Tutoring and mentoring

A tutor and a mentor

There are a few differences between a tutor and a mentor, despite there being a few overlaps

There are cases where a mentor could become a tutor and a mentor could become a tutor, there are also cases where this overlap doesn’t occur at all.

The difference between them both

The main difference between a tutor and a mentor is simply the approach in how they report and record the relationship with the student and whether or not they view themselves as a mentee as well as a student.

A tutor’s relationship with a student tends to be based on the subject matter at hand, whether that be weight-lifting, training for a marathon or analysing Shakespeare. A mentor’s relationship with a student however is all about building the personal rapport with the mentee, learning their likes and dislikes, building the trust from there and being a good role model for the mentee.

Can one become like the other?

There are certainly scenarios you may find yourself in when tutoring where you realise you have a personal trust with the student which may make you believe that you’re a mentor to them. An example would be if the student confides in you personal information outside of the subject area. This is something that a tutor should be aware of, that they may be a role model of some type for their student, however this isn’t always the case and shouldn’t be expected.

As you build your student list while tutoring, it’s important to get organised, get ClassCaptain to help your scheduling needs.