Trends in Tutoring

March 29, 2023

Trends in Tutoring

Photo by Wes Hicks on Unsplash

This blog post will highlight some trends in my field of work, 1:1 freelance tutoring, and how I’ve adapted to those trends. My role as a tutor mainly focus on motivation of learning. I figure out what the client wants to learn and I find ways to help them understand and remember the content that they choose to learn.

What is changing? What is new?

One common trend is the shift from in-person sessions to online sessions. I used to provide tutorial services in-person with with my adult client. During the Covid pandemic, the sessions were switched to online Zoom sessions. I learned to use functions on Zoom such as share screen, annotate, and remote control so that we could share a reading together. The annotate function could provide a visual prompting questions for the client as we complete a reading together. Remote control allows me to assist the client by controlling their computer screen. I’ve also went on to explore many new online learning tools and websites for my client.

A major advantage of this trend is the flexibility and comfort of being able to work in our own homes, as well as saving time and money that would otherwise be spent on transit.

A major disadvantage is the confusion that could arise from struggling to learn a new technology, or when the computer has a glitch that is out of our control and the tutor is not there to provide immediate help. There is also a limitation on social interaction and hands-on activities. Online learning is not for everyone, especially for people struggling with technology or don’t have access to the internet.

Another trend is the increasing use of technology, assistive devices, and AI technology in education. For example, rather than using Braille, students who are visually impaired could use JAWS (Job Access With Speech) on their laptops. Students with a learning disability can use Grammarly, text-to-speech technology, or speech-to-text assistive technology. However, more and more technology and apps are being developed. More recently, ChatGPT was a hit. It seems like AI education or computer assistive education will continue to expand and even replace my job. I need to update myself from formal or informal education and from discussions or collaboration with other educators. If my job does get replaced, I can probably create a course and sell it online instead of working 1:1.

Knowledge on learning

The last trend I am going to talk about is the access to information and wealth of knowledge on the Internet. As more scientific research is conducted on learning. It has been easier to understand how my clients could best learn, and what should be included in their learning.

I remember in the past, a parent has told me there are different learning styles such as visual, auditory, and kinesthetic, and she asked me whether we should figure out what the child’s learning style is and then work from there. Back then, I didn’t know the answer. Eventually through experience, I was able to find the answer the hard way. Upon searching the VCC library database last week I found this article, “Learning Styles: Concepts and Evidence“ (2008). In the article, Pashler, H., McDaniel, M., Rohrer, D., & Bjork, R. (2008) acknowledged a trend on research that emphasized on learning styles. They mentioned that a common meshing hypothesis from their literature review was that providing instruction that matches the learner’s learning style seems important. The example given for the meshing hypothesis was that for a visual learner, we should emphasize the presentation of visual information. However, after their study, they found no evidence to support that hypothesis. To the contrary, they even found evidence that contradicts the meshing hypothesis. Therefore, they claimed that there is no justification to include learning style assessments into educational practice. In a more recent article, El-Amin, A. (2023) mentioned 5 learning styles rather than the 3 styles that I originally learned. They also suggested that one assessment does not fully portrays a student’s aptitude, and that having multiple modes of learning could benefit different learning styles. They suggested on having more innovative instruction and to incorporate more relevant technology skills, which could lessen the workforce skill gap.

I appreciate these findings. After reading the articles, I can now confidently say that even audio learners could benefit from visuals (although I know that already). On the other hand, we are also able to learn something quickly without visuals. I think that rather than just one learning style, it could be beneficial to present information in a variety of styles so that students could have more opportunities to absorb and review new information that they need to learn. Providing multiple activities to learn a single information could also help with consolidating the newly learned information into working or long-term memory.

After the readings, I realize that I need to do more research to figure out how my students could learn best. In this fast-paced technology advancing world, it seems that change is inevitable, but don’t be afraid, because it can challenge us to become more competent and become a little wiser.

References

El-Amin, A.(2023, Mar 24) Embedding Learning Styles and Neurodiversity to Educate the Workforce of Today and Tomorrow. Faculty Focus. https://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/effective-classroom-management/embedding-learning-styles-and-neurodiversity-to-educate-the-workforce-of-today-and-tomorrow/

Pashler, H., McDaniel, M., Rohrer, D., & Bjork, R. (2008). Learning Styles: Concepts and Evidence. Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 9(3), 105–119. https://doi-org.ezproxy.vcc.ca/10.1111/j.1539-6053.2009.01038.x (Permalink): https://login.ezproxy.vcc.ca/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=46805629&site=ehost-live&scope=site