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Guide to Online Tutorials.

Tuition over the Internet

By Catherine Chambers, online French tutor.

With the emergence of internet video chat software over the past couple of years a brand new education market has emerged - live online lessons. The service is much the same as face to face tutoring except you interact by web cam over the internet.

Most modern laptops have a web cam and microphone built in and many video chat services are free. The video chat services used by online tutors are exactly the same as those already used by many millions to keep in contact with friends and family.

Live online lessons are becoming increasingly popular because of their many advantages to both tutors and students (please also see the guide to online tutorials for students).

Advantages

You can tutor in the convenience of your own home.
You can broaden your market, as students may come from all parts of the UK, Europe and even much further afield.
All your resources are at hand: large files, dictionaries... No need to pack for lessons taught in the students home.
You do not waste time and money travelling between students as you can switch from one student to the next.
Little expenditure required: webcam, headset.
Online lessons are highly interactive, you can:
- see the student
- talk to the student
- write sentences, send and receive documents to the student during the lesson.
Lessons can be recorded and saved, which give you peace of mind, should a student complain about something that did not happen during the lesson.
It is easy to keep contact with the parents through e-mails.
If you tutor at home, you only need to keep the area in front of your webcam tidy!

What you need

Skype or similar software installed (e.g. MSN messenger, Yahoo messenger)
A webcam and microphone (which may already be built into your laptop).
A broadband internet connection is recommended for best results and may be required for some webcam software to work optimally.

How it is done

Book a lesson for a time which is convenient for you.
Pay online for your lesson.
A few minutes before the lesson starts log in to your video chat software.
You or your student initiates the video conference.

Important Tips

If you plan to work with under 18's you will still need to be ISA or PVG registered.
Write clear terms and conditions: what happens if the student is late or does not turn up for the lesson.
E-mail a short weekly report to the parents' e-mail address : they will value your feedback on the lesson.
Be well prepared at least 5-10 minutes before the lesson: logged in to Skype, webcam ready.
Do your best to help if technical problems occur.
SMILE! a lot and be lively during the lesson!

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