How do students' tutorials work?

Tutorials give students an opportunity to explore a new and challenging subject with a subject expert. This FAQ outlines how tutorials will work when they are arranged in school. If you have opted for tutorials to be delivered virtually, please refer to our FAQ on Online Tutorials.

How do Tutorials 1-5 work?

The students on the programme need to be separated into two groups for these tutorials: Group A and Group B. Your PhD tutor will come into school to deliver the tutorial to each group, back-to-back. Tutorials last 60 minutes. We suggest alternating the groups, so students do not miss the same lessons each tutorial. These small groups emulate university learning conditions and give the students a chance to challenge their critical thinking and develop their communication skills.

Independent Work and Study Sessions

Between tutorials, the students will be set homework and independent research to complete. The most successful placements often have study sessions coordinated to take place weekly after school in which students can complete their homework and communicate with their PhD tutor. These do not need to be teacher-led sessions. The main priority is to help students set aside time for their work, and to guarantee that they have access to the internet between tutorials so that they can submit homework via the Hub platform.

How are Tutorials 6 and 7 different?

Tutorials 6 and 7 are structured individual one-to-one sessions, in which students receive tailored feedback on their assignments. This enables students to make significant improvements to their work prior to the final assignment submission, and to gain constructive advice for the future.

• At the end of tutorial 5, students are asked to do a draft final assignment. This is to be submitted as homework on the Hub. Tutors will mark this and prepare specific feedback for each student, which will be delivered during tutorial 6.

• For tutorial 7, students will receive feedback on their final assignment and will also need to complete their post-programme assessments on the Hub. Lead teachers will need to ensure students have access to a suitable device for this.

• Prior to tutorials 6 and 7, we ask lead teachers to create a schedule for students to receive one-to-one feedback in individual slots (amounting to a total of 2 hours).

What does The Brilliant Club do to help support in-school tutorials?

Before your first tutorial, your Programme Officer will share suggested dates for your Tutor Launch and tutorials, along with your PhD tutor’s contact details. Our scheduling is compiled based on your availability and the PhD tutor’s availability. Please check through this with your PhD tutor prior to the tutorials starting and make sure the dates will work.

The Brilliant Club arranges the DBS checks for PhD tutors, and will conduct observations for some PhD tutors where possible to provide feedback on their teaching practice. If you have any concerns about the tutor working with your students or believe they would benefit from an observation, please flag it to your Programme Officer as soon as possible.

Your PhD tutor will keep you updated about the placement. We also collect information about the students’ tutorial attendance and homework submissions, and stay in touch with teachers to support with any problems or questions during the placement.

What do lead teachers need to know about tutorials?

The most important thing to make tutorials run smoothly in school is regular communication between the lead teacher, PhD tutor and Programme Officer regarding placement logistics and supporting students. Lead teachers need to book the rooms for tutorials to take place in school, make sure that students know where they are going and when, and keep the Brilliant Club and their PhD tutor informed about any issues. Please refer to our lead teacher checklist to keep track of what you need to do throughout the placement.