It's not about our teaching,
it's about their learning
Having been both, I know that tutoring can be a bittersweet subject for teachers. Tutors can be a blessing in helping pupils catch up when their needs/wants extend beyond the extra lessons that teachers are able to offer.
They can also be an irritation since a pupil's decision to go to a tutor seems to imply that they have not received the lesson properly the first time. The operative word there is "received" - the lesson may well have been given perfectly, but not everyone will "get it" perfectly. I get quite dismayed when I hear of students that say that they pick up vibes of resentment from their teachers, because of their decision to get a tutor. As a tutor now, I can honestly tell you that it has very little to do with an educator's teaching process, and everything to do with a student's learning process. I've come to realise that some kids just find comfort in the safe space that a weekly (or so) lesson provides and that they are able to get more done with their tutor in 1 hour than they would have done in 3 hours alone. Some kids just click more easily in a one-on-one situation, and oftentimes the click comes because they are hearing what they heard in class for a second time. They weren't in a space to fully comprehend it in class, but a gentle reminder from their tutor is the nudge they need to have a wow-moment.
Of course there are some kids that simply need to
hear it a second, and third, and fourth, and even fifth time. Think how
mortifying it must be for these kids to not understand in class, so they summon
up courage to ask the question in front of their peers, but they still don’t
understand the answer, so they summon up more courage to ask their teacher
again in an extra lesson they have requested, only they still don’t understand the answer. Their teenage egos will now seldom
allow them to admit that, they still don’t “get it”, so at this point they will
often fake enlightenment. For some kids, this is where the journey on that
topic ends – in their minds it has eluded them and they feel defeated. That
feeling will potentially counteract any future progress that they make, as the
foundation hasn’t set properly. For other kids, they take that same question to
their tutor, and in a space where there are no peers around to judge, no
break-time bell to beat, and no expectations to understand quickly because of
how often they’ve already had it told to them, they hear it one more time (or
two, or three) in perhaps a slightly different way, and they finally click.
Those kids, in their special teenage way, might attribute this enlightenment to
the time spent with their tutor, but a wise tutor knows that it wouldn’t have
happened if the process hadn’t been started by a diligent teacher.
Teachers
and tutors have a common goal – to assist learners in understanding their
subject in a way that suits their learning style. Of course the means of
attempting to achieve that goal will be very different, not only between
teachers and tutors, but also between classes, learners and lessons. No two are
alike, which is why education is not for the faint-hearted. We should therefore
never allow our egos to get in the way of achieving that goal.
I believe that genuinely curious teachers, tutors and scientists want others, especially upcoming generations, to experience joy and wonder in their subject too. Some of us can be the kindling, some of us can be the spark, some of us can be the gentle fanning - and we will be different things to different pupils. But what is important is not what we are to them, it is the bright and consistent flame that they might become. And that is a mesmerising thing to focus on.