When it comes to tutorials, you can’t beat old-fashioned face-to-face time
SUDDENLY, after eight years in higher education, I’m the one at the front of the room, making sure things go smoothly. It’s only 20 students at a time but the responsibility seemed enormous for someone who had never done any formal teaching before.
Everyone said I would like tutoring and it turned out there was nothing to be nervous about. I’ve really enjoyed the workshop sessions so far and I’m looking forward to more. They’re a lot more fun than I expected! Of course, if I hadn’t thought sociology was fun, I wouldn’t be doing a PhD. I wish I had more time with the students.
The role of tutors on the first-year sociology course is to facilitate group learning. With more than 400 students on the course and challenging material to cover, lectures can be a bewildering experience. Workshops give students a chance to discuss ideas and get their heads around sociological concepts. Tutors lead the process, encourage students to stretch their thinking and clarify misunderstandings.
Our workshop sessions are centred on student participation, with exercises and discussions taking place mainly in small groups within a larger group context. A group of 20 offers opportunities for cross-pollination of ideas, but it can be difficult for everyone to get an equal chance to speak. People are more comfortable in smaller groups and interacting with students in threes and fours makes it easier for tutors to get a good sense of how everyone is doing.
The concept of small-group learning has been embraced in different ways by different parts of the university. At a tutor training course, I met postgrads from another discipline who were enthusiastic about online tutorials. Rather than in-person meetings, their students interact through an online discussion forum, with fortnightly assignments. Instead of speaking with students directly, tutors offer feedback through the forum.
It’s a pragmatic solution to the administrative nightmare of organising sessions for hundreds of students, but I can’t help feeling those students are missing out. Online forums are a fantastic tool, but they’re no replacement for the spontaneous understanding that can come from real conversation. Especially during the first year, when it’s easy for students to feel isolated, tutorials are one small way to help them engage with their course.
The other tutors argued that, for just this reason, shy students might feel more comfortable interacting through a computer. But allowing students to stay inside their comfort zone in this way does them no favours in the long run. Eventually they will have to interact with real people. Tutorials and workshops offer a safe space for practice. I know many students only attend workshops because they’re mandatory but, for others, it’s an important element of their learning.
A lack of face-to-face tutorials does allow students to take initiative and organise meetings themselves: but I imagine their learning would be even more fruitful if they had some real interaction with a tutor.
Technology can enrich the student experience but it’s no replacement for real teaching.
Myshele Goldberg is a PhD student at Strathclyde University. Her website is «www.myshelegoldberg.com»
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