The Lowdown
- Learner - Best Private Math Tutoring
- Wyzant - Good for Finding Your Own Tutor
- Varsity Tutors - Good for 24/7 Help
At some point throughout their academic careers, the average student will likely face challenges in math class. Math is a subject that requires a strong foundation and a deep understanding of concepts, as well as a lot of practice and patience. Students struggle with math for various reasons, like not receiving effective instruction in the classroom or simply disliking the subject.
It’s important to remember that just because a student is having difficulty with math does not mean they aren’t intelligent enough or capable of succeeding in this fundamental subject. With the right support and resources, most students can improve their math grades and build the confidence they need to succeed.
One of the best resources for struggling students is online math tutoring. Quality math instructors like you can find at Learner can provide excellent personalized attention, one-on-one support, and guidance that may be difficult to obtain in a classroom setting. Some of the most popular online math tutoring platforms are Wyzant, Varsity Tutors, and Learner. In this analysis, we take a closer look at these three programs to help you decide which one is the best fit for your family.
What is Wyzant?
Wyzant serves as a platform that connects students with qualified tutors. Unlike some services, which do the heavy lifting of matching you with a private tutor, customers must select their own tutors with Wyzant. Over 80,000 tutors in Wyzant’s network specialize in more than 300 subjects. Adults can benefit from finance, economics, law, managerial accounting, and public speaking courses.
Wyzant offers both in-person tutoring and online services. Students not actively engaged in a lesson can browse the archived lessons on Wyzant’s website. Students can peruse over 1 million interactive videos and lessons at their leisure.
Pros
- Students can select tutors based on price and qualifications
- Students can receive help in various subjects when they need it
- No commitment needed for any packages or subscriptions
Cons
- Finding a compatible tutor can be time-consuming or trial and error
- Quality differs from tutor to tutor
Bottom Line
With over 80,000 instructors in its network, Wyzant serves as a tutoring marketplace, allowing students to shop around for tutors specializing in their desired subject matter. However, this job-board style structure may be overwhelming for some. Prices vary by the tutor and level of experience, so parents can choose tutors whose rates fit into their budget.
What Is Varsity Tutors?
Founded in 2007, Varsity Tutors has been primarily an online tutoring service for the past five years. Varsity Tutors boasts a wide network of 40,000 tutors specializing in 2,500 subjects. Tutoring is available for kindergarten through graduate school students. Varsity Tutors even offers test prep and certifications for professional skills and art, chess, and music classes.
This platform gears its services toward busy high school students who may need help squeezing tutoring into their hectic schedules. The Instant Tutoring feature allows students to connect with tutors in seconds for quick homework help and exam preparation. The Varsity Tutors app also works across all devices, meaning students can receive support even when they are away from their laptops, whether on the bus ride to school or sitting on the bench at an away game.
Pros
- Tutors are available 24/7
- The app works across all devices
- Tutoring is available in 2,500 subjects
Cons
- Quality of service differs from tutor to tutor
- Pricing is unavailable upfront (some consider the service to be overpriced)
- Extensive application process
Bottom Line
Varsity Tutors is an excellent tutoring platform for students seeking assistance in various subjects, though better for those needing quick guidance rather than long-term, consistent tutoring. This program works on mobile phones, making it a great service for athletes or busy students who need academic help while away from their laptops.
What Is Learner?
Learner, founded by dedicated and experienced educators, is relatively new to the tutoring scene. This platform specializes in private math instruction but teaches a wide variety of subjects to adults and students of all ages. Learner is also a premium service for high school students needing ACT and SAT prep.
Learner’s effective tutoring model combines personalized student-tutor matching with one-on-one instruction and customized lesson plans. Every student is matched with a compatible private tutor in the Learner network, who assesses the student’s strengths, weaknesses, and learning style. The insights from this assessment help the instructor build out a series of personalized lessons that align with the student’s needs and school curriculum.
Pros
- One-on-one instruction
- Customized lessons aligning with the student’s needs and school curriculum
- Compatible student-tutor matching
- Students have the opportunity to work with the same tutor long-term
- Rigorous vetting process for tutors
- Customer satisfaction guarantee
- Innovative virtual technology
Cons
- Only offers online tutoring
- Tutors are not available 24/7
Bottom Line
Learner gears its services toward families seeking private math tutoring. Each student is paired with a compatible math instructor they have the opportunity to work with long-term. This world-class expert will assess the student and create a series of lessons that are customized to the student’s needs and their school curriculum.
Wyzant vs. Varsity Tutors vs. Learner Benefits
Any tutoring you find is likely going to benefit your child in some way, but some experiences will be better than others. Here are the key advantages of each platform:
Wyzant Benefits
Wyzant stands out as an exceptional tutoring platform for customers who seek complete control over the tutor selection process. Students and their families have the freedom to choose tutors based on subject expertise and preferred hourly rates. With its flexible pricing structure, Wyzant ensures that families are not bound by any packages or subscriptions, enabling them to receive precisely the amount of tutoring required without unnecessary expenditure or time wastage.
For the most part, Wyzant has received positive customer reviews from parents. Some of the main highlights parents have noted about this service have been the quality of Wyzant’s tutors and the consistency of the results. Both parents and students have felt that Wyzant’s tutors provide students with an exceptional opportunity to excel in even the most complex subjects, including topics such as physics and calculus.
Varsity Tutors Benefits
Varsity Tutors is a great tutoring platform for individuals who want help selecting the best tutor for their needs. Varsity Tutors uses a placement algorithm to match each student with a suitable tutor, considering crucial factors such as schedule, learning style, interests, goals, and educational needs. The benefit of a matching algorithm or specialist is that Varsity Tutors will possess deeper insights into their tutor pool than you will. This technology gives the team a better idea of how to match you with a tutor from its network who is a good fit.
Another benefit of Varsity Tutors is that they cater to the needs of busy high school students. The Varsity Tutors app works across technological devices, allowing students to connect to the platform from either laptop, cellphone, or iPad. Students can use Varsity Tutors' "Instant Tutoring" program if they need help with a single homework or test prep question and don't want to sign up for a whole tutoring session.
Overall, Varsity Tutors has received relatively positive customer reviews. Customers have said that Varsity Tutors employs professional tutors who meet students’ individual needs with well-rounded academic and professional knowledge and flexible teaching styles.
Learner Benefits
There are many benefits to the Learner Program, from its world-class tutors to its innovative virtual platform. However, the primary benefit that sets Learner’s platform apart from other services is its effective tutoring model, which prioritizes a highly-customized tutoring experience to enhance student learning.
The negative perception and difficulties experienced by numerous students in math can largely be attributed to factors related to teachers and instruction. This is precisely why, at Learner, our tailored matching system and individualized lesson plans have consistently yielded exceptional levels of satisfaction, setting new benchmarks within the industry.
We use the results from our online survey to match students with tutors with compatible personalities, teaching styles, subject-matter expertise, and interests. When a tutoring environment is filled with trust and mutual respect, students are more engaged with the material they are learning and more comfortable asking questions, making mistakes, and being themselves.
Another advantage that Learner has over other tutoring platforms is its one-on-one tutoring format. Private lessons offer endless, unparalleled benefits, including minimal distractions, undivided attention, and the ability for instructors to match their teaching speed to the student’s learning pace.
In a private lesson, tutors can immediately correct students when they make mistakes, creating an instant feedback loop that leads to faster progress and growth. Teachers can also give students the positive reinforcement and encouragement they need to gain confidence in their abilities. Research indicates that as students' confidence in their abilities increases, so does their inclination to persist in the face of difficult problems and embrace alternative approaches when a particular strategy proves ineffective.
Wyzant vs. Varsity Tutors vs. Learner Tutoring Services
We’ve also compared the overall tutoring services experience you could expect with these companies.
Wyzant Tutoring Service
Wyzant is a tutoring marketplace that connects students with qualified tutors. With over 80,000 tutors in its network, selecting a tutor may feel daunting; however, customers can use filters to hone in on a tutor based on budget and subject matter.
For instance, if you are looking for a high school ELA tutor who charges less than $60 an hour, you can use Wyzant’s filters to find an instructor who fits that description. Wyzant includes an option that allows students to chat with a tutor before booking a lesson, and their "Good Fit Guarantee" grants students a complimentary first hour if they aren’t satisfied with their experience.
Wyzant lessons can take place online or in person at your chosen location. All online lessons occur on Wyzant’s platform, which includes video, audio, and an interactive whiteboard. Wyzant also has hundreds of thousands of free resources available on its website for students to take advantage of, including interactive archived lessons and videos on various subjects.
Varsity Tutors Tutoring Service
When it comes to tutoring with Varsity Tutors, students have a handful of options they can choose from. Students can decide if they want to work with a private tutor or participate in a larger group course. Varsity Tutors teach classes in core curriculum subjects like math and English but also offer courses in test prep and certifications for professional skills.
In addition, if students need quick homework help, they can use Varsity Tutors’ Instant Tutoring feature, which allows them to connect with a tutor in minutes. Their instructors are available 24/7.
Varsity Tutors uses a placement algorithm to match each student with an instructor in its network unless you choose the Instant Tutoring feature, in which case you are given a tutor at random. The placement algorithm looks at the student's schedule, skill level, learning style, interests, and goals to find a tutor who is a good match.
Learner Tutoring Service
At Learner, all students begin by taking an online survey, where they answer questions about their studies, needs, goals, schedule, personality, interests, and more. The information from this survey allows Learner’s team to gather insights about the student, which allows Learner’s team to match the student with the most well-suited tutor in its network.
Once the student is paired with a tutor (the matching process typically takes 72 hours or less), they can schedule their first lesson. The first lesson serves as an introductory trial, where students and tutors have the opportunity to mutually assess each other. Tutors use this trial as an opportunity to evaluate the student’s strengths, weaknesses, and learning style, information that they will use to create a customized curriculum for the student. Conversely, students can use this opportunity to assess the tutor’s personality, teaching style, and more to gauge whether they see themselves working with this tutor long-term.
All lessons occur on Learner’s online platform, which includes video, audio, screen-sharing, file-sharing, and an interactive whiteboard. Each lesson is recorded for safety reasons, but these recordings also serve as study tools for older students to consult when needed. Regular feedback sessions with students and parents are also built into every student’s curriculum.
Tutor Qualifications
Education, background, and experience should all come into play when choosing the right tutor. Read on for our review of tutor screening for Learner, Wyzant, and Varsity Tutors.
Wyzant Tutors
Every tutor in Wyzant’s network has varying qualifications. However, customers can easily view each tutor’s qualifications by looking at their profile, teaching experience, and how many hours they have tutored on the Wyzant platform. You can also check a tutor’s profile to see if they have undergone a background check.
Wyzant’s network does include tutors with Ivy League degrees and advanced qualifications; however, their services do not always come cheap. Some of Wyzant’s most experienced instructors charge hundreds of dollars for an hour of tutoring.
Varsity Tutors Tutors
Like Wyzant, the 40,000 tutors in the Varsity Tutors network have varying experience levels. Unlike Wyzant, however, customers can't choose which tutor they get. This means you might be matched with a teacher who doesn't have the best qualifications for your needs. Varsity Tutors require all tutors to have a high school diploma, and most tutors also have a college degree. However, tutors are not required to have past teaching experience when applying to be Varsity Tutors.
All Varsity Tutors’ instructors must pass a background check and become “certified” in the subjects they teach. However, these certifications sometimes offer little credibility, as some merely involve instructors completing a 10-minute assessment online.
Learner Tutors
Learner prides itself on maintaining an exceptionally rigorous selection process, accepting only the top 5% of tutors into its network. All candidates must have a bachelor’s degree from an accredited four-year college or university and have several years of math teaching experience in order to apply.
If tutors make it past the initial screening, they will undergo several rounds of interviews with the Learner team, including a mock tutoring session. This process ensures that candidates have the subject-matter expertise and people skills to be effective tutors. All candidates must undergo a background check.
Cost Comparison
Detailed below, we’ve included the prices and tutor value you can get with these three platforms.
Wyzant Cost
Every Wyzant tutor sets their own hourly rate. Some tutors may charge rates as low as $10 per hour, while others charge up to $500. On average, you can expect to pay between $35 and $80 an hour for tutoring at Wyzant.
Wyzant also charges an additional 9% service fee on top of the hourly rate. If you are unsatisfied with your first hour of tutoring, Wyzant offers a full refund under its Good Fit Guarantee.
Varsity Tutors Cost
One of the most significant downsides of Varsity Tutors is that this platform does not provide pricing information upfront. Students must go through an extensive application process and provide their zip code, interests, and goals before receiving a quote. Some customers have stated that sessions range from $70 to $95 an hour, while others say that sessions range from $15 to $35.
Varsity Tutors offers specific packages, too. For instance, its monthly learning membership, including one-on-one tutoring and unlimited live classes, starts at $269. Small group sessions are less expensive than private tutoring. If you sign up for a certain number of hours, Varsity Tutors also allows family members to share these hours with each other.
Learner Cost
Learner’s pricing information is available to students and their families who complete the online assessment. While pricing information depends on the tutor’s background, education, math expertise, and teaching experience, all private tutoring plans typically start at $60 per hour. Pricing plans may also vary depending on the intensity and duration of each session.
The customer satisfaction guarantee is in place for the $25 introductory trial that each student receives. If students or their families are unsatisfied with the first lesson, they will receive a full refund and be matched with a new tutor for free.
Why Choose Learner
While Wyzant and Varsity Tutors are well-known tutoring platforms offering several benefits, Learner surpasses them by meeting all criteria for an exceptional tutoring service.
One of Learner's prominent advantages over other platforms lies in its network of highly qualified tutors. With a remarkable acceptance rate of just 5%, Learner rigorously evaluates every tutor through comprehensive background checks and a series of interviews. This meticulous process ensures that every Learner student has the privilege of working with one of the best experts in their respective fields.
Similar to Varsity Tutors, Learner employs a dedicated matching specialist to connect students with the most compatible tutor within its network. Instead of sifting through countless profiles, parents can simply communicate their interests and goals, ensuring their child is paired with an instructor capable of unlocking their full potential.
Another noteworthy advantage that Learner offers over these platforms is its personalized curriculum. Each student receives tailor-made lesson plans considering their strengths, weaknesses, interests, learning style, and personality. Learner places emphasis on fostering long-term relationships between students and tutors, resulting in personalized instruction and consistent feedback. Long-term student and tutor relationships create an atmosphere of comfort and trust, encouraging students to ask questions, make mistakes, and take risks.
Final Thoughts
Online tutoring is one of the most convenient and cost-effective resources available to assist struggling math students. Although there are various companies to choose from, Learner sets the benchmark for excellence.
This exceptional online platform offers numerous advantages, including top-notch tutors, personalized instruction, dedicated matching specialists, state-of-the-art virtual classrooms, and affordable pricing. Additionally, Learner goes the extra mile by offering a satisfaction guarantee: if students are dissatisfied with their initial lesson, Learner will immediately match them with a new tutor at no additional cost.
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