Clarification on my cancellation policy

posted by WyzAnt tutor: Katelyn M.

This blog post strays away from the typical subject of education, and into the "nitty-gritty" of the tutoring business. I wanted to clearly explain my cancellation policy for all my students, both current and future.

As of March 12, 2013, I have a 24-hour cancellation policy. This means that I require my students (or their parents/guardians/host family) to give me one day's notice when cancelling a previously scheduled lesson. The reason for this policy is to protect my time. When I schedule a lesson with a student, I set aside time specifically for them in my day. Before the lesson, I may spend time preparing supplementary materials and other aids, depending on the subject that I am tutoring. When a student cancels a lesson in less than 24 hours before our scheduled time, it wastes my time and disrupts my schedule, into which I have already budgeted my time to include commuting to that student's home.

If you cancel a lesson within 24 hours of our scheduled lesson, you will be charged for half of the time we would have met. For example, if the arrangement was for a 1.5 hour lesson, you will be charged for 45 minutes. Likewise, an hour lesson canceled would result in a 30 minute charge.

I will make rare exceptions on this policy for medical and/or family emergencies.

As always, please feel free to ask me any questions. I look forward to working with you!

Katelyn

Speed does not equal sucess

posted by WyzAnt tutor: Katelyn M.

Recently, as I've been working with students on reading, I noticed something interesting. Students tend to want to read the material quickly, whether or not the word is being read correctly.This presents in two different ways that I have noticed so far: If it is a new word, the letters and syllables might get read out of order. If it is a root word, verb or noun, they are already familiar with, the prefixes or suffixes may be read incorrectly.

This made me wonder where the drive for speed was coming from. Was it a desire to sound natural? Was it the students' way of getting through the daunting task as quickly as possible? Whatever the reason, it was not helping the students become better readers or spellers. Spellers?! How does that apply to reading, you may ask? My answer is this: For visual learners, reading is a big part of spelling. When they see words, repeatedly, they can recall the images later on when they are trying to spell them. Therefore, when students are rushing through passages or word lists, with a fair amount of inaccuracy, they are not taking clear "mind pictures" of those words. Keeping a moderate pace will hopefully help to improve reading accuracy, and their ability to recall spelling.

No matter the reason students have for rushing from word to word, slowing down is the best way to read. Encourage language learners to take their time and sound words out. Remind them they are not in a race! (This is not to say they should read as sluggishly as possible, either!) The goal of reading is not to finish as quickly or delayed as possible, but to read with as much accuracy as possible!

And lastly, do encourage reading! Reading is a fantastic way to broaden vocabulary and expand one's language and cultural repertoire!

*Hint* When choosing a book to read for yourself, or helping another English Language Learner to choose a book, consider the following: Is the book on the appropriate language level? Does the topic interest or relate to the reader? Both of these factors will contribute to the success or failure of a student's reading progress. If the level is too high or too low, they will feel frustrated or bored, respectively. While all subjects are encouraged for students to explore, if a student is more resistant to reading than others, try finding a book on a topic about which they are highly interested or passionate. Hope this information is useful!

Happy Reading!

Katelyn M.'s Blog at WyzAnt.com

Clarification on my cancellation policy

Speed does not equal sucess