Online tuition is currently on the rise in the UK. A large number of students are choosing online education over the traditional modes of learning. Like in-person tuition, online tuition also provides students with the option of selecting between the group and one-to-one tutoring sessions. Nonetheless, with more options usually comes more confusion.
Are you one of those students who can not decide whether to go for a group or one-to-one tuition?
In this article, we will enlist the pros and cons of both types of tuition. So, keep reading as we make it easier for you to decide.
Before you become overwhelmed with your choice of the type of online tuition in UK, it is important that you pick the right tutoring platform. There are many excellent and credible online tutoring companies in the UK that you can choose from. Almost every online tutoring platform offers both types of learning environments for their students. So, explore your options and avoid making a hasty decision.
Group Tuition
Group tuition works precisely like your school classrooms. There will be other students present in your online class at the same time as you. This type of online classroom can affect a student’s learning both positively and negatively.
Let’s look at some of its pros and advantages first!
Pros of Group Tuition
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Develops Communication Skills
Studying, learning and sharing knowledge in a group is a sure way to develop social skills. Learning in groups often requires communication, sharing of ideas, helping and understanding each other. Even in online tuition, where students are sitting miles apart in their own homes, group study can still help them develop many valuable social skills such as solid communication skills. Students will learn how to effectively put their thoughts into words and present their ideas to the entire class. Group tuition also teaches students the manner of class communication. Especially if a student is homeschooled, it can be beneficial for them as they usually lack class communication skills.
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Builds up Confidence
Even if you are naturally shy, spending more time around people can eventually help you overcome your shyness. Talking to your classmates or asking a question from the teacher in a class full of people can build up confidence over time in many students.
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More than One Teacher
While the general assumption is that there is only one teacher in the class. However, this is not true. When you are in a class full of other students, you will see that every person in the class will have something to teach you. You will not have only one teacher, but peers who you can learn from. Whether they are sharing their experiences or some concept that they understand better than you.
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Healthy Competition
Classrooms can be competitive. While it may trigger alarms in some students, healthy classroom competition is necessary for growth and productivity. Having absolutely no competition can sometimes demotivate students. The desire to be at the top of every class can be beneficial; with every student trying to be better than the rest, the odds of producing A+ results increase.
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Two Peas in a Pod
Students in a classroom are all at the same academic level. While some students might be more intelligent than others, the rest are mainly at a similar level. When studying in a group, you are likely to make friends with some of your classmates. Therefore, knowing that your friends and classmates are experiencing the same difficulties or having similar issues can take off some pressure and make you more comfortable in learning.
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Cost Friendly
Group tuition is relatively less expensive than one-to-one tutoring. Therefore, if money is a big concern for you, group tuition might be the right choice for you.
Now, let’s look at some of its cons!
Cons of Group Tuition
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One Tutor for All
Group tuition might not work best for you if you are a slow learner or require a more detailed explanation to understand tough concepts. In a classroom full of students, the teacher usually maintains one pace of teaching. This means that he will not slow down for just one student. If you are still left with questions after the session, you would have to request him to explain everything to you again. This often becomes a cause of worry as most teachers do not have time after every session to explain things all over again.
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May Trigger Anxiety
If a student suffers from social anxiety, there is a chance that being in a class full of other students will raise their anxiety levels. Anxiety causes people to try their hardest to avoid social embarrassment. On a human level, it is near to impossible to do everything right at all times. Therefore, messing up an answer or stuttering while asking a question in a class full of students can trigger an anxiety attack.
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The Odd One Out
Group tuition can also generate a sense of being left out in some students. Shy and introverted students may have a harder time adjusting. If a student lacks confidence to initiate conversation, they may even be left out of group activities. Consequently, not having a project partner or a group can trigger negative feelings of loneliness, rejection and abandonment.
Now that we have elaborated the pros and cons of group tuition, it is time we dig into one-to-one tutoring.
Just like group tuition, one to one tutoring also has its advantages and disadvantages.
Pros of One-to-One Tuition
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It’s All about You
The most significant benefit of one-to-one tuition is that you get to have all the teacher’s time and attention. Since you are their only student, they do not have anyone else to pay attention to. This way, the teacher will teach according to your pace of learning. Furthermore, if you do not understand something in the first attempt, you can ask your teacher many more times to go over the same concepts till you completely understand.
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Customised Learning
These sessions also give the instructor a better insight into the student’s learning needs, capacity and ability. With this kind of information, an instructor can alter and customise their teaching approach and methodology to better fit the individual needs and requirements of the student. This personalised and tailored approach to teaching in online tutoring can enhance a student’s learning experience, boost their confidence, and positively impact their grades.
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Heaven for Introverts
One-to-one tutoring gives a chance to shy and introverted students to relax and learn in a comfortable environment. With only the teacher present in the class with them, they can easily ask questions and participate in the class activities without getting nervous all the time.
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Flexible Timings
With one-to-one tuition, you might even get the chance of selecting the time entirely of your choice. Since the time coordination is only between two people, there is a higher chance that you can get flexible timings and more breaks between your learning sessions.
However, just like group tuition, one-to-one tutoring also has some disadvantages.
Cons of One-to-One Tuition
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Isolation
Online learning can in itself instil a sense of isolation in students. Furthermore, studying in one-to-one online tuition can even escalate this phenomenon. So, if you are someone who does not like to feel isolated or cut off from other students, one-to-one tuition might not be a good fit for you.
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Less Productivity
With only you and the teacher present in the class, there is no one to compete with. All classrooms require some healthy competition to generate productivity. When you do not have any competition, it is easy to lose motivation for learning and succeeding.
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Expensive
One-to-one tuition is far more expensive than group tuition. Therefore, despite all the benefits, this learning system may not suit you if you are on a tight budget.
Final Verdict
Both group and one-to-one tuition have their own sets of pros and cons. Online learning systems are never one size fits all. So, our advice is that you list all your needs and concerns and then see which type of tuition is best for the child.
