Abstract

How confident do you feel in your personal tutoring role? In the face of ever-increasing and demanding learner issues, do you feel equipped to provide the essential support to meet their needs? This timely book provides you with essential help in an area which has often been given little attention in comparison with curriculum delivery by:

• contextualising the support side of a teacher’s role within further education;
• looking beyond conventional notions of personal tutoring and coaching;
• appreciating the real world applications of issues;
• recognising the benefits personal tutoring and coaching bring to learners and educational institutions;
• reflecting on a variety of different approaches to support learners’ achievement as well as positively affecting institutional key performance indicators.

It provides proven practical advice and guidance for planning and delivering group tutorials, undertaking one to ones, identifying and managing vulnerable learners and those at risk of not achieving, as well as helping learners to progress onto their chosen career paths. It explores methods to engage the most disaffected and hard to reach learners, as well as stretching and challenging the more able.    

It includes clear aims, detailed case studies, learning checklists and a unique self-assessment system for the reader and the educational institution. You are encouraged to develop your skills in order to influence individual learners as well as the systems, processes and performance of your educational institution by becoming an outstanding personal tutor. 

The text is an excellent foundation for the majority of modules on teacher training qualifications and is relevant to any pre-service or in-service trainee teacher or existing practitioner with a personal tutoring role, a specialised personal tutor, manager or anyone in a learner-facing role within further education.

Andrew Stork is a lecturer in marketing, Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and co-author of the highly regarded book Becoming an Outstanding Personal Tutor: Supporting Learners through Personal Tutoring and Coaching. As well as presenting at national and international conferences he has published research in personal tutoring and coaching. He has held the roles of cross-institutional quality lead for personal tutoring and student experience, course leader of the postgraduate certificate in education course, and a variety of curriculum leadership, quality and staff development positions. He is a chartered marketer and, prior to working in education, worked in marketing management and consultancy roles.

Ben Walker has co-responsibility for the personal tutoring and coaching of learners at The Sheffield College and is an English lecturer and teacher trainer. Prior to this he was a full time English lecturer for several years and then head of department for English. Through teaching on the PGCE and certificate of education courses and being an observer, he has experience training, mentoring and supporting teachers and personal tutors.  He has undertaken recently published research into how coaching conversations help students learn through the Education and Training Foundation and working with The University of Sunderland’s Centre for Excellence in Teacher Training,

Susan Wallace is Emeritus Professor of Education at Nottingham Trent University where, for many years, part of her role was to support learning on the initial training courses for teachers in the FE sector.  She has researched and published extensively on education, training and management of behaviour, and is a popular keynote speaker at conferences. Her particular interests are in mentoring and the motivation and behaviour of students.

The book is very clear, well laid out and relevant to a number of different people. 

This is an excellent book and I really like the way it is written , the content and the critical thinking activities.

I liked the more personalised narrative at the start which thinks through the experience of becoming a personal tutor through the lenses of new teacher. That led to a sustained conversational tone which ensures the book is engaging as well as informative. The reader is encouraged to explore their own definitions, practices and aspirations i.e. through examination of case studies and triggered critical reflections. Tables and diagrams provide useful further explanations – very helpful to those who are less experienced, and helpful to those who are more experienced as a point of reflection on their experiences and practices. Through the book, the voice (co-authored) is that of practitioners with direct insight in to the jargon surrounding personal tutoring and its policy and practice context. The variety of approaches to support critical reflection (including fictional dialogue) and the very accessible layout and structure of the text make this a very useful resource to dip in to again in the light of new experiences.