Tutoring a first year cohort

Teaching first years is synonymous with large classes, students with diverse backgrounds and professional aspirations. The unifying element of the cohort, to a large extent, is considered to be the motivation that has brought them to the University. Therefore, for teaching to be successful, it has to maintain as well as enhance that motivation. In the case of Engineering Students, this need not be too difficult" the subject matter has only to be seen to be relevant to the future vocation of the aspiring professionals. However, irrespective of the discipline, the subject matter has to be intellectually challenging and delivered with conviction and passion. The more closely the above criteria are satisfied, the less likely it is that the students will prematurely abandon their studies and better will be their academic performance. This clearly puts the onus on the academic/s assigned to the task. The logistics demand partitioning the large cohort, often numbering several hundred students, into smaller units ideally around twenty students or preferably fewer. The smaller classes allow for the one-to-one interaction with the tutor such that, at this level, personal attention can be given to those needing it. While clearly benefiting the student, the tutor acquires first hand the response of students to the subject material delivered. The tutor also perceives students' understanding of it as well as their views on how effectively it was presented to them. Thus, tutorials present the opportunity for the essential feedback loop from the "coal face" to the lecturer such that the latter can respond in the optimum fashion. This note attempts to provide some generic reflections obtained from this author's exposure to several years of intensive tutoring in Engineering and Industrial Design Practice (EIDP) at UWS, and suggest how the results of the academic effort in this and similar cases, could be even better.