I love my Personal Tutor campaign winners (June 25, 2008)

From Case Studies Wiki

The post is just replicated here to catch all the words for archive purposes, to read the post in its original form and see the links, photos, videos etc., go here:http://www.good.group.shef.ac.uk/blog/?p=289

The winners of the “I love my Personal Tutor” campaign (an initiative from the Student Union Education Committee) were announced today. Students were asked to nominate Personal Tutors who they felt had gone above and beyond the “call of duty”. And nominate they did. Outgoing Education Officer Emily Savage mentioned that 124 Personal Tutors had been nominated. Impressive.

Out of this number 4 were chosen to receive beautiful prizes (as far as I can tell this included special edition mugs and lilac envelopes, the contents of which are unbeknownst to me, you’ll have to ask one of the winners to find out what they contained).

The winners were:

1st

Stephen Walker, Architecture

2nd

Carl Smythe, Biomedical Science

Joint 3rd

Mike Dietrich, Economics

Felix Ng, Geography

It was a very enjoyable event. With the students who nominated their Tutors there as well. Paul White pointed out that, looking back on their studies, many former students often comment that it was their Personal Tutors that had the greatest impact on them.

I spoke with Mike Dietrich about what he saw as being important in tutoring. He said listening to students was obviously key and giving them time. However, he said that giving them unlimited time was not essential. He asks that students book appointments with him and that they take his time as seriously as he takes them.

After the mug presentation ceremony, I spoke/laughed with Stephen Walker and the student who nominated him, Cathrine Allison. What I noticed about their interactions was that they laughed a lot together and he treated her like an individual. This would seem key to a successful Personal Tutor relationship. She really seemed to value how Stephen had helped her as a Personal Tutor. Students respect people who respect them. Whether the style a tutor does this is through humour or a more business-like approach is not important I think. It is the valuing of the students’ needs and responding to them not just as “students” but as human beings…that is the sense I got from the things people were saying at the event.

I’m on the run today, going to the LTEA Conference (Learning Through Enquiry Alliance) hosted here at the University by CILASS. So will upload the fantastic photos I have hopefully early next week.

Nadine Wills, LeTS