The Tutor Next Door, 8500 Miles Away!

It's 3am.  You've got a test in the morning.  Red Bull can only take you so far.  And you're beginning to panic.  What do you do? 

If the trend lines are followed, you and your tutor get together for a little tete-a-tete.

But instead of the old 9-to-5 model where you had to wait for a F2F meeting, the tutor is now in India, 8500 miles away, and he/she is just point-n-click-n-talk away. 

Thousands of U.S. students . . . are increasingly relying on overseas tutors to boost their grades and SAT scores. The tutors, who communicate with students over the Internet, are inexpensive and available around the clock, making education the newest industry to be outsourced to other countries.

And you won't even know the difference! 

But one has to wonder in a day and age where this is fast becoming the norm, how are schools (K-12 and post-secondary) beginning to feel when their students are more often turning to paid tutors via the internet rather than their own teachers and professors?

No need to worry?  Right?

I'll be in Chicago this June speaking to an audience of university leaders (and their school design partners)...and I can tell you that one of the very real elephants-in-the-back-of-the-room that I'll be challenging the audience to think about is the exact moment in time that they begin to realize that their traditional model of education (and going-to-school) became an 'option' rather than the norm.

Comments

[Aaron Nelson]

Christian,

I have often daydreamed about giving English classes over the net. Getting stuck in Mexico City's traffic can do that to ya.

Like you, I'm just getting into technology like Skype - and I have to ask myself the same question as you: when will the switch take place? When will the classroom be in our living room with students on the other side of the world?

Last night I had an hour long conversation with my mom. She lives in Canada. We used skype. Felt like we were in the same room.

The technology for net based classes is here. I just wonder if students outside the US, Canada, UK etc, are too.

There seems to be a bit of a technology lag here in Mexico. Broadband is here, and is finally starting to become affordable. (That's why I have it now.) But for some reason, I still wonder if there's a market for net based classes here. I would really love to dive in there, for a variety of reasons.

Thanks for the great post - and I'll be sending you an reply to your last email today.

Thanks for the great post.

Aaron in Mexico

[Charlie]

Asymmetrical education is here, and no one can hold it back.What the AFT fails to understand is a fundamental shift in power. John Seal Brown, Director of the Palo Alto Research Center notes that we have seen the transformation in business from conglomeration to demassification. According to Brown, “Power in the new economy is shifting to the smallest possible unit.” Power, in this case, resides with the kid on the computer at 3am with her tutor in India not with the AFT. Sorry guys, reform or go the way of the Saber Tooth Tiger. You are right, the traditional model is an option. I have lots more to say on this issue at www.whilecharliesleeps.blogspot.com

[alex]

Parents and students should take note. This is not about "outsourcing" your child's education--this is about carefully seeking an engaged, professional tutor who is going to provide the best help possible. If you are looking for tutors that are closer to the U.S. experience, check out http://www.ziizoo.com. There are tons of tutors online from schools like Penn, Stanford and Harvard and a bunch of them even tutor for free.