According to Mohan Dhall, CEO of the Australian Tutoring Association, the percentage of students who are currently using some form of academic support is 25 per cent.
“I would suggest that there’s about 80,000 students who engage in some form of tutoring in Australia. As an industry, it is conservatively valued at around $1.3 billion and growing.”
With the ever-growing depth of resources available to learners on the internet, with tools such as virtual whiteboards, and video sharing platforms such as Youtube, and even the rise of conference apps, online tutoring has seen a 500% increase in growth over the past year.
These days, local tutoring businesses are taking advantage of the online revolution by moving their lessons online.
With just a few seconds you can find a qualified teacher of any subject or discipline, including maths, science, English, to more niche skills and studies such as art classes, languages or cooking.
Let's look at how we can access these online classes.
Hint: you can study a lot more than the typical academic subjects!
What Online Lessons Can I Do?
Online study actually includes a huge variety of learning opportunities.
Online Language Classes
Students enrolled in Australian public schools are required to study a foreign language in their early high school years. But why stop there? Learning a language opens up a whole new world.
There is a scientific consensus that people who are bilingual are better multi-taskers and have increased attention spans. Moreover, the earlier a learner begins to learn a second language the more likely they are to have above average cognitive abilities.
So in order to succeed academically, is it not logical to study a second language?
Hiring a foreign language teacher can therefore be an excellent way to improve academically, across all subjects.
Technology and Software Applications
According to the website 'Talentegg', a CV that lists only basic computer skills is not enough to get a job interview in most companies. In the modern-day, human resources staff are looking for specific program skills sets, such as Python, or database management.
Building specific computer and technology skills with an online tutor is our hot tip for gaining an advantage in the job market in the 21st century.
Teachers on video conference applications such as Skype and zoom can provide personalised lessons on any facet of any computer science you are learning. They will tutor you with tools such as screenshare, being particularly useful.
In the opening stages of a lesson, you would learn software capabilities using the interactive whiteboard tool. The latter half of your online tutoring session would use the screen share tool, where your tutor can coach you through the different processes learnt in the first half of the lesson.
Screenshare has revolutionised online learning!
Online Fitness Classes
With fitness and diet programs the current craze amongst young Australians, everybody wants a good workout these days thanks to the pressures of social media.
For some, working out at the gym in front of other people can be an uncomfortable experience. So isn't it great that you can workout at home with a personal trainer?
On average fitness classes are about the same price as an academic lesson. You could take fitness classes with an online coach. Some of the activities you can train online are:
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Pilates
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Yoga
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Tai Chi
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Fitness and Stretching
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Strength training
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Endurance training
Some more intense sports, such as martial arts and dancing can also be done on webcam.
Every good fitness program needs to be coupled with nutrition: you can find a dietary coach online, too!
Learning Music Online
Is learning the guitar something you've always wanted to do? Do you dream of playing a gig in front of adoring fans? Or even just in front of the campfire with friends?
Learning music online offers a different style of learning over traditional music lessons because you can record the entire lesson, and watch it again later in the week. This should provide the reinforcement you need to work on until your next scheduled lesson.
Also, your teacher can send you online materials easily to keep up practice in between sessions, that complement your lessons.
It's also practical, you don't have to carry your instrument around town. You can learn everything from chords and scales to writing music from the comfort of your own home.
Studies have also shown that learning music enhances ones academic skills. Other than a love of music, isn't that another good reason to pick up an instrument?
Developing Academic Skills Online
Studying online is clearly an excellent way of boosting your academic grades.
Young people now spend the majority of their free time in the digital world: chatting with friends on social media, watching things on the internet and playing video games.
Online learning is therefore a captivating experience for young people interested in technology.
Working from home puts the student at ease and comfortable in their learning environment, increasing output.
Online tutors are also likely to be younger, lending to better connections between teachers and young learners in the online setting.
Rapport is so important to successful learning, and this reduction of age difference actually plays a bigger role than you might think.
How to Succeed at Online Learning
If you are tech-savvy - someone who has grown up with the Internet in the palm of your hand, you may have already had study experiences and really got a lot out of them.
Although, there are plenty of people who haven't had the same level of experience.
The main reasons are:
- Technical problems: poor or dropped connections, screen freezes, lagging and not hearing the teacher's instructions due to the disruptions.
- Lack of personal connection with the tutor: online relationships are never the same as meeting someone in person.
- Effective communication: without being able to read body language and other nonverbal cues, it is harder to understand a student's motivations and concentration levels.
Some people feel a lack of genuine connection online, especially if they aren't used to socialising online.
Luckily, the best tutors are aware of these challenges and go to extra efforts to make sure that their students get the most positive learning experience they can.
New technologies are bringing us closer and closer together though, and you and your tutor can work together on your learning goals, be they academic, artistic or fitness-related - understanding nutrition better and learning yoga, for instance.
So far gone are the days where a teacher will teach just with a textbook and a blackboard.
Now, teachers use interactive whiteboards and digital pens; screen sharing functions that are embedded in video conference applications and they share material with students through Google Docs or Dropbox, rather than email to upload assignments and learning materials.
There are also fun activities like Kahootz quizzes or Quizlet study sets for you to learn on the go!
Quizlet is an online learning application that takes a multi-targeted approach to revising lessons. There are flashcards, games, and a writing quiz to test your knowledge.
There is a web-based version to use on your home computer or you can download the app on your phone or tablet to get some study in on the go!
Equipment Needed for Online Courses
You need at least a couple of things to get started in online learning!
Before you splash on the latest Macbook Pro, let us reassure you: if the device you are currently reading this on is Windows 8 or 10, or a MacOS Sierra, you don't need to upgrade in order to learn with your tutor online.
Your connection speed is the most important thing. For online learning sessions, you want at least 1.5 mb per second to insure against screen freezes and delays in transmission. Fiberoptic and broadband connection are two ways to ensure this speed (which is not too high).
WiFi is generally fine of course, just make sure you check the upload and download speed from your device. Low speed or weak signals may result in lagging and disruptions to your lesson.
Two things you will need for an online lesson are:
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A working camera. These days most laptops have a camera built-in, but if you're on a desktop you may need to buy a small webcam to attach to your screen.
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A microphone. Again most laptops include a microphone built-in which will be fine for online lessons. You can also buy a set of headphones or earphones that have a microphone built-in.
After paying for private lessons online, why risk misunderstanding your tutor, or him/her not hearing you correctly?
Both the things we mentioned are cheap to get, you won't have to pay more than 40 bucks to get set up with a microphone and camera.
What Software or Apps Do I Need?
Before starting any lesson, don't worry about pre-downloading any software or apps onto your device. Your tutor will suggest any programs or apps needed for the lessons within the first couple of classes you do together.
Of the millions of apps you can find on the internet - more than two hundred thousand of them are in the field of academic study and education. In an online lesson, you'll likely use Skype, Zoom or Microsoft Teams to meet your teacher and classmates.
You are probably already familiar with these websites, as many workplaces have used them over the COVID-19 pandemic with many people working from home. They are the most popular applications for online instruction because they have a screen share tool that permits one person in the meeting to see the screen of the other.
Practical, right?
All these apps now allow for multiple participants at the same time and can employ the use of breakout rooms.
These rooms split off from the "main room", so you can do activities in small groups of students.
Find Tutors Online with Superprof
In the past, one of the hardest things for a tutor was to find students and to be able to advertise their services to a wide range of people. After all, they are teachers and are no experts in running a business or in advertising!
Unless they happen to be marketing teachers!
Not having an advertising space made it difficult for prospective students to know anything about teachers they came across. How do I know if this person is right for me?
Advertising mostly came in the form of newspaper adverts or posters plastered around the streets, but as online advertising grew in popularity, the industry accelerated as more and more parents began finding their teachers for their children this way.
Still, most people offering tuition only offer a small amount of information in their ad; not much more than the tutor's name, maybe the degree they studied, the subjects they can tutor and their location of tuition.
Superprof started up and went live online in 2013, providing tutors a way to market their skills effectively the parents, children and university students an easy place to choose a tutor in confidence.
Each tutor has their own profile page to outline the details of their proposition and personal background. From their ATAR score, their qualifications, their work experiences and teaching methodologies.
A quick look at any Superprof tutor page will show their travel capabilities, the curriculum they are capable of teaching, their online availabilities, or if they are also able to teach a small group.
We think the biggest advantage of Superprof tutor pages is that you can read reviews from students. These reviews enable you to decide whether a certain teacher would be a good fit for you or your children's needs, and also speaks to the teaching methodologies they can offer.
Normally, you'd wish to find a tutor with relevant qualifications or experience (perhaps a bachelor degree in the area of study), and one who charges a fair rate for their service. Thanks to Superprof tutor profile pages, you can figure all that out yourself!
Superprof has:
- Maths tutors – ATAR prep, HSC/VCE prep, primary and secondary level maths, university level maths.
- Science tutors – biology, chemistry, physics, earth sciences
- English tutors – vocabulary, grammar, spelling, ESOL, primary, secondary and university level.
- Foreign languages – French, Spanish, Mandarin Chinese, German, Italian + more!
- Computers and digital technology
- Engineering tutors – civil, electrical, mechanical
- Music – piano, guitar, drums, singing
- Economics – macro and microeconomics, econometrics
- Statistics and Probability
- History tutors
- Art tutors – sculpting, drawing, acting
- Yoga and fitness training tutors
- Primary, secondary and university curriculum teaching of all subjects offered throughout Australia
Superprof certifies that every tutor is properly qualified to teach in his/her field, something you can verify yourself: every tutor page indicates their profile and credentials have been vetted to provide you with the best possible learning experience, in the most capable hands.
Online Tutoring For People in Regional Australia
Unfortunately, there exists a gap in education quality between major cities like Sydney and Melbourne and regional Australia. Regardless of where you live in Australia, you can get online tutoring to help with you or your child's studies. So you don't have to live in major cities like Sydney and Melbourne to get the most out of school!
If you live in regional NSW, you can still find a tutor online to help with you or your child's HSC exams. Live video lessons are a great way to bridge the gap that exists in education between major cities and regional Australia. You have access to quality teachers, who can help your child smash their ATAR exams. For cheaper rates, build a study team and hire an online tutor together!
So what are you waiting for? Build your confidence with the support from a tutor, and you'll start passing your exams with ease. Good luck!
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