A Partnership for Academic Success

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Written by Jim Meany April 25th 2017

 

Private tutoring, an ancient profession, has become a multi-billion dollar industry today with an incredible proliferation recently in the numbers and types of tutors available. An equally dizzying array of price points, access mechanisms, and business models exists as well. So with all that variety, what exactly characterizes a good tutor-client relationship?

 

We at Insight Tutors LLC believe that the relationship is first and foremost a partnership, not necessarily between equals but between those who possess complementary needs and resources. You, the client, are either in a remedial situation in which you have fallen behind, or you are seeking enrichment so that you can take your academic, intellectual, and personal development to the next level. You also possess the resources, including financial, to benefit from the value exchange we offer. We, the tutor, possess content knowledge, empathy, and especially understanding of the learning process and an ability to simplify, distill, and communicate challenging subjects in an accessible and understandable way. We exist to serve you. We are not here to show you how smart we are or how “easy” the material is. Neither approach is productive.

 

As members of a partnership, you and we carry certain responsibilities. You have the responsibility to make your best effort at performing, to utilize fully the resources (including textbooks, classroom lecture and notes, study packets, teacher office hours, returned exams, review sessions, your study time and energy, etc.) available to you; to be honest with us regarding your needs, performance, and willingness to do the work; and to at least try the recommendations we make. We have the responsibility to provide outstanding customer service by being prepared for our engagement, knowing the subject, providing know how and “show how,” understanding and adjusting to the fact everyone learns differently and is on a unique path, showing you the mechanics of learning (along with the content), and being brutally honest with you in terms of what you have to do to achieve your goals. Additionally, if the partnership is not working for either party, it is not working for both, and each has the responsibility to dissolve the relationship.

 

When considering a tutor, you should first look to services already provided within your school or school system, on the Internet, or available elsewhere without additional cost. Next, if you decide to work with a private tutor, you should look for fit, just as you would with a college, graduate school, or job. Finally, you must accept that the relationship involves the previously mentioned value exchange. You offer time, commitment, and money. We offer time, commitment, guidance on how you can raise your game, and opportunity cost to make ourselves available to you. With a successful partnership, the potential for advancement is virtually unbounded and will carry the client far beyond the engagement and short-term goal into a life full of attractive options. With our decades of experience and strategic approach, we at Insight Tutors LLC are prepared to help you create those options.