The difference between a teacher, coach and mentor.

Often when I’m called upon to explain the role of a tutor, I say that our main goal is to unlock whatever is standing in the way of a student achieving. In that respect, I see the job of a tutor as a combination of teacher, coach and mentor.

There are many roles in education, let's delve into each one and see which suits your skills and style of teaching the best.

After discussing this idea with a set of successful tutors, teachers, life coaches and psychologists, these seem to be fairly good descriptions of each:

What exactly does teaching mean?

Teaching generally describes the activity of providing one with the knowledge to perform a task, learn about a subject or speak a language etc. The main goal of instruction is to impart to a student the fundamental ideas and skills necessary to carry out a certain task.

Teaching will also take place in a setting where mistakes can be made by the student without any significant repercussions. This is in contrast to mentoring or coaching which is typically practised in the real world, a slip-up here could impact the student. We will touch on both of these mediums of learning later on!

A teacher transmits information and comprehension while typically adhering to a curriculum or lesson plan. Most frequently, they will work over a predetermined time period with a group of pupils (although it is possible to teach one-on-one).

Teachers in schools, driving instructors, and IT training are some examples.

The teacher will concentrate his or her communication on the ideas, crucial details, illustrations, and exercises that the pupil has to understand and master in order to apply in the actual world.

Teaching is the occupation of individuals who deliver instruction, particularly in primary, secondary, or tertiary institutions of higher learning. It is said to be successful when the student has reached their learning objectives and the goals that they had set out for themselves at the beginning of the sessions.

Storytelling can be extremely effective in helping students to understand a topic.

Taking a look at Coaching

Coaching takes place where things actually do, in the real world. Coaching takes place while performing! You might be most familiar with the term from professions such as a careers coach or a life coach.

These professions are designed to guide people through their life and career paths. They are consulted for their knowledge in the respective area and their results are based on the real-life application of the objectives that they set for their clients.

A coach will assist a person in achieving a certain objective, often quickly and over a predetermined amount of time. The coach might simply challenge the athlete to develop and come up with solutions on their own without having any prior expertise in that discipline. Although it can be done in groups as well, this activity is typically done one-on-one.

Sports coaches, life coaches, and personal trainers are a few examples.

The coach's competence must be based on years of experience applying fundamental ideas and crucial points in many contexts. When a practitioner begins using what they have learned, they will frequently run into unusual situations and will need to make modifications.

The practitioner's performance should be adjusted by the coach to reflect the current circumstances in order to increase effectiveness.

The coach will concentrate their communication on fundamental ideas, crucial details, diagnosing the circumstance, modifying their actions, performance, and lessons learnt. The profession has grown dramatically in its demand over recent years.

You can even try to teach intelligence to your students with metacognition.

What it means to be a Mentor

The influence, direction, or advice provided by a mentor is known as mentoring. A mentor is a person who instructs, supports, and counsels a less seasoned and often younger individual.

A mentor has an impact on a mentee's personal and professional development in an organizational environment. The individual and his or her road to fulfilment are the main subjects of mentoring. People will reevaluate their long-term objectives as they grow older and gain more experience.

The mentor's job is to work with the mentee to develop a vision for the future and a plan for getting there.

A mentor typically works one-on-one, and unlike the other two, their method is typically less formal and more natural. They impart their personal expertise in order to assist someone who is beginning a journey or experiencing difficulty on a path they have already travelled.

A mentor typically takes a longer view and adopts a more comprehensive perspective on a person. Corporate mentors, Obi-Wan Kenobi from Star Wars, and peer mentors at universities are a few examples.

Mentors are often consulted by professionals that are looking to get their foot in the door of a new industry and would like to find out more from somebody who has some skin in the game.

A mentor doesn't discuss ideas or important details. He or she encourages others to discuss their personal beliefs, find emotional equilibrium via individualism, and find meaning in life by imagining their ideal future selves.

Why are mentoring and coaching services on the rise?

Some could counter that tutoring is simply more widely known now today. True, however, there does appear to be a noticeable increase. It is hardly surprising that so many businesses are now providing coaching to their employees given the numerous studies showing that the return on investments for business coaching is six times the initial outlay (1.)

Teamwork, morale, and many other "soft" abilities improve as a result. (2.) 71% of the 500 largest American corporations that provide mentoring programs say that they are equally popular. (3.)

However, coaching and mentoring programs haven’t always been so popular and it is only recently that they are becoming widely accepted, especially as people are appreciating the importance of a more subtle model of human development.

As more adults receive coaching and mentoring, they may be wanting the same for their children and this is where tutoring comes in; because it helps children to improve academically whilst (when done well) very much preparing them for the challenges of life.

Enrol as a tutor with Superprof

Tutoring might be a viable career option for you provided that you have the time, and skills and that you teach a subject that you have determined needs to be covered.

Even if you operate a busy schedule, you can always fit some tutoring into your weekly timetable. It is extremely flexible so you can slot it right into your routine, however many classes you are able to take on.

Since you will be largely results-focused and looking to acquire an impressive portfolio in order to attract new students, you should look to improve your student’s learning experience wherever possible. You should test to determine what your pupil has retained, and build your new plans from this assessment.

Sometimes your task is to determine why a pupil isn't learning in class. They are the lone student in a class of 30 who doesn't seem to "get it," while the others all do. This kind of activity necessitates both coaching and mentoring.

Make sure to take a moment during the class to ensure that your students are keeping up with the pace that you are teaching. It is much more important that your students understand the material than if you were simply to cover all of the topics and confuse your students.

Superprof is the best place that you can go if you are looking to offer your services outside of the classroom. You will be exposed to an expansive pool of students looking to be taught a host of different skills, subjects and languages.

Create your profile and fill out all of the different topics that you are able to teach and the experience that you have in each.

Because it entails giving knowledge and wisdom to students, coaching them to realize their full potential, and sharing specific personal experiences with them so they can develop as people, tutoring is a mix of teaching, coaching, and mentoring.

Progress as an educator while teaching students new skills, it sounds like a win-win right? Sign up with Superprof and start tutoring as soon as today!

To further enhance your teaching practices and to stay up-to-date, check out our next article in the series about the top 10 educational blogs you should be reading.