Tutored reads - introduction, discussion, administration

Hello, all.

Welcome to a new feature in the 75 Books Challenge for 2012: tutored reads. If there is a book that you are or have struggled with, a book you have always wanted to read but found intimidating for one reason or another, or if you are worried that a lack of specialist knowledge will prevent you from properly appreciating a book, this is the place to find the assistance you need.

The tutored read differs from the traditional group read in that the reading is controlled by an individual reader. The idea is to remove any pressure from the reading; the tutee is able to go at their own pace, to stop and ask questions when they need to, to go back over the same ground if necessary, and to progress without feeling that they "must" read a certain number of pages or chapters in a certain time.

Conversely, volunteer tutors must be prepared for "the long haul"! It is important that the tutee does not feel rushed, or that they are imposing on their tutor.

While the tutored read is conceived as a one-on-one experience, it is perfectly all right for more than one person to work through the same book with the same tutor. However, if Person A begins to draw ahead, so that their questions and discussion constitute spoilers for Person B, a second thread should be set up.

Similarly, others may "read along" and add comments, as long as this is acceptable to the main tutee and tutor.

It is possible that after initiating a tutored read, either the tutee or the tutor may not be able to complete it. While it is understood that there are a variety of reasons why a book is not completed (stupid Real Life!), we do ask that all tutored reads begin in good faith, with both parties committed to going the distance. Before initiating a tutored read or volunteering to tutor, be sure you have enough time to do it justice.

Shortly, a separate wiki will be set up where volunteer tutors can list their area(s) of expertise, and where individual tutored reads can be listed. A second thread will be set up to allow people to ask for help with a particular work or works and find a tutor. The details can be settled either on-thread or by PM.

At the moment, a few blanket topic headings have been added to the wiki. Those wishing to volunteer to tutor are free to add new topics and subheadings as they think appropriate. However, please follow the formatting indicated.

Obviously, as a new feature the tutored reads will remain a work-in-progress for some time. Please use this thread to make comments and suggestions, and to tell everyone what did or did not work about the experience, so that we can make things better.

To initiate a tutored read:

1. Check the wiki (Tutored Reads 2012) to see whether any potential tutors are listed for your book.
2. Use the hook-up thread (link here) to ask for help, indicating when you would like the read to start.
3. When the tutoring session begins, start a thread in the format "Emma by Jane Austen - lyzard tutoring SqueakyChu". Also list it on the wiki.
4. Use the "About" feature on the right-hand side of the thread page, so that in the future people can use completed tutored reads as a resource.

Good luck!!

This is a great idea. Will the "hook up" thread be where we could ask for help with a specific title?

Hello! Welcome! Yes, that's right - and if you look again at the message above in about one minute, you'll see that I finally remembered to go back and link to the hook-up thread! :)

This is a neat idea. :) I would love to hook up with anyone who wants to read anything art related. My Bachelor's is in Art History.

4: You should add Art and your name to the Wiki list (link in the first post)

5: Done! I hope I did it right.

6: Looks fine! Thanks (and thanks to the people who set up this wiki page, because even a very bad wiki formater like me could figure it out!)

What an amazing resource!

I really hope that people will find this feature a helpful option.

I've added myself to the wiki as a possible computer/computer science tutor.

I can also help people with books set in/about India, in case they want a native perspective, but I don't know what section that would go in.

Thanks! Yes, that's one of the things that might only become clear after the event. Perhaps a general "countries" section might be helpful?

Eta: I have added a "Regional Issues" section for contemporary information on a country or region.

I think it would be fun to, let's say at the conclusion of a "tutored read, to have all the lurkers declare themselves! :)

11: I've added myself under "Regional Issues". Thank you!

I'm wondering how we keep track of people on the Hook-up Forum who don't have a tutor yet. Especially if the thread gets long.

Thank you to our new potential tutors!

As part of administrating this exercise, I will bump the hook-up thread regularly with a list of those still seeking tutors.

I will also have a word with Jim about adding the thread to the group wiki.

What aulsmith said re potential tutees...

I would imagine that most of us know some books well, even if they don't slot neatly into categories, and seeing what books some potential "tutees" are interested in might galvanize them...

I added some under history, economics & politics, mostly, as well as historical fiction, even though I'm not sure it rises to the level of "literature"!

16: I think the bumping will work admirably.

17: Yes, tutees posting requests is a big help. I would have never thought to volunteer for pseudo-Victorian fantasy novels, but Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell is right up my alley.

I will also have a word with Jim about adding the thread to the group wiki.

Done.

Thanks, Jim!

On last year's discussion thread about tutored reads there were quite a few people who expressed an interest in being tutored on A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. Are people still interested in this? If so, I was wondering if it might be worth creating a separate thread to discuss timings and how this particular tutored read would work with multiple tutors and tutees.

If extra threads are a help, feel free.

#21: I'd be interested to participate as a tutee and ready to start anytime. If I remember well it's quite short for a Dickens?

I'm wondering if "group tutored reads" would do better with an "assignment" by the tutor of what chapters/pages to read so that everyone stays within the same content? That's because one of my biggest gripes about "group reads" is that everyone is at a different place in the book.

I also think it would be a good idea if people specified if they would prefer an "individual tutored read" (my preference) or are okay with a "group tutored read". This is even if multiple people want help with the same book. For me, I really liked having that one-to-one relationship with my tutor.

#22 I've left the discussion here for now but please holler if it gets too noisy and you would like us to move to a separate thread. Do you think we should somehow add it to the wiki - maybe as 'under discussion'?

#23 Yes, aToTC is only 390 pages in my edition (excluding introduction and notes).

#24 I think assigning chapters/pages to tutees might spoil people's enjoyment of the book or discourage people if they find it difficult to keep reading at the prescribed speed. I think it would end up feeling more like a group read than a tutored read (although that's fine if that's what people want in this case).

My ideas so far are:

1) An individual thread is set up for each individual tutee - the tutor follows all the threads and answers questions as they come. The tutees would probably just follow their own thread to avoid spoilers. The disadvantages are that the tutees might miss out on answers to questions they might not have thought of. Advantages are that it would keep the individual tutored read feel that you found so important with Emma.

2) Splitting the book up into several section with a separate thread for each section and having the tutees only post questions on the relevant thread. There could also be a general thread for questions about the setting. Each tutee could still read at their own pace and benefit from questions others have asked as they get to the relevant thread.

Does anyone have any other ideas? I would be happy to do either of the two.

#25: I only now really grasped the concept of the tutored read. I wouldn't ask for an individual tutor for myself tor aToTC, I can also follow a thread by reading and eventually posting a question, but making sure not to spoil anything for the official tutee.

Of the two alternatives I'd prefer the second. Following several separate tutee threads means a lot of effort for the tutor and she/he might have to answer similar questions again and again. In 2011 we had a group read of War and Peace, setting up 19 or 20 threads (one per volume/part). It wasn't tutored, but some had great background knowledge on the history of the Napoleonic Wars/ Russia, and that was then discussed where it came up, which is a similar approach to the 2nd alternative and worked very well. As you said, the tutees could all benefit from questions already asked.

Heather, I agree with Nathalie above. I'm definitely still interested in aToTC, and my concerned would be, as mentioned, that you might have to answer the same questions several times on separate threads, but also, and this would probably be the case for me, that I might not think to ask certain questions, though seeing you answer another person about certain points might stimulate me to notice more clearly parts that I'm not understanding properly. I don't know if what I've just said makes any sense. Part of my concern about being a tutee is that I'm so used to skimming over entire sections that I don't understand very well in any given novel that I don't necessarily notice I'm even doing it. Does this make any sense?

I have aToTC both in book and audio format, and the latter makes it easy for me to slot it in on any given month, more or less, since I can fit in a lot more audiobooks than I can the traditional kind in any given time period.

#26 & 27 That sounds good to me and makes a lot of sense. There were a few other people who expressed an interest last year who I've asked to come over and chip in to the discussion.

I'd like to reread aToTC myself before the tutored read starts and could probably have that done by mid-Feb if I make it my next Dickens instead of Barnaby Rudge. Any time after that would work for me.

Heather, happy to help out with ToTC group tutored read if I can -- I'm not a Dickens expert, but do know a reasonably large amount about the French Revolution & have a biggish library here on the subject, everything from Tocqueville on the Ancien Regime to Schama's Citizens. Would be interesting for me to re-read the Dickens myself as it has been eons since I did so the first time! and mid-Feb makes sense to me.

From my experience last year with Madeline, I would say that the most important thing about the tutored read is that it is shaped to encourage individual readers.

We know that there can be a problem with group reads in that respect - if people feel they are holding up the group, or are uncomfortable with the questions they want to ask, or if they need to ask the same question twice, it can put them off participating. On the other hand, if one reader outstrips the others, we don't want to deprive them of a forum to ask their own questions because they're ahead of the rest.

Perhaps you could start a group thread for this, Heather, but then allow people to break off into their own threads if they feel more comfortable that way? If there is more than one thread, strict annotation of what chapters are under discussion in a particular post is a must, so that individuals can get the benefit of other perspectives without fear of spoilers.

Before anything else, I think we need to find out how many people we are talking about here, and how they would prefer to proceed. You could have that conversation on the hook-up thread.

I guess we can't know how much help people will need and how much time it will take - but I can help out a bit too, Heather, if required.

I think it would be possible to make it clear that a tutored read for a small group of people is a different kettle of fish than a group read -- if there are a # of people interested in ToTC, it may indeed be more effective to do it that way rather than ask people to do the same tutored book several times in succession. Obviously, everyone who is participating would have to agree that they'd rather do a group tutored read than an individual one, and realize that would probably mean that the process wouldn't be geared to their reading speed as much. But I'm thinking of something along the lines of what Sibyx & roni'ncats did last year with their tiny group read of Pagans and Christians by Robin Lane Fox -- there were just two of them, with some of us chiming in with questions, and yet they seemed to work well together. I agree that the larger the group gets, the harder this becomes. Still, I think any group read or even an individual tutored session COULD have some of the problems you suggest. I've done one on one tutored sessions (not about books) where the solitary "tutee" has still not asked questions weighing on his mind because "I thought they were stupid" or "I know I asked this before and figured you'd be annoyed if I asked again because I didn't remember." It's all about the dynamic created by the participants, either tutors or tutees, single or in multiples.

The good news is that I doubt that many of the tutored reads will command large numbers of people. A Visit from the Goon Squad is going to get a lot of readers, but they're much less likely to need/want guidance on what they are reading, or at least, not more than they could get from a conventional group read. I'm guessing that the books for the tutored reads might be more dense, require more time and attention than the conventional tome.

Oh, does anyone out there have an expertise/knowledge in magical realism???

I would certainly be interested in a tutored read of A Tale of Two Cities, and, Heather, I like your number 2 idea of a thread for each section, as I agree with Ilana - I may not always think of a question but would benefit from others asking it. I also thing that doing the book in sections will leave a clear guide to anyone who comes along later and uses these posts as an aide in their own reading of the book.

As to timing, just give me a little advance notice to fit it into my schedule and I'll be ready to go!

> 25

An individual thread is set up for each individual tutee

I agree that this is the ideal way to set up tutored reads.

> 26

I wouldn't ask for an individual tutor for myself for aToTC

This is what I feared might happen.

All your suggestions sound so good to me, I can easily join in any way you choose. Late February or March would work really well for me, Heather.

#33: This is what I feared might happen.

It's not that I'd be frightened in any way, but aToTC is a book which I'd normally just read - and if there was a tutored read I could follow, it would be even better.
If I were to ask for an individual tutored read I'd select a different book, maybe Doctor Zhivago of which I am a little scared - that's what I meant.

> 35

If I were to ask for an individual tutored read I'd select a different book

Phew! I thought that you were afraid to request an individual tutored read for one reason or another. That's a relief because this feature will only work if people are brave enough to give it a try.

Trying to think through (again) how a group tutored read of aToTC would work - in the tutored reads that have happened so far (and one of those is only a few days old) the tutee posted questions they had for the tutor to answer chapter by chapter. In the group read of Pagans and Christians that Suzanne mentions, Lucy and Roni were both posting their thoughts chapter by chapter.

I suppose the question I'm trying to ask each of the potential aToTC tutees is whether that's how you envisaged this working? Do each of you want to be that in depth (because I imagine it must be quite a time commitment for the tutee as well?) or did you want to follow a thread where other people were doing that (in the way that I think quite a few people did with Madeline and Liz's read)?

And I don't think there is a right or wrong answer to those questions - just that I think we really need to understand what people want/expect from this before we start.

(And if you haven't already, I would encourage you to click on the links to the two tutored reads on the wiki or look at the thread for the Pagans and Christians read so you can see how these have worked so far.)

Hi Heather, I just went to find my copy of aToTC (which I might add was very easy to find, since my library is now in alpha order) uh hem, Perhaps for this turored read, after a brief introduction, the tutor might invite the tutees to read book 1 which is only 55 pages in my copy and suggest elements to watch for and stimulate the conversation with questions as well as invite questions from the tutees. Book 2 might want to be broken down in, say 3 portions and Book 3 divided per the tutor.
It's just a suggestion but maybe it's something you can work from.

#37 & 38 - I like what Lynda is saying (and, by the way, congrats on the alphabetization). I like the idea of dividing the book into sections and having us post questions about what we are reading. I do see that this book may lend itself to this group tutor idea better than a more complicated story. I think the story is fairly straight forward (although I haven't read it yet), and the questions will be more about the history, morality, and customs of the day. I would like to see this kept as an enjoyable experience for both the tutor and tutee, so please no homework assignments or essays to be turned in :).

If you think I want to read essays or assign homework.... think again!!!! I do think it's worthy suggesting "things to think about while reading".

Heather, maybe it's worthwhile to set up polls for potential ToTC tutees? People could vote "yes" on one if they are interested in participating, and then weigh in on some of these other issues?

#38, 39 & 40 Thanks for your comments Lynda, Judy and Suzanne.

At the moment it feels like it's starting to sound more like a very well-organised and in-depth group read rather than a tutored read and my gut reaction to leading a group read is rather panicky. That's not to say that kind of group read is wrong - it has the potential to be fantastic; I'm just not sure if it's still correct to call it a tutored read or if I'm the right person to lead it.

I don't think the idea of the tutor posting things to think about is a bad one but it feels like we might be moving too far away from the original idea where the reading pace was all geared towards the tutee rather than set by the tutor. I could see the tutor perhaps posting some thoughts after the tutee has read the relevant section (although with more than one tutee it could be tricky to work out when that has happened) - I think that's happened to some extent on the two tutored reads so far.

I suppose what I'm trying to say is that from the discussions above, it sounds like you're looking for something that is tutor-led rather than tutee-led?

I'll try and think about it some more over the weekend...

(ETA: A sorry because I feel like a big meanie who's poured cold water on everyone's ideas)

I don't think the idea of the tutor posting things to think about is a bad one but it feels like we might be moving too far away from the original idea where the reading pace was all geared towards the tutee rather than set by the tutor. I could see the tutor perhaps posting some thoughts after the tutee has read the relevant section

From having just completed a tutored read, my feeling is that the tutee should be the one to (1) set the pace and (2) ask the questions.

I would not have liked if my tutor had given me assignments. I did, however, like all of the information and comments on my thread both from my tutor and others. I really learned a lot despite my first inclination to not finish my chosen book of Emma after having started it.

That is not to say that this is a bad idea. To the contrary! It sounds like a great idea, but it is indeed a different idea and perhaps one that should be further developed. This sounds more like a classroom situation, whether it be for individual instruction or group instruction.

ETA: Nothing to be sorry about, souloftherose, because I totally agree with you!

Like Heather, I'm a bit concerned that we are drifting away from the point of the tutored read. This isn't about finding someone to moderate a group read, with questions and prompts, and general discussion and exchange of opinions.

Rather, it is about individuals asking the questions they need to, in order to understand and appreciate the text. In this case, that might encompass questions about Dickens' use of language, the social conventions of the time, or aspects of the French Revolution. This process should be, as Heather and Madeline have said from their different perspectives, led by the tutee(s), not the tutor.

Possibly a way of proceeding would be for those interested in reading A Tale Of Two Cities to organise a group read, with a "side-thread" where Heather can respond to specific questions?

You know, Heather, come to think of it you're absolutely right, my suggestion would be too similar to a group read, I just didn't want to have you follow 3 or 4 separate threads of tutees.
What do you think of tutees leaving questions as comments on your profile page? Might this be easier than keeping track of individual threads or maybe just too cumbersome?
Whatever works for you will be just fine for me.

#43 & 44 I think a group read with a side thread (or threads) where people can ask tutored read questions sounds good to me. I would probably also lurk on the standard group read threads as well (maybe even post occasionally!)

Lynda, I think I'd prefer threads to profile comments as they can be a bit cumbersome (you can't have what you're replying to on the same page). And more people than just the questioner would be able to see the questions and answers.

Perhaps the best thing to do would be to start a thread for a group read of A Tale Of Two Cities and find out how many people are interested in participating - and how many of those feel that they might need tutoring. It's hard to tell at the moment how big (or small) a job Heather is being asked to take on.

I've added my name to the Wiki. I'm excited!

Poor Heather! I feel for you. I agree with you, Madeline and Liz and whoever said that a tutored read should go at the pace of the tutee and that the tutee should be the one asking the questions. As to how the thing is technically structured, I thought we agree that threads would be better so we could dedicate them to specific books so they could be used as reference by others later. Beyond that, I wish I could suggest something useful, but nothing comes to mind, sorry.

#46 Sounds like a plan. I don't mind starting a thread (unless anyone else particularly wants to) - if I don't get time tonight it probably won't be until the weekend.

#47 Everytime I look at the things people have listed on the wiki I feel so excited :-)

#48 Ah, thanks. I am ok really :-)

Thanks very much for that. I'll tidy up the wiki, if it needs it.

I've set up a thread to discuss the Tale of Two Cities group read/tutored read here. Please come and comment.

At the moment I haven't added it to the tutored reads or general group wiki - I wasn't sure if it was a good idea to advertise it more widely before we've decided what we're doing.

Heather, I hadn't visited here for a while, so just now see you've started a thread. I'll pop over in a moment. Probably wise not to broadcast it too widely for now, seems like there's probably already *too much* interest!

Over on the Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell tutor read we just found a good website for monetary conversions to current US dollars here it is. Maybe other tutors would be interested.

That's cool! I do remember reading in What Jane Austen Ate and Charles Dickens Knew that the economy was so much different then, and some things have changed a lot in their relative expensiveness.

54: That is a fantastic link, thanks for sharing!

Bump.