Difference Between Tutor and Teacher

Main Difference -Tutor vs Teacher

Both teachers and tutors help students to acquire knowledge. However, the roles of tutors and teachers have many differences. Teachers focus on teaching or instructing whereas tutors give additional help for students to learn what they find difficult. The main difference between tutor and teacher is that teachers teach a whole class whereas tutors teach individual students.

Who is a Tutor

A tutor is a private teacher, particularly a person who teaches a single student or a small group of students. When a student is struggling with a particular subject, a tutor is hired to help him or her to grasp that subject easily. Since a tutor teaches a single student or a small group of students at one time, he can tailor the lesson to student’s learning abilities and can use various methods and techniques to help the student to grasp the concepts. They can also pay attention to individual students, unlike teachers.

Although tutors are seen as informal sources of education, they provide additional or special help to students to succeed in their formal education. It is also important to note that a tutor doesn’t have to have educational qualifications of a teacher. Even a student can tutor another student. For example, an undergraduate student may take a tutor to students at high school. There are no set educational qualifications for the job of a tutor.

It is also important to note that the term tutor may have another meaning in universities. In universities, a tutor can refer to a lecturer who works with a single student or a small group of students. He or she helps the students in academics and act as a mentor. Some universities also have a system where senior students who are knowledgeable in a particular subject act as tutors to junior students.

Who is a Teacher

A teacher is a person who teaches children in school. Teachers usually work in primary and secondary schools or colleges. A teacher usually teaches a larger number of students than a tutor. In some countries, there can be up to forty students in a classroom. Therefore, it is quite possible that he or she may not be able to pay attention to each and every student.

Teaching basically deals with imparting knowledge to students. But a teacher has many duties and responsibilities apart from teaching. A teacher’s duties and responsibilities also involve facilitating learning, monitoring and evaluating the students, and guiding them on the right path.

To become a teacher, one needs experience and educational qualifications. An educational certification or a bachelor’s degree in the relevant field is usually the accepted educational qualification to become a teacher.