Online Tutoring Jobs - Playing Games

By Author: Roman Chertres
Total Articles: 57
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In e-learning and online tutoring jobs, the challenge for tutors and teachers is to keep learners interested and engaged in the learning process. This is especially important when teaching online, because building the relationship that fosters the learning process is harder to do over the internet than in person.

The big plus of computer-based learning is the potential for building games into your teaching and online tutoring jobs. Though educational games that make people want to play them are obviously a good thing, there are still a number of things that you will need to consider.

Using educational games, or ‘edutainment', as it is also known, has its controversial side. It's all very well to promote the idea that learning can be fun, but there's more to it. Hard work, that isn't necessarily fun, is also an essential part of learning. There's still some truth in the saying ‘No pain, no gain'.

Just because something is in the form of a game doesn't necessarily mean it's educationally effective. Sometimes people can get caught up in the competitive element of a game (getting to the next level, ...
... for example) at the expense of really thinking about and internalizing the lessons. And some video games do this more effectively than others.

Finally, interacting with a computer in an educational video game is never the same as interacting with a proper teacher or tutor. You should always be at the center in your online tutoring jobs. Educational games are accessories, not a replacement for your special touch.

You'll find plenty of educational games on the internet that you can use in your online tutoring jobs. Make sure you have a go at them yourself and critically examine what they are teaching, and how. Don't get distracted by high-tech bells and whistles, or great graphics.

Studies show that if your goal is to keep learners' interest the key word is variety. Educational games can be a great component of a varied teaching or tutoring program. Make sure you don't rely on them too heavily. It's a good idea to assess what and how much your students are learning from educational games, perhaps by setting them quizzes of your own making.

Though we may have a clichéd notion of all kids being hooked on computer games, this isn't always true. Some learners will benefit more from working through materials in other ways. Alternatively, there are kids out there who spend far too much time playing video games already. You don't necessarily want to feed that obsession. Using educational games in your online tutoring jobs always needs to be a judgement call based on your understanding of individual learners' needs.

In the same vein, remember too that educational games aren't just for kids! If you're dealing with adult learners, you may be able to find interactive puzzles and games suitable for them too. Even adults benefit from a bit of play in their learning programme. Play, in this context, can be about applying what people have learned, rather than just having fun.

Using educational games in your online tutoring jobs is about making the most of the online medium and digital technology. As long as you appreciate the pros and cons, educational games are well worth incorporating into your online tutoring jobs.

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