What is a reasonable cost for A-Level tutors?

[PoloMum]

I have just been quoted £160/hour for an online tutor for A Level Economics. That seems horrendously high to me. I was expecting something in the region of £60-80 per hour.

What is a reasonable hourly rate for a qualified (ex-teacher) tutor in other MNers experience?

I take your point @BurnoutBee and I’m not a fan of tutoring, but in that particular subject the teacher was not covering the curriculum, they were getting no guidance on exam technique etc. So I reluctantly looked for a tutor.

£65-75 pph.

Some A level teachers are off on long term sick with schools providing very little subject specialist cover.

I don’t agree actually. Firstly, the tutoring might just be for a short while to clarify some concepts.

Also a student sometimes has a subject they are struggling with, while their others are spot on, but they need the B in the tricky subject for their uni offer. I have certainly worked with YP in both those categories.

@stripesandspotsanddots

Hope it works out.

@clary

There is also a group of parents who over rely on tutoring for A-Levels and the YP struggles during their degree. Depends on the long game I guess, some YP use the A-Levels for apprenticeship entry. It’s very expensive though. If some teachers are off on long term sick it’s a risk to kids who’s parents can’t afford it. Food for thought.

I agree there can be an issue with over reliance on tutoring.

And yes, if teaching at sixth form is not adequate then that’s obviously not OK.

I meant to say also I have worked with lots of HE YP for A level as well, which is another good reason to use a tutor.

I was an A level tutor earlier on in life, even for kids in private schools who you’d think were already getting the best.
A few I got were just plain lazy.
But most worked really hard and got something from the sessions. I never ever over-provided help but sometimes it helped them to go through their own thoughts, look at past papers and I’d often discuss current issues with them as it was Economics.
As I was teaching it all day, it could have got a bit boring but it was really a fantastic experience.
Having just that hour a week really helped and gave the student a chance to talk, and to
listen, and develop their skills.

My friends daughter has a tutor for Economics and pays £85 per hour. We paid £80 per hour for a Biology tutor a couple of years ago and currently pay £90 an hour for a Chemistry tutor. A level tutors who are teachers/examiners are expensive.

You may get a uni student for less. My son is doing a degree and has done A level Maths tutoring for £40 an hour and GCSE for £20 an hour.

I am stunned by some of these prices. £60 for an hour!

I am unusual as I charge £40 an hour for Maths - same rate independent of level. I am a full time teacher, I know the curriculum and do face-to-face. I could charge £60 easily. The problem is getting a qualified teacher who knows the spec - that is why it is so difficult & so lucrative. A university student is useless for A-level if you want improvement, you need someone who knows the detail of the exam & how it is marked. I haven’t charged more for two/three years as I’m cutting down. Also some tutors do it as their main income & have to charge more.

It’s not £60 for an hour though. It’s more like £60 for two hours - prepping the lesson, setting and marking HW and mocks, supplying useful resources…

I have an A level lesson of 30 mins to prep for and it will take me at least another 30 mins.

We tried a university student for GCSE and it just didn’t help so we switched to an experienced teacher and it helped tremendously. Like anything in life you get what you pay for and most excellent tutors will know their worth and charge accordingly. No way I’m saving money at the expense of my daughters A levels.

A teacher friend of mine has offered to tutor my son for free - bless his little altruistic socks!

All he wants in return is dinner.

Got 3A* at A level without a tutor because resources are freely available online - if you pay anymore than 30 quid an hr is too much imo

I charge 20 and feel its good value

A uni student charged £25/hour for maths. A retired teacher charged £35/hour but that was for GCSE. £160 sounds extortionate.

A university student is a student.

A teacher is a teacher. They will know their subject inside out. They should have a post graduate teaching qualification. They know about learning styles. They should know the assessment criteria and how to give individual feedback and targets for improvement.

Less than a plumber. A gardener charges £50 an hour. The last time I had my car serviced it was £400

We pay a qualified teacher £40/h. Standard sround here.

160 is a joke, but so is £35!

like anything in life you get what you pay for. And I know my kids wouldn’t have done well with out our tutor and she’s worth everyone y. It’s also about someone children connect with, my son hates learning until we found our tutor. She inspires him and showed him that not all tutors are ‘geeky’ and can be cool. It changed everything around

At the same time, there are students who know a subject better than some teachers (sad truth) and would score higher in exams

Not to say this is the case for most teachers - so a student with good personal skills, who achieved an A* and is good at teaching can still be enough to score top grades

There is no way of knowing if a student is good at teaching.
It probably is a sad truth that some teachers don't know their subject. I have met quite a few that don't, or can't be bothered.

But to educate means to draw out, not to put in. It's not all about subject knowledge, it's about getting the best from a student, identifying their weaknesses.

Anyone on here who has done a pgce knows that it's bloody hard, it's intense, it is soul destroying. You learn how to plan a lesson, how to differentiate, how to meet learning needs, different learning styles, socratic questioning, to meet assessment objectives, how to identify progress by the end of the lesson. Student teachers have regular observations throughout their training. The feedback can be brutal.

Once the pgce is completed, teachers have an NQT year. More observations, more feedback, more training. Continual CPD, continual updates from the exam board. It takes 5 years before a teacher is really experienced in the job. By which time, they are either looking for promotion or looking to leave.

The best tutors will not only have plenty of experience, they will also have been examiners and will have worked closely with the exam board. That is another hard grind.

Yeah I agree, i definitely was not saying student is better than teacher

It is a case by case basis for sure, not everyone with good subject knowledge is a good teacher for example, that itself is a skill as you pointed out. Getting the best from a student isnt the same as just shouting information at them.

I did have a question since you seem knowledgable. Once a teacher is qualified say for 6 or 7 yrs do they still get examined based on their subject knowledge too?

Of course audits are good at seeing their teaching style ans you can look at their students results (although tbh I know poor results arent automatically teachers fault)

But do teachers have to take A level exams for example - I think that would be a good way to make sure their knowledge stays up to par haha but maybe I am being harsh lol

Edit: If they did this I would advocate for the teachers who perform better to get a bonus haha

Thanks for the information I did not know this

Knowing a subject well does not make a good teacher. Teaching is a skill; teachers are professionals. But of course, anyone can teach! It’s a bit like saying I know the anatomy of the mouth and brush my teeth twice a day therefore I can be a dentist.
It’s an old thread but the original question is still valid. £160 ph is high but if there’s a shortage of economics teachers then I guess they can charge that. Supply and demand.

True that is business, supply and demand.

Someone can pay £20 and get an A*

They can pay £100 and get an A*

If people are paying then prices will be high and thats fine. People can charge what they want. Just like to see it accessible and not too expensive because so many kids won't be able to afford it sadly. I never price more than 20 quid but thats my opinion ofc.

We paid £89 for A level tutoring online. Both tutors were exam board specific, taught the subject and also marked papers.