Math Worksheets and Video Tutorials for High School and IB Math
Math Worksheets and Video Tutorials for High School and IB Math

Everything you need to know about the pros and cons of online tutoring

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Last term we looked at some of the various resources for Tutoring, homework and studying.  Included in this list was online tutoring.  Online tutoring sounds like the perfect solution to any homework and study challenges you may be facing but here are both pros and cons to online tutoring.  In this post we’ll go over some of the pros and cons of online tutoring and see what alternatives there are that may suit are particular homework and study challenge.  

When looking into this topic I did some searching online and there are many articles on this topic from various sources and from various points of view.   We don’t want this article to be just another opinion article so in the pros and cons lists I have tried to summarize some of the most common pros and cons I have found out there and put them into their respective list.  We will offer our viewpoint towards the end of the article but ultimately it is up to the learner to decide the best way to learn for them.  Let’s start with the pros of online tutoring.

Pros and cons of online tutoring

Pros of online tutoring

  • Convenience (schedule, time, location, comfortable etc.) [1, 4, 8, 10, 11]
  • Good for immediate help in emergency situations (You have an emergency function hat needs differentiating.) [1]
  • More tutors to choose from. (The options are much greater but this is also a con.)
  • Notes can be stored digitally; can offer recordings for students [1, 8, 10, 11]
  • Save on commute time; save energy [2, 7, 8]
  • Safety issue isn’t an issue [2, 10, 11]
  • Can be used by business managers to teach staff certain skills [3]
  • Easy access (manager does not have to schedule a time to teach certain skills to employees; employees can learn these skills at their convenience.) [3, 7]
  • Flexibility (remote workers can learn skills for the job without being on site; can tutor anytime during the day) [3, 7, 8, 10]
  • Instant feedback [4]
  • From tutor’s perspective, able to reach more students [4]
  • More people are using online tools and services so it is a natural assumption that tutoring online is available. [5]
  • There are no geographic boundaries [5]
  • Tutors that travel can still maintain regular tutoring sessions with students through online means minimizing gaps in tutoring and help. [5]
  • Great for older students that a comfortable with technology and self motivated. [11]

Cons of online tutoring

  • Lots of scams out there (Anything that can be done through the internet, someone is trying to do the same as a scam. Be careful.) [1]
  • It’s more expensive. (Additional costs for technology e.g. software, microphone, devices – some online tutoring services work better using and iPad or tablet) [1]
  • It’s more suitable for some subjects than others. (languages, subjects that are less symbolic and don’t require as much writing but rather discussion) [1]
  • Requires more discipline. (If this is already a major issue to academic success, online tutoring may not be the wisest option.) [1]
  • Possibility of distraction [3]
  • From a tutor’s perspective, it may be more time consuming and demanding to prepare for the session, materials, lesson plans, logistics of the session etc. [2]
  • Technology and internet related problems and limitations [3, 4, 5, 7]
  • Unsystematic trainees (people who do not take learning seriously will not most likely not get as much out of online self study/learning.) [3]
  • Not all companies are equal so the selection criteria for tutors is very different [4]
  • No side by side interaction and communication; loss of personal touch, intuition by tutor to really know if student understands; harder to build a rapport and personal touch with the individual student; hard to encourage student when student become frustrated.[4, 7, 8. 11]
  • Parents cannot meet their tutor face to face [5]
  • Graphical and calculation-based subjects and explanations can be difficult [5, 11]
  • Overcoming the idea of talking to someone you cannot see.  Video chat is an option for this, provided each party as the technology. [5]
  • Not the greatest form of tutoring and learning for disorganized persons, those that aren’t self motivated [7]
  • Harder to review the student’s work [8]
  • Marketing (from the tutor’s perspective this is challenging. There are platforms where online tutors can create a profile and hope they are noticed but these depend on many factors depending on the platform. It can be hard to build that clientele and students are no lifelong clients.  They usually need help for a short period of time, not ongoing. )[9]
  • Too much choice (there are so many companies offering “online” help, support and tutoring.  It can be difficult to find what you need.  As a result, a lot of time can be wasted looking for the best option for you.)
  • Requires a minimum of technical skills from both student and tutor in order to start [11]

Above are just a few of the pros of cons from the references below. This is by no means an exhaustive list.  What was noticed that as each subsequent article was reviewed, there were not many more different reasons for the pro or con list. There is quite a bit of overlap and rewording of the main pros and cons.  Below is a general summary of the pros and cons as we can see from the references below.

Summary of pros and cons of online tutoring

PROS

  • Convenient
  • Immediate (The on demand culture can be satisfied through this form of tutoring)
  • Greater choice both for tutor and student
  • Safe
  • Digital material can be saved and reviewed later
  • Great for the tech savvy student and tutor

CONS

  • Technology issues (expense, problems, internet connection)
  • Distractions
  • Scams (Many companies and platforms offering online tutoring, hard to know which ones are the best and most reputable)
  • Parents cannot meet the tutor in person
  • Personal interaction/connection is harder to develop
  • Not ideal for the disorganized, unmotivated, or non-self directed, independent learner
  • Not the best for all subjects such as graphical, calculation, symbol related subjects
  • More prep by the tutor depending on the subject and the kind of student.

The convenience and apparent on demand appeal of online tutoring can overshadow some of the other factors that result from online tutoring and can end up creating more confusion.  Online tutoring is great for the learner that is self motivated, organized, knows exactly what they need help with or who wants to get ahead.  However, for the student whose difficulties with the subject are more behavioral, the connection and rapport with the tutor may be of greater importance that just finding someone to help you with the subject.  This is where online tutoring may fall short. 

Not all subjects are suited well for online tutoring while online tutoring is tailor made for tutoring and learning certain subjects.  For example languages are great perfect for online tutoring because there it conversation, speaking and actual practice of the language that helps a person improve and learn. So being able to speak to a native speaker of a particular language, say Mandarin, that you wish to learn, is ideal.  Many online face time platforms allow for messaging in which case, written language can also be taught and practiced.  Other subjects that are more in the arts or social sciences that are more discussion of ideas using speaking language, can be tutored online comfortably.  

Areas that are more difficult tutor online are subjects that are more graphical, calculation based, symbolic.  In these situations, more technology on the student’s and tutor’s part is needed.  Online white boards for instance.  Even then, unless both student and tutor are able to share a white board and write on it together, it can still be challenging.  Technology ends up becoming the challenge to overcome in these cases.

References:

  1. The Pros and Cons of Online Tutoring, Jun 2013, Educdation.com, URL: https://www.education.com/magazine/article/online-tutoring-pros-cons/
  2. What are the pros and cons of line tutoring?, Ayesha Chaudhry, Mar 2018, Quora, URL: https://www.quora.com/What-are-the-pros-and-cons-of-online-tutoring
  3. Pros and Cons of online tutoring for workplace productivity, Sarah Morris, Feb 2019, TutorCruncher, URL: https://tutorcruncher.com/business-growth/pros-and-cons-of-online-studying/
  4. Online tutoring – Pros and Cons, Tori O’Brien, Feb 2016, Learning Foundation, Academic Coaching & Test Prep, URL: https://learningfoundations.org/2016/02/online-tutoring-pros-and-cons/
  5. A Report on the Advantages and Disadvantages of Online Tutoring, Keel Walsh, June 2012, EmergingEdTech, URL: https://www.emergingedtech.com/2012/06/a-report-on-the-advantages-and-disadvantages-of-online-tutoring/
  6. Are Online Courses and Academic Coaching Compatible?, Vanessa, July 2018, superprof, URL: https://www.superprof.ca/blog/online-tutor-disadvantages/
  7. Guest post: The Pros and Cons of Online Tutoring, Alex Dyer, Nov 2013, Schools Improvement, URL: https://schoolsimprovement.net/guest-post-the-pros-and-cons-of-online-tutoring/
  8. Pros and Cons of Online Tutoring, The Online Tutor, URL: https://theonlinetutor.org/pros-and-cons-of-online-tutoring/
  9. The Biggest Problems with Online Tutoring According to Tutors, Brett Montrose, Nov 2016, Medium, URL: https://medium.com/accelerated/the-biggest-problems-with-online-tutoring-according-to-tutors-2eaccf8d19e1
  10. 10 ways online maths tutors are better than in-person help, Telegraph Reporters, Dec 2017, The Telegraph, URL: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/education-and-careers/0/10-ways-online-maths-tutors-better-in-person-help/
  11. The Pros and Cons of Online Tutoring, almost 4 years ago, Mogul.

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