In past semesters students were awarded 5 extra credit points for 5 hours of tutoring on their exams. However I started to question if students were going to tutoring just to get the extra credit points or if they really needed the help. In Spring of 2013 I changed the tutoring requirements for all my courses. Students would now be required to complete 10 hours of tutoring throughout the semester and this would count towards 5% of their grade. I wanted students to attend tutoring because they saw a benefit and need, not just to get points. Students were given a tutoring log in which they documented the date, time, what they studied, and who helped them. They turned the tutoring log in at the end of the semester. The results validated my beliefs about when students attend tutoring and the results it has on their success in a course.
Please see attached document for data results
I shared these results with my division and this practice has been implemented in all of our developmental math courses.
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
 tutoring-log-data-spring-2013.docx | 56.43 KB |
 study-log2013.pdf | 80.19 KB |
Comments
Luvia, Do the students ever complain about having to go to tutoring?
Bronwen,
I haven't hear much complaining because they have the whole semester to get their tutoring hours done. Most of the students at some point in the semester will need some help. They are also able to go to the tutoring center and complete homework.
Luvia
Thanks for the sharing of this idea. I think I might steal it from you.
Andy Richey
Andy,
Go for it...it like to know how it works out for you.
Luvia, I am a big fan of tutoring as I believe there are few substitutes for the instantenous feedback students get from working with an educator in a one-on-one or small group format. Ideally I wish I could do that with all my students. I also think it makes sense to make it "mandatory" by having it be worth points in the class instead of as extra credit. However, I don't understand the logic by increasing the hours they must attend and making it part of the course grade that this will make the students "...see a benefit and a need [in tutoring], not just to get the points"; indeed, it seems that students are doing it just for the points since its part of their grade (not that that is a bad thing necessarily, I just seem to be missing something).
Another thought- have you considered allowing students to "earn" their tutoring hours not necessarily by being tutored by others but by providing free tutoring services to classmates? For those high functioning students, that may reduce the tediousness of having to go to tutoring when they feel they don't need to, at the same time provide a deep learning activity for them (and perhaps have a bit of fun)? When I was an undergrad, I remember seeking out struggling students in my class that I could tutor as a selfish way for me to help learn the material myself better. :)
Eric,
I used to give students extra credit for going to tutoring before every exam. I felt that students' were going to tutoring because they wanted the extra points not because they necessarily needed help. Now, I changed the format to 10 hours and they can go on as needed basis throughout the semester. I believe they see the benefits of going to tutoring when they need it not because they have to complete a quota of hours to get extra points.
I currently use the model of excelling students partnering with a struggling student to meet the tutoring requirement. This has worked out great for both students. I even had some students meet their tutoring requirement via skype. There is alot of flexibility on how the tutoring requirement can be accomplished as long as it's documented.
Luvia - education research has long identified the most powerful teaching model as 1 on 1, and your experiences with tutoring have verified it! Do you find that some of your students resent being "forced" to go see a tutor? And what do you do with those students who have full-time jobs and obligations as parents?
Pete,
I don't hear alot of the grumbling or complaining of having to attend tutoring. Many of the students that go for the first time see the benefit and are sold after that. It's not alot of hours and they have 16 weeks to complete the assignment to get full credit. As I stated to Eric, it's very flexible on how the requirement can be met. Student' that have full-time jobs or obligations as parents can partner with someone to try alternative methods of tutoring, such as skype. I have not had any student tell me they were unable to complete the 10 hours because of their job or personal obligations.
I really like this Luvia. We always need to "encourage" our students to utilize tutoring. I am glad that the Math students are showing improvement. Now I just need to figure out a way to get my Reading students to utilize tutorning as well. :-)
Luvia, this is an excellent idea! The nursing students struggle with math all through the blocks - we are contemplating of adding a requirment similar to this. We just need more time to work this out. Kanina