Online Tutoring vs. Distance Learning

By Eric Steckel | October 19, 2020

Using technology to enhance our one-on-one tutoring

Your support enabled us to develop Succeeding by Reading Anywhere and Path2Math Anywhere – online learning tools and processes – in order to overcome the challenges of the COVID-19 disruption to in-person tutoring at school locations.

What’s in a word?

Don’t get me started!

Last week, our team discussed the language we use to describe and relate our all-new online tutoring programs, Succeeding by Reading Anywhere and Path2Math Anywhere. As we did so, we struggled with the terms “online tutoring,” “remote learning,” and “distance learning.”

We realized that while we understand what we’re building for the children, parents, tutors, and teachers, the terminology we use is important. And if we struggle with terminology, our children, parents, tutors, and teachers are going to struggle.

We decided to dissect a couple terms that we use to describe what we are creating for our schools.

Distance Learning
“Distance learning, also called distance education, e-learning, and online learning, is a form of education in which the main elements include physical separation of teachers and students during instruction and the use of various technologies to facilitate student-teacher and student-student communication. Distance learning traditionally has focused on nontraditional students, such as full-time workers, military personnel, and nonresidents or individuals in remote regions who are unable to attend classroom lectures.” (https://www.britannica.com/topic/distance-learning)

Distance learning is the umbrella term encompassing the different tools, techniques, and processes. With the advent of the internet, distance learning has grown, and is a significant part of the education system. In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, some form of distance learning has been adopted by school districts throughout the United States. Remote learning would be synonymous with distance learning.

Our tutors have missed seeing the children and are eager to get back to online tutoring this year.

Online Tutoring
Online tutoring is the use of online, digital tools to provide tutoring to students. It is a subset of distance learning.

Children Rising programs are designed first and foremost to provide one-on-one tutoring for children. We recently developed Succeeding by Reading Anywhere and Path2Math Anywhere – online learning tools and processes – in order to overcome the challenges of the COVID-19 disruption to in-person tutoring at school locations.

Without COVID-19, we would not have developed online tutoring at this time. However, we are very glad we now have it, and see it as part of an exciting program enhancement. In particular, it will help accelerate learning due to the integration of family support at home. Together, we can ensure a much fairer chance for the children to achieve their God-given potential in the years ahead.

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