Our Podcast

Tutoring in Uncertain Times: How to Inspire Confidence When Learning is Disrupted

The title of this episode could easily have been Every Student Wants to Learn.

Nicola Burkinshaw, a professional English and History tutor, lives by this motto in her own work and we couldn't agree with it more.

Nicola is a self-confessed readaholic whose primary objective with students is to build their confidence in learning. Nicola is open about the fact that she's never encountered a student who doesn't want to do well - it's about opening their minds to learning and showing them they have what it takes.

Watch out for Nicola's top 3 tips for online tutors at [24:59] - 3 simple strategies that will streamline your work and the interactions you have with students.

To find out all about Nicola, visit her site englishandhistorytutor.com - with blogs, resources, worksheets and even an online forum , you'll find all you need to about English, History, online tutoring and, of course, Nicola herself!

"Tutors fulfil a specific need: creating an environment in which students can thrive which is different to the classroom"

Supporting Dyslexia: How Scanning Pens Transform Learning

Jack Churchill is the Co-Founder of Scanning Pens, a forward-thinking company that transforms the lives of people with dyslexia. From school students to prisoners to library visitors, the assistive technology that Jack, and Co-Founder Toby Sutton, have pioneered provides a life-changing improvement.

As someone with dyslexia himself, Jack understands the intricacies of how the condition affects learning and progress. As such, the design of the pens allows for a distraction-free environment tailored to simplicity and efficacy.

The benefits for teachers and tutors are endless and Jack provides all educators with a clear message: get in touch by emailing jack@scanningpens.com or visiting www.scanningpens.co.uk today to access your free trial.

Jack and his team will be hosting the two-day D.E.A.R For Dyslexia Learning Festival this Monday 29th (in the UK) and Tuesday 30th March (in the US) - to sign up for FREE, visit here (UK) or here (US).

To catch Jack speaking on the Dear Dyslexic podcast, do visit https://www.deardyslexic.com/news/episode-27-jack-churchill-ceo-and-co-founder-scanning-pens.

"Our technology allows teachers to be more nimble and move around the classroom … not to sit with one or two students who dominate their time"

Creativity and Confidence: How the Music Curriculum will Benefit the Covid Recovery

If you've ever wondered how the music curriculum that shapes that the future of this country's arts and culture is managed and developed, look no further than Steven Berryman.

Steven is currently the Director of Arts and Culture at the Odyssey Trust for Education and here shares his thoughts and expertise on why all students should continue to study the arts at school and, in particular, how arts and music learning will get us through this tricky period.

As Steven notes himself, 'Learning an instrument isn’t going to transform you into Einstein … but it will revolutionise your development in resilience and confidence' - listen in to find out how.

To find out more about Steven's research into the power of learning an instrument and the importance of arts and music to the curriculum, catch two of his most celebrated blogs below:

• 'School music is more than an enjoyable pastime' (June 2018)
• Why all pupils need access to arts education right now (June 2020)

"Learning an instrument cultivates behaviours that will permeate other areas of learning"

The Community-Based Entrepreneur: The Power of Connecting People

Following on from our chat with entrepreneur coach Mike Michalowicz last week (catch it below), we bring you a new perspective on building your business in today's environment: community-led entrepreneurialism.

Ash Phillips is the Founder of Dffrnt (formerly 'YENA' in case you see this around and about). Dffrnt connects business leaders and entrepreneurs around the world - in Ash's own words: it's 'a digital community of awesome people creating cool things, on a global capacity'.

Ash works today to help anyone interested in small and niche business to grow what they know and understand into something that sells and benefits their community.

For all Qualified Tutor Community members, Ash has a special offer for you: to join Dffrnt with a special discount code. Visit the Community for more details on how you can get 3 months free ...

"Purpose and profit aren’t exclusive of one another, they are very inherent"

Different is Better: How Tutors and Agencies Can Stand Out from the Rest

Do you know how to be different?

Mike Michalowicz is committed to helping small business owners and entrepreneurs succeed. His latest book, Different is Better, brings together all of Mike's tips, tools and experience in helping business owners thrive in competition.

In Mike's second appearance on the pod (he joined us back in November), we’re going to be focusing on solutions in a crowded marketplace. We know that the field of tutoring can feel saturated and overly competitive. Mike has been helping business owners market themselves differently for years. And here we’re going to explore what this means for tutors and how differentiating factors work to help us stand apart from the rest.

Pre-order Different is Better today.

As it's not released until September of this year, join us today in hearing Mike discuss it PRE-RELEASE ...

"The only way you can get attention is to do something unexpected or different"

From Success to Significance: How to Maximise Your Impact as a Tutor

Terry Tucker is a man who has changed lives.

From his days as a basketball coach and a policeman in Cincinnati, to his cancer diagnosis in 2012 and his current life path, motivation has always been a significant factor in his success.

But there's a difference.

Framed appropriately in 2021's environment for education, Terry's words of wisdom into what we can take from our uncommon and extraordinary lives will inspire a generation of tutors and students alike.

To discover what Terry can inspire in you, visit his website, Motivational Check, and check out his book, Sustainable Excellence: Ten Principles To Leading Your Uncommon And Extraordinary Life, today.

We promise, you'll never look back.

"Success is what we do … significance is what we do for other people"

Misconceptions, Motivation and Mental Maths: A Guide to ADHD in Tutoring

In one of the more open, personal and honest conversations we've had on the Podcast to date, Clio Tucker O'Sullivan delivers an assessment of how her journey from struggling with concentration and organisation at school, through her eventual diagnosis to the lessons learnt since.

ADHD has long been misunderstood, as a label given to those students who struggle academically. It is far from that.

Some of the most intelligent and successful scientists, researchers, professors and academics ever have lived and worked with the impairment, and have thrived.

Clio's recent blog post for Qualified Tutor (originally published on the platform, Medium) provides a foundation for Clio's experiences and the struggles she's faced to date. You can find it here - we'd suggest reading it first before diving into the pod ...

"My diagnosis gave me permission to let go of all the shame up to that point"

Access Arrangements and How to Work Effectively with SEND students

As those of you in the Community will know, Hazel Barnett has a wealth of experience in the tutoring field. An active and engaged member, Hazel draws on her M.Ed. in Maths Education and Dyslexia to find solutions to every issue, concern and query for students and fellow tutors alike.

For those not in the Community, let this be an incentive to join in the discussion!

An expert in dyslexia and access arrangements in schools, this conversation dives into the work of a SENCO (if you don't know what this is, you'll find the answer at [9:05]), what our method of assessment in schools should be and the key aspects of various learning difficulties.

Hazel has also taken the time to write two hugely informative blogs:

• on Study Skills to reduce exam stress - this blog discusses Hazel's 4 top tips for cutting down stress in the run-up to exams
• on Exam Access Arrangements - this blog details all the steps necessary for tutors and teachers who are seeking exam support for their student(s)

"We strengthen learning difficulties by interventions and we accommodate them by access arrangements"

SEND, Mental Health and the Healthy Impact of REDJanuary 2021

As we come to the end of Qualified Tutor's first REDJanuary, we celebrate the support and community that helped us through the darkest (but mostly the coldest) days.

In this honest roundtable discussion amongst the QT REDJanuary team (and special guest, Adrian Conway), we look back on what working as a team means, both for running your first 10km and for building a solid student-tutor partnership.

From [10:38], we explore how our Community Themes for January (Mental Health) and February (SEND) have overlapped and the benefits this has brought to our Community of tutors.

SEND specialist, Amanda Cremona, takes us through her tips for working with dyslexic and non-engaging students - and don't miss Julia's frank assessment of what it truly means to pass on tutoring work that doesn't fit within your area of expertise.

Thank you to those below for making it such an invigorating discussion:

• Amanda Cremona
• Adrian Conway
• Rose Matthews
• Julia Silver
• Ludo Millar

‘My tutoring win today was that my student was able to say the word “said” in a story’ Amanda Cremona

How to Smash Every First Tutoring Session

Rich with the latest pedagogical research and practical tips you can implement today, this conversation will teach you about our easy-to-navigate strategy for how to smash every first session (and beyond) ...

In this, the second episode of the new Love Tutoring, with Qualified Tutor series, Julia and Alex Asher, CEO of Learncube, discuss the tips and tricks behind your first tutoring session.

Don't miss the final section, where Julia runs through the real gold dust: the 5-Step Plan.

If you'd prefer to read Julia's insights, find the blog here.

"If you can teach a student to expect to be successful in their sessions, they’ll come back for more and grow to love their learning"

The Four Rules of Engagement in Tutoring

This conversation brings together Qualified Tutor and Learncube's CEO, Alex Asher in the first of a new series: Love Tutoring, with Qualified Tutor.

The first of the series takes us through four simple steps for increasing engagement with your student. (Hint: they all start with 'P' ...)

Learncube are industry leaders in online education and edtech delivery.

Learncube's platform is purpose built for education and you can try it out for FREE today by going to www.learncube.com and giving their online platform a demo.

Love Tutoring will be exploring how we can match success and enjoyment in the field of tutoring, including detailed overviews of current best practices and the latest pedagogical research.

“We realise that the best way of getting high-quality tutoring is by tutors investing in themselves”

Sharpen: Becoming the Largest Searchable Note Database in the World

This is the vision for Aidan Whytock, Sharpen's tenacious Founder.

Sharpen is not like any old tutoring platform. Sharpen creates downloadable, searchable and time-stamped PDFs of all notes taken during the session, allowing you and your student to revisit old material alongside the discussion at the time.

This will revolutionise revision and has important consequences for safeguarding, in-session engagement, note-taking skills and much more.

• Take your first session today for free at https://sharpen-app.com/ or contact Aidan directly by clicking here.
• To see how it works in action, find Aidan's helpful tutorial videos here.

Dyscalculia: How to Manage Maths Anxiety

Dyscalculia is a condition that affects a student's ability to understand number-related concepts, perform calculations and problem solve with figures.

Judy Brice has been providing tuition support to students with dyscalculia for many years and is 'experienced in helping children who often fall through the cracks at school'.

We welcome Judy's experience and positivity onto the Qualified Tutor Podcast, with an exploration of how to manage a dyscalculic student, what techniques work best and, most importantly, the range of props and games you need at your disposal (hint: no one has a better range than Judy ...)

To find out more about Judy's work and to book your own session, visit https://jmbtutoring.co.uk/ and get in touch today. Judy also runs a series of engaging and in-depth courses on managing maths anxiety, which you can find here.

“It’s horrible for a child to go through learning suffering from maths anxiety”

Christmas Special: Qualified Tutor's Just A Minute 2020

We decided to do things a little differently for our festive special. 5 contestants, 1 host and a whole lot of Just A Minute inexperience.

The contestants performed admirably, with just and fair winners being crowned at the end of the day's play.

Our contestants were:

• Amanda Cremona
• Julia Silver
• Jessie Pitsillides
• James Sheppe
• Ludo Millar

There was fierce competition from all sides and high-quality, off-the-cuff speeches being given at every turn. Listen in for 40 minutes of fun, festivity and fallibility (yes, we're not all experts at this ...)

Chronic Disengagement - Changing the World for the Better

For A Life Worth Living.

The foundational concept of Nudge Education is simple: no child is left behind.

The Founder of Nudge, Diego Melo, shares a powerful belief that chronic disengagement can be overcome by passionate and targeted support. Whether the system accepts or rejects a student, Nudge Education are there to provide for their needs.

We speak to Diego about the philosophies that have got him this far, experiences from his years in the sector and his visions for the future, however ambitious.

Action Tutoring NTP Tuition Partner - On Delivering Online Interventions in Schools

As one of the lead organisations in the National Tutoring Programme, Action Tutoring are right at the centre of changing lives for disadvantaged students in the UK.

The Programme kicked off in early November and, since then, thousands of pupils across the country have benefitted from one-to-one, one-to-two and/or small-group tuition. With lockdown affecting many students, the shift to online tutoring has been complex.

Action Tutoring have been leaders in online tutoring support for years and their online tutoring pilot this summer revealed a great deal about the most effective methods for schools in how to implement online tuition should it be required.

Learning and Living Differences: Nina Jackson and How to Help your Student Thrive

Nina Jackson is not Nina Jackson.

Nina Jackson is The Ninja, moving in mysterious ways and bringing about effective change out of the limelight.

Nina has worked in the area of music and education for well over a decade and in almost every country you can think of, and has built up a unique style of bringing out the 'fizz' in both students and teachers.

An inspirational speaker, as you can tell, and a highly engaging writer, as you will soon find out, Nina has a different take on how we should approach our work with children (hint: it's not the current system ...)

“Labels are for tins, and not for people.”

Can You Put a Price on the Value of Tutoring, with Mike Michalowicz

What would it take for you to view yourself as a business?

Tutors are a business. An incredibly important business, for many students. The most successful tutors are those that take the greatest care of their own business. To maximise your students' learning and ensure you can focus on their needs, you have to be safe in the knowledge that your financial future is secure.

Mike Michalowicz is a world-famous speaker and author in the field of small businesses and entrepreneurialism, building his knowledge off the back of losing it all and having to walk the path of recovery. He knows a thing or two about starting from the bottom.

Mike now leads a series of inspiring communities of motivated entrepreneurs and small business owners, led in their practice by the business techniques laid down by Mike over 15 years of expertise in the industry.

Anxiety and Barriers for School Attendance: Interview with Fran Morgan

Fran Morgan has spent over a decade changing the lives of children who do not 'fit the system'.

Last year, Fran set up Square Peg, a company that works to help nurture the talents and passions of those children that the education system has rejected.

The conversation here is moving and important. Never before has the lack of support and infrastructure for students who don't fall neatly into line been so exposed and it is in this time that children with special educational needs require the greatest care.

Bramble #2: The Largest Ever Study into Online Tutoring, Explored

"You've taken us, as a profession, to another level."

The scale and detail with which Bramble conducted their recent survey into online tutoring is quite incredible. The report on the survey was published recently (you can find it here) but this is the first time they have been able to discuss and explore it in a collaborative environment - Qualified Tutor is delighted to be part of such an important step in this industry's development.

As lockdown takes over the education sector once more, we must all learn the lessons from this spring and ensure that no student is left behind. The National Tutoring Programme is going a long way to achieving this but we have to maintain that classroom experience and consistency for all students, including in their online learning.

Interview with Matthew Hood: Principal of Oak National Academy

20 million lessons delivered, 15 million hours of video already created and published ... and we're heading into a second lockdown.

The Oak National Academy was created in spring 2020 to seamlessly deliver virtual lessons as if school had never been disrupted. They have achieved this aim and much, much more - teachers have noted a hugely reduced workload and a markedly improved quality in teaching and learning for students and teachers.

Matt's background as a classroom teacher, coupled with his unique ability to bring people together, has allowed the Academy to flourish and the platform has endless possible opportunities for growth, from recorded sessions, to SEND specialisms to bearing some of the burden of oversized classrooms and students who don't suit the classroom model.

In this fast-paced and hugely informative episode, we speak to Matthew Hood, the Academy's Principal, about his hopes for the future and how classroom teaching may have already changed forever.

TutorCruncher: Facilitating Tutors and Agencies to Take Charge of their Own Service

Here at Qualified Tutor, we are constantly striving to make tutors aware that their job is a professional role.

Too often, tutors are undervalued and underrepresented, seen as a bit-part role that does not carry a professional standard to it.

The team at TutorCruncher share this same vision. Their business management platform for tutors and agencies allows all parties, tutor, agency and client, to benefit from the efficiency and time-saving automation that the software provides.

Bringing together reports, billing, payments, analytics, teaching tools, website integration and more, this all-encompassing approach allows tutors and agencies to spend more time on doing what they love: improving outcomes for students.

Founded in 2013, the platform continues to take on new clients quickly, being used by many of the industry's biggest and most successful tutors and agencies. Listen in to find out more about the insights from their recent anonymised survey into the use of the platform in the UK and US.

“Companies that we see doing very well are those who take an active role in their client-tutor approach”

The Power of Thunking: How We Can Stop Students Settling for ‘I Don’t Know’

We continue the theme this week of hearing from true experts in the field of education.

Ian Gilbert has been one of the foremost leaders internationally in the field of curriculum change and advocating for a system in which students think and learn for themselves.

Founder of Independent Thinking, a platform that serves the most innovative and creative minds in education, Ian's works cover a range of topics, aimed at students themselves, those involved in the teaching of students and everyone in between.

This roundtable discussion, alongside Qualified Tutor's Founder, Julia Silver, and Lead Facilitator, Adrian Conway, brings out the most important and most topical conversations at this time, with a real focus on challenging the norms in education and how we must alter the way students view their education.

“If your thoughts count, you count.”

In Conversation with ... Qualified Tutor Tier 1 Graduates #6

There is so much to learn from those who've taken part themselves.

Our flagship course, the Qualification for Tutors, continues to grow thanks to the contributions and feedback of our motivated and enthusiastic participants.

There has never been a better time to get into tutoring - Qualified Tutor allows you to build your business alongside industry experts and tutors just like you.

Hear from those in the know about what impact the course had on their confidence and ability and why every tutor should be striving to seek out training and level up.

QUALIFIED TUTOR AND BRAMBLE #1: THE POWER OF ONLINE TUTORING

Bramble are a force to be reckoned with.

With over half a million hours of online tutoring completed on Bramble by some of the world's leading tutoring organisations, Bramble possesses the scale and expertise to revolutionise online tutoring forever.

Every single session is recorded and then made available for both student and tutor, and with AI-driven transcription of every piece of content covered and the Smart Search tool, nothing is missed and everything can be reviewed for revision, for safety and for quality assurance and self-assessment.

And if that wasn't enough, Bramble conducted the UK's largest ever online tutoring survey this summer - the insights are fascinating and reveal an unexpected attitude amongst tutors and students.

This new podcast series will bring together Qualified Tutor, providers of high-quality tutor training, and Bramble, the leaders in online tutoring, to pull together two of the most important aspects in tutoring at this time. Tutors and agencies across the board are beginning to realise that training is an essential piece in the puzzle, and no tutor can do their job effectively in this climate without the skills in and knowledge of the online learning environment.

HIGH CHALLENGE, LOW THREAT: HOW TUTORS & TEACHERS CAN MAXIMISE STUDENTS’ LEARNING - AN INTERVIEW WITH MARY MYATT

Mary Myatt has changed the way we think about schools and our approach to developing children, both academically and cognitively.

Mary has produced an extraordinary range and wealth of literature on the subject, and it informs and inspires us in every part of the QT course and our vision for how to improve students' ambitions and success. 

The QT Podcast itself is changing the way tutors level up their service, hosting interviews and roundtables with many of the sector's leading voices - this is tutor training while pottering around your kitchen or going out for a jog...

• To discover more about Mary's commitment to removing 'redundant principles' in schools, do check out her new book, Back on Track: Fewer things, greater depth.

• To explore Mary's research on how we can refine the school curriculum, check out her book: The Curriculum: Gallimaufry to coherence.

• For further discussion on the 'how' and, importantly, the 'why' of what we do, and how it can inspire change, Mary has a book for that too: Hopeful Schools.

“If I were to wave a magic wand, I would ensure that every professional involved in children’s learning had access to the high-quality evidence from the cognitive science that really makes a difference”

IN CONVERSATION WITH ... QUALIFIED TUTOR TIER 1 GRADUATES #5

This course is powered by the participants.

The richness and depth of discussion that we see week after week, breakout after breakout, is such a powerful force for us tutors. It's not often that we get to witness, let alone be part of, a group of such motivated and enthusiastic tutors gathered in one place, sharing knowledge and understanding from their experience.

We know that the Qualified Tutor Community provides the 250-strong group with daily support, advice and a space to meet and connect with other tutors, but it's never more rewarding than hearing it from the tutors themselves.

The most recently graduated QTs who joined us in this cohort were:

Aatteeqa Karim
Ashley Hsu
Charlotte Eastwood
Edward Cooper
Irene Bird
Leona Potter
Manasvini Moni
Nada Baessa
Pavlina Kruzikova
Riani Kenyon
Robert Ward
Sophie Mosselmans
Victoria Campbell

INTERVIEW WITH DAME ALISON PEACOCK, CEO OF THE CHARTERED COLLEGE OF TEACHING

Our growing relationship with The Chartered College of Teaching takes its next steps here, as the QT team chats to Dame Alison Peacock about how experience of working with tutors and how Learning without Limits is really at the core of what teachers and tutors alike should be aspiring towards.

Dame Alison has over 30 years of experience in the field and joins QT here at a time when tutoring is right on the cusp of taking a central role in the education system.

We support and inspire a large number of motivated tutors and this conversation represents a new level of expertise and advice that we are both extremely proud of and grateful for.

“I would like all schools to be places where there’s no limit on what you can achieve”

SMALL GROUP TUITION, AN EXPERT Q&A SESSION WITH QUALIFIED TUTOR

No two episodes are the same.

Moving away from our interview- and roundtable-style episodes, this week, we chat to our inspiring Community members and tutoring friends we've met along the way who discuss with us several key topics currently most prevalent in the field of tutoring.

How do we maintain engagement over the online learning space? Many of us have watched slick how-to videos or read eloquent blog articles on the matter, but there's no substitute for collaborative learning and live discussion. In this Q&A session, we pose our participants some (admittedly) tricky questions and respond in-depth to subsequent queries and questions.

Qualified Tutor has always been a hive of topical discussion, placing itself at the cutting edge of pedagogical research and the rapidly-evolving nature of tutoring in this country, and beyond. 

If you want to have your voice heard and participate in engaging discussion while meeting other, like-minded tutors, visit www.qualifiedtutorcommunity.org and join the conversation today.

PS. Catch the welcome video by Dame Alison Peacock, CEO of The Chartered College of Teaching, which introduces the College’s relationship with Qualified Tutor.