The following areas should be considered when you are choosing a tutor. Talking with potential tutors and determining how he or she will address each should allow you to decide which will best benefit your child:

1. Qualifications: Ideally, your tutor is a college graduate who holds a valid teaching certificate granted by a state education agency, or is someone with a college degree who has completed a tutor training program. This presumes the tutor understands educational theory, instructional strategies, and remedial approaches. A respectable training program outlines the basics of planning an effective session, how a student demonstrates comprehension, and how goals and objectives are to be designed to meet a student’s needs. Graduate students with strong content knowledge can make effective tutors if they also have the skills to connect with the student. Tutors should also present evidence that they have no criminal record, especially if you have the service delivered in your home.
2. Relationship Building: This is critical to the success of the tutoring sessions. A tutor needs to be able to put your child at ease, encourage academic risks, be nonjudgmental and observant of your child’s strengths and weaknesses. The tutor should also build a relationship with you by regularly updating you on the progress of your child.
3. Achievement:This is the core objective of why you are paying for tutoring in the first place. A tutor needs to be able to demonstrate growth both academically and in the student’s attitude toward learning. Pre- and post-testing on standardized tests or school grades can be useful objective measures of progress. A good rule of thumb is that after about 10 hours of one-to-one tutoring you should be able to notice a tangible benefit from tutoring.
4. Communication:Itisimportant for you to know how your money is being spent. A professional tutor will provide regular feedback on goals and objectives for your child, session content, progress or lack thereof, and plans for future sessions during a time which is convenient for you.
5. Cost: A major factor in selecting a tutor is the cost. Costs differentiate from region to region and different tutoring models for example One-to-one tutoring will be more expensive than small group tutoring and in-home tutoring will be more costly than traveling to a learning center.