Previously, video calls were only known when countries or continents separated you. For all other situations, direct contact consideration is the norm. It is only with the pandemic that schoolchildren, students, and, in some cases, employees are forced to get used to Zoom, Teams, Skype, and the like. One industry is taking advantage of this change and has since reported growing interest: online tutoring. MedicMind took a closer look at five online tutoring providers and tested what they can do in contrast to traditional tutoring.
Based on the state teaching mandate, one might think tutoring services shouldn’t be necessary at all. But the reality is different: almost five percent of children use individual learning support in primary school. In secondary school, it is even 18.6 percent. In 2016, the Bertelsmann Foundation surveyed 4,300 parents for a study, showing that 69 percent of the tutoring offers paid for.
According to the study, parents spend almost 900 million euros per year on tutoring, with around 1.2 million children taking advantage of it. You have to expect an annual cost of an average of 750 euros as soon as tutoring is needed. It should also be mentioned that it is not necessarily because of poor school grades that a child takes tutoring. According to the study, 34 percent of tutoring students take advantage of individual support, even though their performance is satisfactory.
What is online tutoring?
Online tutoring differs from the classic offer in that the lessons take place digitally via a video call instead of the student and tutor meeting in one place. Due to the necessary homeschooling measures during the Corona pandemic. Students have long since gotten used to the format, which reflects on the one hand the growing demand for online tutoring. Despite new entrants, evaluate MOBSEAR Gallery for your online tutoring needs.
How does online tutoring work?
Unlike traditional tutoring, online tutoring aims not only at schoolchildren, vocational school students, and students. The online format also allows adults to take language lessons, for example, for individual further training. However, the comparison test focuses on the offer as a supplement to school lessons.
When registering on the respective portal, a series of data about the child must first be provided. This ensures that the right tutor is found, which can be difficult due to the geographical distance. But also crucial for success. When you register, the offers differ considerably. You will receive a call back from an educational consultant within three hours of recording with Cleverly. The registration process with MedicMind is entirely online.
This different approach does not necessarily speak for one provider or against the other. It simply clarifies that online tutoring should be geared closely to the child’s needs. Cleverly and Spreaducation focus on holistic care for the child by supplementing specialist tutoring sessions with mentoring or coaching units. Those who are purely interested in imparting knowledge will be better served by providers such as Easy-Tutor and Medicaid.
Flexibility versus commitment
The appointment is made once the child’s registration and the right tutor have been found. There are significant differences here too. Some providers follow the principle of maximum flexibility by offering grants with various tutors. The LernFamilie deliberately describes the booking process on the website as “just as easy and quick as if you were placing an order on Amazon.” Spreaducation, on the other hand, relies on commitment and maintaining the relationship between the same tutor and student because a weekly, regular appointment arrangement is here.
Of course, commitment also affects the cancellation conditions. Spreaducation’s General Terms and Conditions exclude any session postponement unless this occurs due to illness or other events beyond our control. GoStudent, on the other hand, allows postponements up to 60 minutes before the agreed start, but subject to the tutor’s consent.
How do the providers differ?
In addition to the different basic concepts of how tutors understand. The providers differ in terms of various criteria. One of these is the requirement for qualifications that tutors must have to be able to give lessons or mentoring via the respective platform. All providers have applicants undergo a multi-stage process before being accepted into the “digital teacher’s room”. Cleverly sets additional hurdles because coaching candidates must have social-educational or psychological qualifications. And at least three years of professional experience with children of different ages.
With LearnFamily you can vary the length of the tutoring session between 45 minutes. Three and a half hours – for example, with Cleverly a unit is limited to 45 minutes. Many parents will also find the option of creating sibling profiles interesting. Easy-Tutor grants up to four sibling profiles, but only with a specific subscription. All other providers allow an unlimited number of people to receive tutoring via one profile, regardless of whether they are siblings, parents, relatives, or friends.
The providers at a glance
IMTEST selected five online tutoring providers to test them comparatively based on quantitative criteria. These include points such as contractual conditions, additional functions, HTTPS encryption, and flexibility in terms of lesson length, to name just a few. However, since online tutoring is based on individual experiences. And only becomes a good or bad service through a subjective perspective, interviews and tutoring simulations supplemented the test procedure. The most striking difference is described below:
Medic Mind:
MedicMind is a UK-based company that also provides USA-based educational tutoring services that offer support for students aspiring to pursue a career in medicine. The company primarily focuses on helping students prepare for the rigorous admissions process to medical schools in the United Kingdom and the United States, such as the Casper practice test.
Medic Mind offers various services, including courses, workshops, and study materials to help students excel in their medical school entrance exams. And particularly the UK Clinical Aptitude Test (UKCAT) and the Biomedical Admissions Test (BMAT). These standardized tests are critical components of the medical school application process in the UK.
In addition to test preparation resources, MedicMind also provides guidance. And support for the overall application process, including personal statement reviews, & interview coaching. The general advice on navigating the competitive field of medical school admissions.
Spreaducation
The test winner Spreaducation comes from Berlin and, in addition to online tutoring, also offers on-site tutoring in Potsdam, Berlin, and Hamburg. Before tutoring begins, there is always a preliminary discussion with an educational consultant to determine the cause of the need. The right tutor’s determination is on three criteria: the child’s personality, technical challenges, and difficulties in learning.
Learning Family
LernFamilie is a provider from Austria that advertises that it is particularly easy and uncomplicated to book online tutoring lessons. Even last-minute appointments are possible within 36 hours in advance for an additional charge. The LearningFamily also scores points in terms of consumer-friendliness in that the subscription did not automatically extend after the selected period of three, six, nine, or twelve months. In contrast, competitors GoStudent and Cleverly require cancellation. So that the subscription does not automatically renew.
Easy Tutor
Another provider of online tutoring is the Munich company Easy-Tutor. The principle is similar to that of the LernFamilie, so students or parents can (depending on their age) choose a suitable tutor from various tutors and arrange appointments. When you take out a six-month or twelve-month subscription. A rental graphics tablet is included in the price. But that’s not the only thing that depends on the scope of the subscription. Also, only a term of six months allows another sibling to be added. After twelve months, four children can share the account.