Nuts And Bolts of Online Tutoring

Gwen Braun and Leanne FrostAcademic Support Center

Tim TirrellDirector of eLearning

Montana State University Billings

4-year university located in Billings, MT

2-year College of Technology campus Approximately 4,800 students One of four Montana State University

campuses

Recruits, trains and manages staff, including:

1 director & 1 assistant director, who also teach and tutor

An additional 5 FT and 15 PT instructors, who also tutor

45 tutors Two part-time administrative

assistants

Equips, manages and staffs a main campus Learning Lab with:

40 computers 14 tutoring stations

Serves nearly 600 students per day

Equips, manages and staffs a COT Learning Lab with:

14 computers 5 tutoring stations

Serves nearly 125 students per day

•75% of incoming freshman are developmental•89% are commuter students•Average age of student is 24•35% of students are 25 or older

Retention data on our 2007-2008 first-year to second-year students show:

•Students taking a combination of online and on-campus classes are the most successful.

•Students taking only online classes are the least successful.

Increase access for the online students

Expand hours for all students Increase access to high demand

areas with low tutor availability Keep up with the advancing use

of technology in education Meet goals set by administration

Implementation Time Schedule Set an approximate start date Obtain approvals Research options available Purchase software and equipment Hire and train personnel Publicize services

Subjects being tutored What are the needs of the subject areas based on the

needs of the students? Synchronous or Asynchronous or both? What are your resources – enough staff?

Outsourcing/In-house A 2nd party virtual learning assistance center? A regional consortium? In-house online tutoring center?

Access to ALL Learners Online/On campus Traditional/Non-traditional Multiple learning styles ADA accessible

Technology Available/Needed Laptop Desktop Tablets Headphones Microphones Software Tutorials PowerPoint slides Text/picture/word files

Operational Expenses Software Hardware Salaries Training

Funding Departmentally funded Grant funded

Training Scheduling (hours/availability)

What are the hours? Who is trained and available to tutor?

Gaining buy-in/support across campus Articles in the campus publications Notices from instructors in the online courses A link on the campus webpage home page A link on the student services webpage Demonstrations to faculty Workshops for students A “Grand Opening”!

Oversight (administration--who is responsible for what?) Purchasing Training Scheduling Monitoring Troubleshooting Equipment Security

Tracking Saving sessions Creating log sheets

Money Student comfort levels Limited student access to technology Oversight Lack of tutor training Territoriality Faculty hesitancy Fear of the unknown Technophobia Lack of awareness of services/program

All students should have access to support services.

Online tutoring is a new way of communicating with students at a distance.

Not everyone should use or work in online tutoring. Training goes a long way – both for tutors and students.

Students take an active role in the tutoring session.

Verification of tutor knowledge is possible. Flexibility and the ability to adapt are necessary. Buy-in from across campus helps ensure success.

Plan ahead, but be willing to adapt. Take the time to “play” with hardware

and programs before making a final decision.

Work with disability services to ensure access for all!

Early decisions made in concert with all stakeholders -- faculty, administrators, students, and tutors -- increase the potential for a successful program.

Respond to tutor and student needs. Provide plenty of training. Assess and adapt.

Tim Tirrell, Director of eLearning [email protected](406) 247-5776

Gwen Braun, Director of Academic Support Services

[email protected](406) 657-1714

Leanne Frost, Assistant Director of Academic Support Services

[email protected](406) 247-3022