Why choose online tutoring vs face-to-face?

 Well, there’s nothing quite like it, is there? We all gain from a shared experience and, let’s face it (sorry), conversing with someone face-to-face. Sometimes, though, it simply isn’t possible, and with the recent global crisis, online tutoring will be in great demand.

 Online tutoring is simply a virtual teaching practice where the tutor and the student meet online rather than in person. However, they may still use tools such as whiteboards, e-mails, video and audio. Certainly, young students are at ease of learning via their phones and tablets and find this service an essential add-on to conventional learning.

 Most online tutor services use highly qualified tutors who are trained to be clear and communicative in their teaching, and they'll do a lot of background work getting to know the best route for each student. This means working out strengths and weaknesses in order to offer the best long-term solutions for the student. Like a good face-to-face tutor, they have to be passionate about their subject, and many online tutoring companies will have an Education Manager to oversee the progress of each client, ensuring the highest quality of online tutoring.

Online tutors will be familiar with the latest developments and all the requirements of the relevant examination board. All this in the comfort of your own home.

So, what are the benefits of online tutoring?

 There's no need to travel, and tutoring can be done from virtually anywhere, as long as you have access to the internet. Online tutoring offers wider options in terms of both tutors and courses. There are no overhead costs, so it should be cheaper, but some popular courses can cost more than traditional tutoring.

The downside

 While it’s not impossible to teach hands-on skills, it won't be the same, and more interactive tools and ideas may be necessary to do so through online tutoring. Some very young children learn best through imitating others, so this may be a hurdle. Then there are distractions. In a traditional teaching environment, the tutor has control, but it’s different with online tutoring when the teacher isn't present in the room. Common distractions include the temptation of the mobile phone, social media, YouTube, siblings, visitors and pets. Motivation needs to be monitored to study effectively.

Traditional tutoring

We're social beings, and nothing beats in-person interactions. A good relationship with a private tutor can motivate and improve performance and therefore results. Depending on the teacher’s preferred teaching approaches and methods, traditional tutors can be more “hands-on” and utilise traditional teaching resources, such as books and previous papers. Imitation is vital to young learners who, unlike adults, have not developed the ability to work by themselves. Also, learning with others encourages interaction and teamwork — studies show that when children have a good relationship with a tutor, they learn more and perform better at school. Then there are the many skills involving psychology and body language — a good teacher will detect shyness or awkwardness in a child and will act accordingly to nurture and enable. Understandably, this can be difficult with online tutoring.

The downside

Travel is the big downside here, either by the tutor or the student. This can be prohibitive in terms of cost and time. If a child has to travel, a parent or another adult would have to accompany them.

Traditional in-person tutoring is usually more expensive than some other online options. This is because it requires covering different expenses such as travel, but also if you go to a venue where online lessons are being taught, then there will be various overheads like rent, utilities and materials.

Which to choose?

If your decision is for a child, discuss the different options with your child so that they feel they're taking ownership with good advice. This will also help you to choose the best option for their (or indeed, your) needs. Of course, you could try both for a period so that your child (or yourself) can make an informed choice based on what works best.