Today I was able to observe my fellow tutor Katreen as she provided a mathematics tutoring session for her student. Through utilising various techniques such as the whiteboard, paper and pen and her laptop, Katreen was able to keep her student engaged, helping her when needed but also ensuring she could complete the work individually.

Through integrating different resources such as the student’s textbook and worksheets, Katreen was able to ensure the information provided was accurate and well sourced, thus providing a __ to its fullest potential. For the first 15 minutes of the session, the tutor and student went through homework questions and various mistakes made, allowing her to ensure there was no confusion or lacking confidence in the student’s ability on previous lessons. This was helpful to ensure the student and tutor were both on the same page, proving that her student felt comfortable asking questions, thus demonstrating strong and healthy communication skills. Further, the tutor then began working on the new topic (pyramids and cones), utilising the whiteboard to draw diagrams and calculations clearly. This helped with the student who may be more of a visual learner, demonstrating the tutor’s strong ability in catering her session personally to this student.

After a quick break halfway through the session to help increase focus and productivity, a new tutoring approach was introduced for the second half of the session. This more hands on approach involved the tutor focusing on the student answering and working out the questions individually. This allowed for the tutor to get a clearer insight on the level the student was sitting at with this new content, and where some clarification may be needed. Finally, the tutor spent the last 15 minutes providing homework and ensuring her student felt confident with the new topic covered. Overall, through switching between these different techniques, Katreen provided a productive tutoring session where her student was engaged and ready to apply these skills to her lessons.

Annabelle Molloy

I was fortunate to be able to do an observation of Thea with two of her students – the older one just finishing up, being tutored in English. And the second one was much younger, in Mathematics. Both lessons provided great insight into the nature of learning as a whole, and was invaluable to my journey as a tutor.

She firstly discussed creative writing techniques with her older student – persuasive, discursive, etc. It was interesting to hear what she had to say, especially coming from a person that is more mathematically-minded, and studies a lot of mathematics for their degree. She discussed the ‘general approaches’ to types of creative writing – about how you learn to follow a general formula for a type of writing, and as your techniques, texts and themes become more complex, you learn to subvert this ‘formula’ to suit your needs. It could be the finals season brain fry getting to me, but my mind immediately drew parallels to the approaches mathematicians go to when solving differential equations – solving each ‘type’ presents the general form for a particular solution, and often times you need to be flexible and creative with your mathematics (following all the intuitive laws, of course). This I think made me realise that education is a creative process – fluid, dynamic, and always changing, much like the way our brains take in and process information.

With her second student, they delved into fractions. There was a lot of casual anecdotal conversation – relevant or tangential to the topic matter, of course, but back and forth nonetheless. It helped to provide strong engagement for her student, and maybe keep things fun. Her approach was very visual, representing particular fractions as split sectors of pie charts, allowing her student to colour in the correct fraction. I feel this approach was extremely effective for her student, and a big takeaway for me. I can remember when this stuff was a lot less intuitive for me – especially seeing as I’m almost suffocated by esoteric new mathematical ideas constantly for my engineering degree. I feel that I can really incorporate these kinds of visual strategies for my tutoring when it comes to younger students, especially when it comes to keeping things lighthearted. It is a definite reflection of Thea’s strong ability to tutor, and reinforces the idea that education is an inherently creative process (regardless of whether or not you’re bad at English like me!).

Thanks Thea!

Zac Markovina

When I tutor Legal Studies, my main goal is to make things easier and less stressful for students. I remember how overwhelming it could feel at times — all the legislation, cases, and tricky questions. I try to break everything down clearly, explain things in a way that makes sense, and help students figure out exactly what exam markers are looking for.

Because I’ve studied the subject myself, I can give practical tips on how to tackle essays, structure answers properly, and manage the workload during a busy Year 12 schedule. I also like connecting what we learn to real-world examples, so it feels more relevant and not just like reading a textbook.

Legal Studies is such an important subject because it teaches students how the world around them actually operates — and it gives them skills they’ll use way beyond school. Helping students build confidence in their writing, critical thinking, and exam technique is something I take seriously, but I always try to keep sessions relaxed and supportive.

At the end of the day, I just want students to feel more confident about the subject and give themselves the best shot at doing well in their final exams.

Nabil Harrar

In the fast-paced world of today, forming and adhering to a consistent routine can feel impossible – particular for students juggling school work, extracurriculars and social lives. How then, can incorporating tutoring into a students’ life benefit their knowledge of structure and time management? Beyond just academic improvement, tutoring offers a myriad of surprising benefits for building a reliable routine that sets students up for long-term success. Tutoring sessions are consistent, scheduled and predictable – qualities that many students lack in their daily routines. Whether its once or twice a week, having regular tutoring appointments encourages students to plan around a stable, non-negotiable commitment. Over time, this repetition helps forge a mental framework for better time management. Similarly, tutors go beyond helping just with subjects – they also help students learn the best learning techniques for their specific needs. A good tutor teaches students how to break assignments into manageable pieces, prioritise tasks, and stick to study plans. These habits naturally merge with other facets of life, making it easier for students to balance schoolwork, chores and even downtime. Similarly, tutoring enables an accountability factor that ensures students’ are kept on track. Tutors act as friendly accountability partners who regularly check in on the students’ goals and progress. The mere recognition that someone will follow up with their schoolwork can motivate students to stick to their study schedules and daily routines more consistently. Finally, a consistent tutoring routine often reduces last-minute cramming and deadline panic. When students tackle material little by little, they’re less likely to feel overwhelmed. The results include better sleep, more free time and a more balanced daily life. Tutoring isn’t just about better grades – it’s a hidden routine-builder that enables students to gain control over their schedules and their lives.

Georgina Maxwell

I observed an experienced tutor working with a Year 9 student in a mathematics session. This observation was particularly valuable, as it gave me insight into how sessions for older students are structured and how tutors can effectively tailor lessons to individual needs, while still following a clear plan, demonstrating how important it is to be flexible and adapt based on what the student brings to each session.

At the beginning of the session, the tutor asked the student if she had any questions or problems from her recent schoolwork that she needed help with, allowing the tutor to immediately address any confusion the student was experiencing.

Rather than following a rigid lesson plan, the tutor used the student’s own questions as a guide for the session, identifying which concepts needed further clarification and which areas the student felt confident in. This approach made the session more student-driven, which helped keep the student engaged and ensured that the lesson was relevant and meaningful to her current learning at school.

Throughout the session the tutor also effectively utilised the variety of resources provided by the tutoring centre, quickly selecting materials, such as worksheets, practice questions, and worked examples, that matched the student’s needs. This allowed the lesson to maintain a good pace, keeping the student challenged, and easily adapting when the student showed signs of struggle with a particular concept/topic and needed additional practice.

The observation showed me the importance of adapting to student needs during lessons and using available resources to support learning, making sessions more flexible, targeted, and effective.

After watching this session, I feel much more prepared to run my own lessons and see how I can adapt these strategies for the younger primary student I tutor.

Evelyn Efstathakis

Before starting my own tutoring journey I had the opportunity to observe an experienced tutor during a session with a Year 3 student. This was incredibly valuable, as I am about to begin tutoring a Year 2 student, a similar age group where attention spans and overall motivation can be challenging to manage.

During the observation, I noticed how important it was to structure the session with small breaks in between content, with the tutor using short games and activities as both a break and as a reward for completing work. This strategy kept the student motivated, giving her a clear incentive to stay focused throughout the session. It also broke up the learning into smaller, more manageable sections, which is especially important for younger learners who may struggle to concentrate for long periods. After seeing how effective this was, I plan to use a similar strategy in my own sessions to keep my student focused and enthusiastic.

The tutor has also created a strong relationship with the student, which made the session flow more smoothly and allowed for greater participation. She maintained a friendly, joking rapport that made the student feel comfortable to ask questions and express herself without fear of making mistakes, demonstrating how creating a relaxed and supportive environment and building trust is critical for learning to happen, especially with younger students.

Observing this tutoring session gave me a much clearer understanding of what an effective and engaging lesson looks like. It made me feel more confident and better prepared for my own first session, providing me with practical strategies I can apply to create a positive and motivating learning experience for my student.

Evelyn Efstathakis

Christina was taking a primary school tutoring session on general Maths and English.

They began the session with counting by 10’s, which the student did well, and Christina made sure to praise the student as he was going.

After the fact, Christina asked the student how their weekend was and prompted them to engage in a little casual conversation to give the student a break of the tutoring session, but also to give them practice with structuring a narrative.

This is a great way to built a young students confidence and practice in past tense chronological sentence structures that I haven’t have much experience with, so it was great to observe this used as both a break from the tutoring session while also giving the student valuable practice communicating.

Afterwards, Christina set the student on a timed times tables worksheet on 7,8 and 9 times tables. Throughout, she encouraged the student to vocalise their thoughts and take their time.

I often instruct my high school students to sit timed exercises, and now I also see that the exercise can also be adjusted to accommodate a younger student.

Throughout the session, Christina was very effective at keeping the session collaborative, where she asked the student what topic they would like to work on and when they would like a break. This seems to be a very effective way of both making sure the student enjoys the tutoring sessions and teaching the student the skills of initiative they will need for their later years of school.

As a tutor of high school students, observing Christina’s tutoring session has introduced me to a number of skills that both differ and are similar when teaching young students. I will definitely work some of these techniques into my future sessions.

Sebastian Zois

The use of educational games in tutoring offers an engaging approach to learning, which can improve a student’s understanding and knowledge. Educational games, whether they are physical or online, provide students with an interactive experience that encourages them to enjoy learning and tutoring.
One of the benefits of the use of educational games is that they promote thinking critically about what they’re doing as opposed to just receiving information. This is because students actively participate in the game which requires them to solve problems and apply their knowledge. This helps students to enjoy their learning while also understanding content more effectively. For example, math games can encourage student’s mental maths as they have to solve arithmetic problems quickly.
Educational games can assist with meeting different student’s learning styles, such as kinaesthetic and auditory. These games can be designed to address various learning preferences, offering a useful tool for tutors to meet the needs of different students. For example, some students may find it difficult to learn about science content with a verbal description and may need a game such as matching concepts, or ordering steps to assist with learning.
Furthermore, educational games create an environment where students have to take risks and make mistakes. This allows students to become more confident with getting questions wrong, and encourages giving this a go. This is critical for education, as some students may second guess themselves as they lack confidence, which can cause them to not attempt certain questions or difficult subjects.
Although educational games offer many advantages, they can also become a distraction for students as opposed to a learning tool. This is because students can become more focused on the competitive aspects of the game, thus resorting to other tactics such as guessing instead of critically thinking.
Overall, educational games can be an effective alternative learning tool for tutors to use, however they can become ineffective if not used correctly.

Chloe Cooke

Tutoring from a young age has a significant positive impact on a child’s cognitive ability and overall brain development. During early childhood, the brain is highly malleable, forming new neural connections rapidly. Introducing structured learning through tutoring at this stage enhances brain plasticity and supports the development of core skills such as memory, attention, problem-solving, and language.

Early tutoring stimulates both the left and right hemispheres of the brain. Activities involving reading, math, and language help strengthen logical reasoning, comprehension, and verbal skills, while creative tasks foster imagination and emotional intelligence. Personalized tutoring also helps children develop metacognitive skills—the ability to think about their own thinking—which is crucial for long-term academic and life success.

Additionally, one-on-one tutoring often provides a nurturing and supportive environment where children feel more comfortable asking questions and exploring ideas. This confidence-building interaction promotes curiosity and a love of learning. As children engage in consistent practice and feedback, their working memory and executive functions such as planning, strategically organising, and focusing have seen to improve significantly.

Scientific studies using brain imaging have shown that early educational interventions can lead to changes in brain structure and function. For instance, children who receive early cognitive support show increased activity in areas of the brain related to language and decision-making.

Ultimaltey , tutoring at a young age plays a vital role in boosting cognitive development by enhancing neural connectivity, building key learning skills, and fostering a growth mindset. These benefits often lead to better academic outcomes and greater adaptability in future learning environments.

Jordan Udler