The Tutoring Cycle

Outcomes for Tutor Cycle To identify and use the three major steps of the tutoring cycle To identify the 12 steps of the tutoring cycle as applied to tutoring techniques * Importance of establishing student-tutor and tutor-student relationship The three major steps are: Beginning steps The Task Steps The Closing Steps The least practiced and hardest of the 12 steps are steps 4 and 8. Each of the 12 steps play a part in establishing the tutor-student relationship.

Tutor’s Role vs. Tutor Cycle The Tutor’s Role is about what a tutor is. Peer facilitator in teaching and learning Facilitator of tutee insights Provider of student perspective Provider of personalized instruction Promoter of independent learning Not the Professor The Tutor Cycle is about what a tutor does. How does a tutor put Chapter 1 into action? Establishes a relationship Set the climate Facilitate learning Structure What things presented last week that you hadn’t considered yet? What do you expect to learn from today’s session?

Questions/Exercise Where do you worship on Sunday? Why do you choose to worship there? Does it feel different from the first time you worshiped there? What does this have to do with the tutoring cycle? Have you ever been to a tutoring session? What did you experience? What did you expect? Based on that experience, what would you do differently? Would you recommend the tutor you met with to a friend?

Questions/Exercise - Write down Establish some general rules What are some common themes between the two scenarios? What will keep bring tutees back? What will make tutees tell others? Why are we doing this?

Three Categories of The Tutoring Cycle THE 12 STEPS OF THE TUTOR CYCLE BEGINNING STEPS TASK STEPS CLOSING STEPS Step 1 Greeting and Climate Setting Step 5 Set the Agenda For The Session Step 9 Confirmation Step 2 Identification of Task Step 6 Addressing the Task Step 10 What Next? Step 3 Breaking the Task Into Parts Step 7 Tutee Summary of Content Step 11 Arranging and Planning the Next Session Step 4 Identification of Thought Processes Which Underlie Task Step 8 Tutee Summary of Underlying Process Step 12 Closing and Good-bye

1. The Tutor Cycle (Beginning Steps 1-4) Viewing the Beginning Steps of the Tutor Cycle in a cyclical mode.

Beginning Steps 1. Greet 2. Identify Task 3. Break Task Into Parts Invitation to your space – hospitality 2. Identify Task develop purpose – helps in sense of accomplishment 3. Break Task Into Parts makes it manageable – allows student confidence to build 4. Identification of Underlying Thought Processes explore and discover – allows students to learn how to learn Unfortunately, the book says that Step 4 is one of the least practiced steps. The other is Step 8. Discuss # 4. What are you tutoring? What will step 4 look like in your discipline? How can you facilitate this step?

The Tutor Cycle (Task Steps 5-8) Adding the Task Steps to the Tutor Cycle What does the Task Step mean or indicate?

Task Steps How the student will learn similar material independently – 5. Set the agenda for the session Tasks are completed when there is an agenda – check list what needs to be accomplished and when it is accomplished 6. Addressing the task This will be covered in Chapters 3 and 4 – determine how the work will be done (you do this, I do that) 7. Tutee summary of content The “light bulb effect” vs. “the fake light bulb effect” – long term vs. short term memory – short term is the list of items while long term puts the list into action 8. Tutee summary of underlying process How the student will learn similar material independently – suggest strategies and have the student summarize those strategies Lets practice 5, 7, and 8 with a partner 5-Practice some initiating statements for setting an agenda eg Hi, you want to work on … Why don’t we spend first 30min… 6 Do the let’s do… 7 eg for the students who do not stop and express the AHA moments, how do we work through the material? What can prevent the overwhelming feeling of “I don’t understand this?” 8 similar to 4, how would you facilitate in your discipline SO WHAT DID YOU JUST DO?

The Tutor Cycle Adding the Closing Steps to the Tutor Cycle.

Closing Steps 9. Confirmation 10. What next? reinforce specific accomplishments and thoughtful evaluations 10. What next? What is the information learned good for? What might the next concept be? 11. Arranging and planning the next session Set the time and place (Alpha appoint. Book). What will be covered? Encouraging dependence? Shall we meet…? vs. Next time we will… 12. Closing and good-bye Leave on a positive note. Thanks for coming and I’ll see you next time.

Benefits of the Tutor Cycle 1. Efficient and effective 2. Demystifies the tutoring process 3. Reinforces for the tutee practical approaches for learning

Conclusion Ironically the steps (4 & 8) that do not occur naturally are the most important. They are important because they emphasize the critical thinking and that is the largest task the tutee needs to be involved in. The main benefits of the tutoring cycle are: Structure Consistency Preparation