[Vocabulary] tutor - definition

Maria Carolina Morais · Jun 9, 2013

Hi guys!

If a person is a tutor, that means:

1 - It's just another word for teacher.
2 - He teaches private lessons.
3 – He's a professor in college

Thanks in advance!

MikeNewYork · Jun 9, 2013

Maria Carolina Morais said:
Hi guys!

If a person is a tutor, that means:

1 - It's just another word for teacher.
2 - He teaches private lessons.
3 – He's a professor in college

Thanks in advance!

In American English, it would normally be #2. In some university systems, a tutor is an instructor with a rank less than a professor.

emsr2d2 · Jun 9, 2013

When I was at school, tutors were the people who came in to give classes but who didn't have a teaching qualification. Many of them were not employed full-time by the school but were paid per lesson. For example, when I was studying for 'A' Level French, we had a French teacher who took us for grammar, literature etc, but a spoken French tutor who helped us prepare for our oral exam. He was a young French guy who happened to be living in the UK and was employed (as far as I know) just for two years to tutor our 'A' Level group. He was only about 20 and didn't speak much English so he certainly didn't have an English teaching qualification.

5jj · Jun 9, 2013

At my university, tutors were the dons (lecturers) who gave us tutorials, one-to-one sessions in which they tore to shreds essays we had written. Moral tutors were the dons in college who were supposed to be responsible for our general welfare.

As a teacher in secondary schools in England, I was a subject teacher and form tutor. In the latter role, I was responsible for the overall supervision of a form/class of about thirty pupils.

I also occasionally did some private tutoring - one-to-one lessons at my home for children who were falling behind at school.

So, 'tutor' has a fairly wide range of meanings.

MikeNewYork · Jun 9, 2013

emsr2d2 said:
When I was at school, tutors were the people who came in to give classes but who didn't have a teaching qualification. Many of them were not employed full-time by the school but were paid per lesson. For example, when I was studying for 'A' Level French, we had a French teacher who took us for grammar, literature etc, but a spoken French tutor who helped us prepare for our oral exam. He was a young French guy who happened to be living in the UK and was employed (as far as I know) just for two years to tutor our 'A' Level group. He was only about 20 and didn't speak much English so he certainly didn't have an English teaching qualification.

When I was in high school, we had a special tutor come in to teach part of our geometry course. He was of Indian decent and his English was marginal. He pronounced geometrically as "gee ahm trick uh lee". We got rid of him quickly.

hetzer · Jun 10, 2013

5jj said:
As a teacher in secondary schools in England, I was a subject teacher and form tutor. In the latter role, I was responsible for the overall supervision of a form/class of about thirty pupils.

Sorry to put my nose in, but in this case, a form tutor is like a homeroom teacher, isn't it?

5jj · Jun 10, 2013

hetzer said:
Sorry to put my nose in,

There is no need to apologise. All reasonable questions and opinions are welcome.

but in this case, a form tutor is like a homeroom teacher, isn't it?

Yes. the former is British, the latter American.

Maria Carolina Morais · Jun 10, 2013

Thanks everybody! This expression comes from an American writer, so I guess I'll stick to homeroom teacher...

Rover_KE · Jun 11, 2013

Maria Carolina Morais said:
Thanks everybody! This expression comes from an American writer, so I guess I'll stick to homeroom teacher...

It's not that simple, Maria.

Without further context, the tutor might be a homeroom teacher, or any of the three alternatives you quoted in your original post.

Rover

[Vocabulary] tutor - definition

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