As a tutor, it is important that you know how to help your students discover their strengths and help them overcome their weaknesses.
Like teachers, tutors are role models for their students and help them grow as a person. If you want to become a good role model for your students, you need to know if you have what it takes to do so and also, why your role is important for these children.
What makes an effective tutor?
There are many factors which can help a tutor become an effective one.
Preparing lessons in advance is crucial because it will help you to keep lessons on track and work towards tailoring your session to suit your student’s strengths and weaknesses. You will also be able to teach the subjects more effectively and help students to absorb knowledge easier.
Tutors who are prepared and well-trained also have higher chances of staying as a tutor. You can offer valued service to your students and help these students grow.
A stronger relationship will also be created between yourself and your students. As time moves on, these relationships will grow and give way to more success for your students.
Aside from being prepared, one’s knowledge in many subjects will ensure that tutors can teach a lot of students. It will provide you as a tutor more leeway on how you can adjust your lessons to cover all your knowledge.
Your certification also verifies your skills as a teacher, which parents and students would like to see so they can be reassured that they are learning from someone who knows what they are saying.
There are plenty of online courses that allow you to take specialized subjects at your own pace and time.
A positive attitude is important for a tutor
Having a good positive attitude also works wonders for both the students and yourself.
For the students, being encouraged by their tutors like yourself to do well and their work recognized for what it is, it will inspire them to do better in their exams.
Your students see you as a role model and a mentor, gaining your approval means almost as much as their parents’ acknowledgement.
With your motivation, they will become confident about their own abilities and slowly try to work their way to discover more about themselves. If they are seen negatively by you, they will see themselves poorly as well.
They will also become lazy and think that they do not have the potential at all. It will crush their self-esteem slowly and surely.
At the same time, tutors who do not have a good attitude towards their work and their students, will not be able to flourish in their chosen career.
Their outlook would show in how they teach their students since it will be mediocre and boring for students. Students would also be reluctant to continue learning from these unmotivated tutors and would do their best to get rid of them.
Your motivation affects your student’s performance
Everyone has a high dose of motivation in them, especially during their younger years.
During a child’s formative years, he or she is keen on learning more about the world and discovering how things work. As they grow older, this motivation remains but there must be a trigger to keep this going.
This trigger is grooming their interest to learn more about a certain subject and find their learning environment inspiring.
Several factors can influence student motivation and it can include their dream, learning style and activities.
Motivation can also be brought by a child’s upbringing and communication with their families and mentors. They become aware of learning as they mature. Tutors like yourself can greatly encourage your students to discover the world without fear.
With this type of support, children are able to face the world and not fear failure.
Without such support, children won’t be able to handle failure very well and they don’t have any idea about being competent.
They will not be happy with failure and not see a point of working towards their goals. While younger children often see failure as a good sign that they were able to achieve their goal until they become jaded.
Your motivation can play a big role in developing a student’s motivation. Your positive attitude towards learning new stuff and approach towards challenges will rub off on your students.
As a tutor, you must be confident that you will be able to teach these children and motivate them to study. Without confidence, these children will lose faith in their tutors and look somewhere else for education.
You must be well-aware that each task given to your students has the potential to motivate them well. Tasks and homework can inspire them and spark their curiosity if it is designed well.
For example, if your student prefers the visual arts, the task given to him should focus on visual arts. Instead of giving physics written assignments, try having him to demonstrate his knowledge through project work or science experiment.
You must be able to determine what learning style your students have so you can design the perfect curriculum for them to grow.
These learning styles will also be helpful in helping students face their fears and focus on the task. It also gives them an idea that they only need another perspective to view tasks and how they can resolve it.
Conclusion
A role of a tutor must not be taken lightly by those who choose to tutor as a profession. Even though you do not work in a school, you are still trained to teach and guide our future generation. Your behaviour and enthusiasm impact young minds and may affect their outlook on education. Remember, you are your students’ inspiration and role model.
If you are interested to become a better tutor, check these articles out:
How Do You Stay Relevant As A Tutor?
Amazing Productivity Apps for Tutors That Will Keep You Organized
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