4th December 2013 9:00
By Blue Tutors
The proliferation of academies has raised many issues in the education community, one of which being their approaches to discipline. Several academies have become known for their strict approach to behaviour in schools, and pride themselves on having clear guidelines and punishments for transgressions. Some of the schools that have come under scrutiny have no-tolerance policies which apply to rule breaking of any kind. This means that even for minor transgressions such as uniform issues, students receive no warning before they are given detention. This has led some to question whether such draconian rules are the best way for students to learn.
Each school, comprehensive, academy or private have their own rules. But the question of how to deal with transgressions is a difficult one, and one that tutors have to decide for themselves. There are many students out there who always complete work for their tutor on time, and are generally a joy to teach. But there are others whose behaviour is difficult, which leaves tutors with a decision to make about how to handle bad behaviour. The first issue is that tutors have little power to enforce any rules – their only major recourse is to quit. And this is not generally their preferred strategy, especially as this is their source of income. Before it gets to that point, tutors should consider the particular issue and talk to the student and their parents.
If the issue is that the student has not done the required work, the first thing to do is ask the student what the problem is. It could be that they already have too much work to manage, in which the tutors need to adjust their work load. It could also be that they struggled to understand the work, in which case the tutor should take them through it and ensure that they have understood. If the student does not want to work, then this is something that should be discussed with the parents, as it is their money which is being wasted if the student is not prepared to do the work required for their tutoring sessions. Other issues such as lateness, and last minute cancelling of lessons can be frustrating, and very disruptive to tutors’ schedules. On these occasions, tutors should issue students and parents with a warning, and charge a cancellation fee should it happen again. Ultimately, the key to good discipline in the field of private tuition is good dialogue between the tutor, their students, and their parents.