Pedagogy at its core
Pedagogy at its core
Smarthinking: On-demand study support
Pearson
Pedagogy at its core
Pedagogy at its core
Our approach to online tutoring and writing services is respected by faculty, with Smarthinking tutors using a pedagogical method tailored to individual student needs to help, encourage and involve them in understanding the subject matter.
Our Smarthinking tutors
Our tutors are trained to support all learners by discerning student needs at the beginning of each synchronous session and then setting an individualised and appropriate course for each session. Tutors use targeted questions at the start of a session to determine the student's needs.
Smarthinking tutors do not edit or correct student work. Instead, they focus on expanding students’ understanding of good writing techniques – including grammar, structure and spelling – helping them to improve and develop the confidence to handle future assignments on their own. Tutors also ask for all workings out and thought processes when students ask for discipline-based support.
The pedagogical features
Instructional
Tutors are trained to educate students in effective writing principles; they explain and demonstrate writing concepts using exemplars, rather than simply highlighting or correcting them.
Dialogic
When supporting students live, tutors adopt a dialogic approach, asking students how they might add to and improve their work based upon the assignment criteria.
Tailored
Students submit their assignment criteria and can choose the specific areas of support they wish to receive help with.
Formative
Formative feedback encourages students to become more self-regulated learners, demonstrating the skills needed to be self-critical and reflective, which benefits learning beyond writing alone.
Focused
Our expert tutors can identify a wide range of higher-order issues, such as topic development and organisation, and lower order issues including grammar and syntax.
Prioritised
Tutors prioritise higher-order issues over multiple examples of lower-order issues, highlighting patterns of lower-order errors for students to address.
Empowering
The Smarthinking experience is a low-risk gateway to further support, empowering students with the confidence to seek out further feedback opportunities, including institutional support and guidance.
Appropriate
Tutors assist students in improving the quality of their argument and their research, ensuring that they accurately cite strong, clear claims, offer robust evidence, and use reliable and current sources relevant to the student's assignment and study level.