A Look at the Competition
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- Category: Tutoring
- Published: Monday, 16 March 2015 11:19
- Written by Brian Jaeger
- Hits: 3963
I learned in business classes that competition is good. I guess we'll have to see what the competition thinks of Educabana, but we certainly can see why it is good. Let's take a look at some of the other tutoring centers in the area in order to help you decide where your money belongs. We not only welcome other businesses in the marketplace, we invite them to sign up so that you can compare what they offer right here on Educabana. We also encourage their tutors to sign up with us so that they can make more money.
School Systems
Educabana is a believer in free public education. While it seems that the trend may be to include private schools in the scenario, the result is that Americans get to send their kids to school. We think that's great. However, budgets are not what they used to be. Even with efficiencies and competition schools are losing the battle to remain fully-funded. This means cutting experienced teachers and even programs. There's often a mismatch with what you want as a parent or student and what the schools can provide. For example, while you might have laptops for every student, you may not have teachers who want to use them in the classroom. Besides, maybe only 5% of the class even likes learning that way.
If the loss or mismatch of services at a traditional school leave you frustrated, sign up for Educabana.
As a teacher, you know life isn't always easy in the classroom. You also know that an individual plan for every single student is really impossible. That doesn't make you a bad teacher. In fact, you're probably so good at what you do that parents and students would love to get some of the one-on-one time your school district cannot allow for in the classroom. You can also sing up for Educabana as a teacher. Teaching students individually can be more rewarding than trying to get 30 kids to listen to you, and Educabana does not force you to take on more students. Tutor one a semester or one every two years. And if you don't like the kid or parent's attitude, you aren't under any contract to continue to provide services. That would be nice in the classroom.
Learning Centers
Educabana has looked into some of the learning centers. One you might have heard of is Sylvan, but there are others, and local school districts will often house something similar. In fact, you might need to use a "learning center" as a babysitting service after school. The model for learning centers seems to be a smaller number of kids than in a traditional classroom with one teacher, likely working on what is relevant to most of the kids in the group. For example, let's say the teacher is focusing on ACT test skills, and she has five students. Three students need the most help in grammar, one in reading, and one in math. She's an English teacher by trade. You do the math, because that tutor's not planning on it. Educabana lets you choose the teacher you want for the price you agree on. It's not rocket science or calculus, but it's likely often more effective than a learning center.
As a teacher, would you really want to get stuck with several students when you could get paid the same and only have to deal with one? Yes, learning centers are easy compared to being a classroom teacher, and you probably are given all the resources you need, but if you know how to teach something, you probably don't need all their resources. Besides, maybe another educator on this website would be willing to share.
Tutor Mills
There are other companies that try to match tutors to students. One that caught our interest was Tutor Doctor. It seemed like a good franchise to look into. The problem is that it's a system, and one that is dependent on a hard sell for extended tutoring packages. Nobody at Educabana is proficient at making a hard sell. And we're not taking about half of the agreed price for ourselves. What we liked about some of these tutor talent agencies is that they focus on sending the tutors to student homes. Educabana thinks the world is even bigger than that, though. Meet at the student's house, teacher's house, or some other place. I met one student at a local restaurant and another in the student union. There is not a perfect place to meet a tutor, so don't let the companies that have their systems set up a certain way convince you there is.
As a tutor, would you want to give half of what has been negotiated for your services back to the swarthy salesman and shady parent company? At Educabana, we absolutely refuse to hire swarthy salesmen. And we're not shady as a company. After the signup fee, do you know what percentage we take? 0%. The rest is yours.
Classifieds
Whether you're mildly afraid of Craigslist or very afraid, you should have some fear. It's such a wonderful idea that has turned into a lesson in why it's hard to trust other people. If Craigslist charged $5 a year, they'd lost a lot of customers, bust most the scammers would never had joined in the first place. More than likely, the tutoring ad you see on Craigslist is perfectly legitimate. More than likely, you don't have anything to worry about. Educabana is not even going to present the alternatives because you've imagined them yourself. The simple fact that someone has to present a credit card and a payment in order to join Educabana means that there is less potential for problems. The fact that it's a site advertised to teachers and students also helps. If you want rock-bottom, bare-bones tutoring, there is no better place than the online classifieds. Educabana gives you professionals.
As a teacher, do you want to advertise, update, renew, all along fielding the obligatory questions like, "Are you still offering this service?" Remember, a single one-hour tutoring session will pay for a $10 yearly membership. Educabana is a lot less to deal with than an online ad or an employer. Students and parents pay to see your profile and to be allowed to contact you, and you choose if you respond. Craigslist is easy, but it looks cheap and generally unprofessional. Educabana retains the ease of use, but it also allows tutors to present themselves as professionals, not just another for sale ad.