Managing students effectively is key to creating a productive and supportive learning environment. Student management goes past discipline, t’s about engagement, motivation, and mutual respect.

Establish Clear Expectations
From the beginning, set clear guidelines for behaviour and learning goals. When students understand what is expected of them they are more likely to stay engaged.

Build Support
A positive student-tutor relationship enhances learning. Take time to understand each student’s strengths, challenges, and interests. This fosters trust and helps tailor learning approaches to individual needs.

Use Positive Reinforcement
Encouragement goes a long way. Recognising students’ progress, no matter how small, can boost their confidence and motivation. Instead of focusing solely on mistakes, highlight improvements and effort.

Keep Sessions Structured and Interactive
A well-organised session minimises distractions. Incorporate interactive elements like discussions, problem-solving activities, or quick brain breaks to maintain engagement. Variety helps students stay attentive and absorb information more effectively.

Address Disruptions Proactively
Instead of reacting harshly to disruptions, use a calm and proactive approach. Redirect attention, ask engaging questions, or modify the activity if necessary. If a student struggles with focus, addressing the root cause (like frustration or fatigue) can help.

Encourage Accountability
Help students take ownership of their learning by setting goals and reflecting on their progress. This instills a sense of responsibility and fosters self-discipline.

Allegra Pezzullo

If I look back on my time at school, its not the 2pm physics classes that dragged on for what felt like 4 hours, nor the wave of relief that I felt after “Pens Down!” rang out in my final HSC exam or even the canteen’s cheese and bacon rolls (which were still pretty damn good) that I reminisce on, but rather the relationships I cultivated day-in-day out over the course of my schooling. Whether that be with my closest friends, who I still see weekly 4 years out of school, my teachers; especially my year 12 maths teacher and even my tutors, I can say with full confidence that these people have molded me into the person I am today.

That is the type of approach I take with my tutoring, because I know that trig formulas end up fading into the abyss after school but the impact consequential people have does not.

Whilst of course, ensuring that my students DO understand why they need to know that the hypotenuse is equal to the square root of (a^2 + b^2) is still very important, it’s the way they approach learning, problem solving, and even challenges that really lasts. I always try my best to foster an environment where students can feel supported to ask questions, and confident in their abilities, and thats not just to ace their exams, but to develop skills that will serve them well beyond the classroom.

As a tutor, I really strive to help students grasp the confusing and occasionally convoluted content but also to instil a sense of curiosity to get them to ask themselves why are they learning, for example, that a simile can manipulate the readers’ mood. Whether it’s breaking down a tricky concept, giving the real life application of the importance of media literacy, or simply being someone they can rely on to find advice and support in, I want my students to leave each session knowing that they are more than capable and understand the reason WHY they are learning what they are learning. Not only does that help clear up their understanding and spark interest in the content, it also assists in students connecting the dots between theory and real life; an invaluable skill.

Because in the end, schooling is not just about memorising facts, it’s about learning how to think, adapt, and grow and that is something that doesn’t just simply fade with time.

Teg Philmara

In tutoring, especially with younger children, the smallest victories can lead to the biggest breakthroughs. While of course, learning and mastering content is crucial, building confidence is so so important. A child who genuinely believes and feels they can solve a problem is far more likely to keep trying, particularly when the work gets harder and more dense in older years.

Small wins, for example correctly spelling a tricky word or finally understanding simplifying fractions (without a calculator), create a strong sense of progress. These moments reinforce the idea that learning isn’t about instant perfection—it’s about growth, and is something they can achieve. When a tutor celebrates these little achievements, a student starts to internalise the mindset that they are capable, and that continued effort leads to success.
For younger children, this is especially vital. Their academic self-esteem is still forming, and early experiences with learning will shape how they approach challenges later in life. If they associate schoolwork with failure or frustration, they may disengage and give up. But, if they see learning as a process where persistence pays off, they’ll develop resilience—one of the most valuable skills they can carry forward.

Confidence fuels motivation. Instead of just focusing on correcting mistakes, it is important that we, as tutors, focus on celebrating progress! Over time, these small wins accumulate, turning hesitant learners into engaged, self-assured students.

Ultimately, tutoring isn’t only about teaching content—it’s about shaping a child’s belief in their own abilities, and allowing them to love what they are doing!!

Shyla Gloster

Today I observed Sophie’s lesson with her Year 9 Maths student. Firstly they were working on working with square numbers and rules with positive and negative numbers. Then they started to focus on the topic that her student is doing in school, which is significant figures and rounding. Sophie started to go through some of the previous exercises that her student had done at school to see how she was finding those sub-topics which is also a great form of revision.

I liked how Sophie would not immediately tell her student if she was making a mistake and instead tried to lead her to the right answer, especially with her student’s weaker areas like negative numbers.

Sophie also made sure to tell her student other methods of working out particular questions which is a great things as different people prefer using different ways of figuring out a question. I also liked how Sophie encouraged her student to write down her working out if she’s stuck instead of trying to do it in her head.

I also liked that after figuring out what kinds of questions her student was slightly weaker at during the revision papers, Sophie made sure to select new questions that matched those weaker areas. This is good as it allows the student to perfect those areas so that she is strong overall in the topic. I thought it was great that Sophie encouraged her student to try and do some of the addition and multiplication questions in her head before saying that she could use her calculator.

This was a great lesson to observe. Well done Sophie!

Sophia McLean

Marina’s tutoring session on the unitary method demonstrated several effective teaching techniques that any tutor could apply. Her structured approach ensured that the student grasped the concept gradually, starting with fundamental ideas before moving on to more complex problems. This method prevented confusion and built a strong foundation for learning.

One particularly useful strategy was encouraging the student to verbalize their thought process. This not only reinforced understanding but also allowed Marina to identify and address any misconceptions in real time. Rather than simply providing answers, she used guided questioning to help the student work through challenges independently. This approach promoted critical thinking and problem-solving skills.

Marina’s handling of mistakes was also noteworthy. Instead of immediately correcting errors, she gave the student space to recognize and fix them on their own. This approach fostered confidence and a sense of ownership over the learning process, which is crucial for long-term retention.

Her pacing throughout the lesson was effective, gradually increasing the difficulty of problems to ensure the student remained engaged without feeling overwhelmed. Each step built upon the previous one, reinforcing key ideas while introducing new elements naturally.

Finally, Marina emphasized the importance of applying the unitary method beyond the lesson itself. By encouraging the student to think about how the concept could be used in real-life situations, she reinforced its relevance and practical value.

This session highlighted the importance of clear explanations, active student participation, and strategic guidance. Marina’s thoughtful approach ensured that the student not only understood the unitary method but also gained confidence in their ability to apply it independently.

Nabil Harrar

Back in year 10 and the whirlpool of mixed interfaced learning that covid brought about, I had a math teacher who now thinking back was pretty instrumental in my journey to 4 Unit mathematics in HSC to 2nd year Aerospace Engineering mathematics. But at the time I hated her and I hated math (especially trig). She was a pretty run of the mill math teacher giving us all the homework in the world being just a mere page of it and worst of all she checked our works weekly! This however was what set me and our class especially apart through not only going back and fixing our mistakes and diagnosing them, but rather the hard truth of getting good at mathematics being the sheer repetition of studying it. Much like how writing sentences down for study notes being scientifically proven to improve memory and knowledge retention, consistently solving equations really does help speeding up the time to solve, as well as rewiring the brains way of going about solving abstract questions. I found this particularly rewarding once I started studying and solving integration throughout Advanced, Extension 1 and Extension 2, where a lot of aspects such as trigonometry and the location of variables trigger a form of pattern recognition that grows stronger with time and is rather quite fun. Now of course this goes without saying that some people simply just have a more of a mathematical affinity compared to other subjects the same way some people are better at acting or writing or music playing, however these same techniques can be applied to a vast range of subjects and is what study techniques utilise on a day to day basis. What I will say is that studying is generally speaking never fun and after going through 13 years of schooling till HSC I do sympathise with many of the young people who still have a few years left, however it is one of the many truths of learning that the one sure-fire way to get better at something, is practice, application, and repetition.

Starsky Schepers

From the minute I started observing Sophia, it was clear that she was experienced, being comfortable and concise with Pete, a year 8 Mathematics student. To start the session off, Sophia went through Pete’s homework for the week, looking at parallelograms and angles, ensuring that he understood the content by explaining an example at the start. She then let Pete go through the rest of the questions, observing and helping him as necessary as he went through the work, explaining concepts such as co interior and alternate angles expertly, and clearly. This approach was clearly effective, as by the end of the question set, Pete seemed confident and comfortable at attempting the questions himself.

Sophia then went ahead with algebra, but quickly realised that the textbook that Pete was using wasn’t the same Cambridge textbook as on the drive. To pivot, she managed to find a chapter on algebra in the year 8 Cambridge textbook, and then went through a variety of questions together. For the questions Pete got stuck on, she stopped him, and explained the concept before moving onwards.

Throughout the lesson, Sophia gave Pete her complete attention, locked in on his working out, and responding to his queries as necessary. Sophia was also very good at explaining different ways to approach questions. One particular example was figuring out an angle within parallel lines, by either working through with co-interior angles, or using alternate angles to work through to get the answer. She then went through a few questions with him, guiding him towards the answer, ensuring he felt comfortable with the content, before letting him do the last few himself.

Overall, the session was very insightful to me personally, offering me a different perspective with teaching early high school students Mathematics, and how to keep them engaged and bring up their confidence. Well done Sophia!

Samin Hossain

Samin Sadaf Hossain

I got to observe Jordan’s Year 11 Economics and English tutoring session. They were exploring topic 1 of Economics which is the market economy, this served as a more informative session with Jordan explaining the concepts in great detail which is far more effective than the student reading off his textbook. He kept his student engaged by constantly asking questions to make sure his student was absorbing the information he was providing him, rather than zoning out. This then led into them doing some multiple choice questions where Jordan would allow his student to have a valid attempt at the question, and if they were stuck, he would carefully guide them to answer the questions themselves, leading them in the right direction. In particular, the student needed help in a leakages and injections questions, where Jordan helped him by guiding his thought to remind him what were injections and leakages, then he answered the question which involved calculating growth within an economy. Later on, the student brought up specific questions that he struggled with during the week which allowed Jordan to cater to the students specific needs and questions. Jordan helped his student work through these questions in great detail, showing the student how to do calculations and answer the questions using economic language. To finish up the sessions Jordan went over what he covered and tested the student with questions such as “can a progressive taxation system act as a automatic stabaliser?”. Overall Jordan did a great job of keeping his student engaged and happy to learn throughout the session. The student was lively and actively listening to Jordan showing the respect he has for Jordan showing the great connections that Jordan creates with his students. Well done Jordan and keep up the great work/tutoring!

Lewin Fairbairn

Tutoring is much more than simply conveying information, it is an empowering form of mentorship that transforms the educational journey. In a tutoring session, the tutor often steps into the role of a mentor, providing guidance, encouragement and a personalised approach to learning that nurtures both academic and personal growth.

When a tutor works closely with a student, the focus isn’t solely on subject matter but also on developing critical thinking and problem-solving skills. This one-on-one interaction creates an environment where students feel comfortable asking questions, making mistakes and learning at their own pace. Much like a mentor, a tutor helps students see setbacks as opportunities for growth, fostering resilience and the determination to tackle challenges head-on.

The mentor-like quality of tutoring is evident in how tutors adapt their teaching methods to suit a student’s unique learning style. Rather than adopting a one size fits all approach, tutors tailor their explanations, offer constructive feedback, and share strategies that promote independent thinking. This level of individual attention not only enhances academic performance but also builds confidence, as students come to recognise that their abilities can develop with effort and perseverance.

Furthermore, tutoring cultivates meaningful connections that extend beyond the classroom. A supportive tutor can become a trusted guide, offering advice on academic planning, career aspirations and even life’s broader challenges. These interactions help students develop a lifelong love of learning, inspired by the mentor’s passion and dedication.

In essence, tutoring embodies the power of mentorship in education. By investing in students as whole individuals, tutors not only help them master academic content but also empower them to become confident, self-reliant learners, ready to succeed in all areas of life.

Isabella Naumovski

Today, I had an amazing opportunity to observe Demi T tutor her Year 11 Math student.

As soon as I began observing, it was apparent that Demi and her student share a great relationship. This is something I aim to have with all of my students as this allows the learning to run smoothly and ensures that the students are comfortable with asking questions and raising concerns throughout lessons. I enjoyed watching Demi’s approach to the lesson and found it valuable to watch how she allowed her student to explain processes back to her constantly. This approach was particularly helpful in ensuring that the student has a thorough understanding of the data topic they focused on. By not immediately giving the answer away and allowing her student the time to think about methods once she provided her with prompts, this ensured that the students had more of a level of independence. This led to her student to feel more confident in her abilities and slowly release the doubt she was experiencing. By completing questions set by her school teacher, this ensured that the exact style of questions expected by school was completed. However, Demi provided her student with some insight into harder questions, enabling her to move ahead in class and further increase her confidence in her abilities. Overall, while making sure the lesson was productive she also made it enjoyable for her student which I admire as the learning becomes more enjoyable and less anxiety provoking for students.

Well done Demi ☺️

Marina Nouris