Become a better tutor · Module 3: Teaching online
Online tutoring, done well
Parents worry that online is second best. Done well, it isn’t. The difference is in the set-up and the teaching, not the screen.
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Key takeaways
- Reviews of remote learning found the quality of teaching matters more than how lessons are delivered.
- Online tutoring has raised results in rigorous studies, even when delivered by volunteers.
- Video calls are tiring for specific reasons. Hide your self-view and build in movement.
- Answer the parents’ worries before they ask: engagement, safety and visible progress.
1. What the evidence says
The Education Endowment Foundation’s review of remote learning, written during the pandemic, concluded that teaching quality matters more than how lessons are delivered. Clear explanations, good feedback and well-designed practice work on a screen too.[1]
In a randomised study in Italy, middle-school students who were given free online tutoring by university volunteers for a few hours a week improved their test scores and their wellbeing compared with similar students who weren’t. Online tutoring can work, even at a distance and even in a crisis.[2]
2. What parents worry about
3. Why video calls are tiring, and what to do
A Stanford researcher identified four reasons video calls feel draining: unnaturally close eye contact, the extra effort of sending and reading cues on a screen, seeing yourself all the time, and sitting still. His suggestions include hiding your self-view and allowing short breaks and movement.[3]
For a 60-minute lesson, that means changing the activity often, letting the student stand up to work on paper or a whiteboard, and hiding the self-view window for both of you once the camera is set up.
4. Your set-up checklist
Sound first
A headset or earphones with a microphone. Poor audio loses students faster than poor video.
Light your face
Light in front of you, not behind. A plain, tidy background.
Share the board
A shared whiteboard such as Miro, open before the lesson starts, so both of you can write.
Safe and professional
Only the agreed platform, never private messaging, and follow the safeguarding policy for every lesson.
Try this: Record a two-minute test call with a friend and watch it back. Fix the one thing that bothers you most.
Try it now
Test yourself on this page
Answer in your head first, then check.
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1. What did the EEF review of remote learning conclude?
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2. Name two causes of video-call fatigue.
Your next steps
- Run through the set-up checklist before your next lesson.
- Hide your self-view once the lesson starts.
- Tell each family how you handle their top worry, before they ask.
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Sources
- Education Endowment Foundation (2020). Remote learning: rapid evidence assessment (also published by Evidence for Learning). evidenceforlearning.org.au/education-evidence/evidence-reviews/remote-learning-rapid-evidence-assessment
- Carlana, M. and La Ferrara, E. (2021). Apart but connected: online tutoring and student outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Harvard Kennedy School Faculty Research Working Paper RWP21-001. hks.harvard.edu/publications/apart-connected-online-tutoring-and-student-outcomes-during-covid-19-pandemic
- Bailenson, J. N. (2021). Nonverbal overload: a theoretical argument for the causes of Zoom fatigue. Technology, Mind, and Behavior, 2(1). doi:10.1037/tmb0000030
- Department for Education. Keeping children safe in education: statutory guidance for schools and colleges. gov.uk/government/publications/keeping-children-safe-in-education--2
This lesson is general professional guidance for tutors. Always follow Brainhub’s safeguarding policy and use your own professional judgement.