Hey AN!
I'm thinking about doing some tutoring some people this year in methods, specialist and chemistry, but I've never done this before so I've got a few questions:
Hey Willba! My thoughts below.
1. How long should my lessons go for/how many times a week?
Depends! What's your availability like? How many students do you forecast having/want to have? I'd say that an hour per lesson is a good place to start. My longest was three hours (across two subjects and two students, but way too long). They usually went for 45-90 minutes depending on the student.
2. How much is an ordinary rate for a first-time tutor to charge?
Hmm. I'd estimate $25.00 - $30.00 for a first-time tutor (on the assumption this is per hour, for individual tutoring - less if a group). Rates can get really high for private tutoring, but the rates above = great money for what it is. Prices might be higher in Sydney. If you want a firmer understanding of the market rate etc., I'd recommend surfing through some tuition listing websites to see what other people are doing.
3. I was thinking of class sizes of about 4-6. How's this sound?
Perfect, on the assumption you have the demand, and that's what you want to do. For private tutoring, I've only ever tutored individuals or groups of two, but it's up to you. My personal view is that you'd get greater penetration into the market tutoring individually, but that's only based on gut feeling.
4. Should i do general tutoring where people can ask me about help with any subject or should each lesson be a specific subject?
What would you prefer? You're the tutor; you can dictate to a degree. For some of my students, I never prepared a single thing - I just went along and helped with whatever they were working on at the time. For others, I had carefully prepared lessons. I'd imagine that if you're tutoring a group of 4-6, having lessons is probably a good idea - particularly at the start. You can canvass from there what the dynamics are like, but you don't want to go into your first few sessions with nothing planned and be met with silence.
5. Is it worth doing a teaching course or should I just go for it?
For private tutoring like this? Nope! I think very, very few comparable tutors would have any formal education qualifications. Just make sure you have a valid
Working With Children Check, which is required by law.
Thanks in advance!!
Good luck! Don't be disheartened if you struggle to get traction with students initially - there are lots of tutors around, but I'm sure you'll make a positive impact.
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