Tutoring in Canadian Universities
Tutoring by Province
Tutoring in Universities in Canada
Many students will experience difficulties with academic subjects at some point during their academic career. Often times this can be attributed to the change in the learning environment: the transition from high school to post-secondary institutions can be rather bewildering for new students. As well the support environment that students are used to in high school is often absent in first-year classes, which are much larger (sometimes hundreds of students) and much more anonymous. As such, many schools now offer a variety of academic support services, among them tutoring. About 60% of schools in Canada advertise tutoring on their websites, with many more advertising off the Web (eg. departmental bulletin boards, word of mouth, etc.). Tutoring Rates Most times tutors are paid for their work. This can either be done directly between the tutee and the tutor, or via the school’s tutoring service. Sometimes the school subsidizes the tutor’s pay as well, resulting in a reduction the tutee has to pay (although this is recouped through student fees). Where the school subsidizes 100% of the tutor’s pay, tutoring is free. The following schools offer free tutoring as a service to their students: TABLE #1 Staff Tutoring In addition to peer tutoring many schools will offer staff or professional tutoring. Sometimes there is an actual learning center on campus where such tutelage can take place, with access to relevant materials and multiple staff (often times this is a wing or floor of the campus library). These people have specialized knowledge and many years of teaching and tutoring experience, and thus usually command a greater rate (anywhere from free, where their fee is subsidized, to $50 per hour). Given their experience, these types of tutors will also offer tutoring in other areas such as writing, reading, study skills, and time management. Tutoring Directories Some schools, in addition to staff tutoring or regulated peer tutoring, will make available a directory of tutors, categorized by subject matter. Sometimes the tutors in this directory will have been evaluated by the school, other times it is up to the tutee to evaluate the tutor’s suitability. Payment is done directly between the tutor and the tutee. Here is a directory of tutors listed by school: TABLE #2 Cancellation Policy Due to high demand and wait lists, most tutors will have a cancellation policy. Details may vary, but if a cancellation is made within 24 hours of the scheduled tutor time, tutees will get a refund less a penalty fee. This is especially prevalent in schools with learning centers and staff tutoring. Other schools are more lax and generally don’t impose a penalty (especially if the service is free to begin with), but appreciate notice of cancellation.
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