tutoring,
the more your child will get out of the process.
Hiring a tutor is not a get out of free card for you to stop working with your kids on their homework. The tutor is an expert on the subject matter your child is learning; however, you are the best expert on your kids and know what is best for your child.
Spend time with them after each session to find out what they learned. The time you spend with them will help your kids reinforce what they learned, and provide you with quality time to help them develop their education.
