Oftentimes, people get confused when they hear there’s a difference between a tutor and a teacher. Although the two professions seem synonymous, there is a wide range of differences between the two.

Before we dive into the differences between a teacher and a tutor, understand that both professions are on the same mission: to educate a child and help them learn and achieve academic growth.

So, how are they different?

In a nutshell, when it comes to the tutor, their primary role is to pay attention to the students individually when a teacher is not granted the same opportunity. The teacher, on the contrary, addresses a group of students in a traditional classroom setting where giving individual attention to each student may not be possible.

However, these are not the only differences between tutoring and teaching. Several factors, like curriculum, assessments, schedule, learning environment, and more, play a role. Let’s take a detailed look into the differences.

Curriculum

Since schools normally follow a government-assigned curriculum, a teacher is restricted to follow the same and limit their teaching to the demands of the curriculum. But the tutor is under no such limitation. They have the option of understanding their student’s requirements and customizing their classes to suit the student’s learning style and pace.

Assessments

In a classroom full of diverse students, teachers might find it difficult to provide attention to a single student and assess their level in a detailed manner. This is certainly not the case with a tutor. Because tutors teach individuals or small groups of students, they are able to keep a keen eye on them and conduct assessments to help them improve.

Schedule

A teacher’s schedule is obviously limited to school hours. It is a very rare scenario for a teacher to be available for subject discussions outside of school. Tutors, on the other hand, have a flexible schedule. They are available when a student needs their assistance and also take the time to adjust their schedules to fit their student’s lifestyle.

Student’s Choice

The title speaks for itself. A student is not allowed a choice of teacher in a traditional classroom, whereas with a tutor, the student is at liberty to be outright about what kind of tutor they prefer.

Learning Environment

It’s almost impossible for a teacher to make their classroom a distraction-free zone. The smallest activities can put a student out of focus. The same, fortunately, cannot be said for a tutor. It’s a tutor’s job to design a focused and dedicated learning environment. This helps the tutor grasp their student’s state of mind during the class and helps the student study more easily.

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