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As it’s #MentalHealthAwarnessWeek & I’m marking, I thought I’d write a thread about WHY STUDENTS SHOULD *ALWAYS* BENEFIT FROM A TUTORIAL BEFORE SUBMITTING AN ASSESSMENT & SOME TIPS ON HOW TO MAKE THAT PROCESS LESS STRESSFUL OR MORTIFYING.
So here goes....
@dmuleicester
So here goes....
@dmuleicester
As I’ve already said, I’m currently marking & what strikes me - as it always does - is the talent & creativity students display. Even more so, given what an odd year this has been. My learners have shown remarkable resilience & organisation as well as ability.
Unfortunately though, in some cases, that creativity gets misdirected. Learners can take a wrong turn, they can forget to contextualise, they can inadvertently leave things unsaid.
A tutorial significantly reduces the chances of this happening.
Work produced with the benefit of a tutorial is often more coherently structured, the ideas more fleshed out, and key, contextual scholarship tends to be highlighted and critiqued more thoroughly.
Work produced with the benefit of a tutorial is often more coherently structured, the ideas more fleshed out, and key, contextual scholarship tends to be highlighted and critiqued more thoroughly.
It’s never a pleasure to give a poor mark. Never. It always represents a miss. Not just for the poor student, but for you as a lecturer. I know I regularly think, what could I have done?
The solution is that I could have had a tutorial with that student. But the learner has to take control and COME FOR THAT TUTORIAL so they can achieve their potential.
So, what are the reasons for non attendance and tutorials?
So, what are the reasons for non attendance and tutorials?
Mainly it seems to be that students are nervous about being in 1-1 situations with their lecturer, for various, understandable reasons. Often students prefer an email, but it’s not the same. Tutorials WORK.
So here are some solutions, to make having a tutorial less problematic:
So here are some solutions, to make having a tutorial less problematic:
Take a friend (or even two) Even better if it’s a friend who also has an assessment to do for that lecturer. You can benefit from their questions and tag-team the tutorial. Just make sure you get chance to ask all the questions you need to.
It’s always better to prepare for a tutorial rather than going in cold. Think about what you want to get from the session and some preliminary questions to get you there. You’ll feel more prepared and less nervous and you’ll get more from the meeting.
By the same note, don’t arrive at a tutorial flustered. Arrive with a couple of minutes to spare, so you can compose yourself. Don’t arrive late. The lecturer might have another meeting, so the tutorial will be rushed and you’ll end up flustered.
Make clear notes in advance, cross off the points as you go. You can send that in an email to the lecturer, in advance of the meeting, you like. That way they can prepare too. It’s fine to make notes.
