IA TUTORING GUIDELINES
Based on the information found below and your subject expertise, youare expected to exercise yourjudgmentin tutoring a client.
#1Recommended greeting when clients first log in–“How can I help you?”
#2How do you know when you have customer overflows?
An additional tab with the client’s name will appear in the upper-right corner. There will also be a “cuckoo” sound so we recommend that you keep your volume at maximum level at all times.
#3What do you do when you have customer overflows?
It’s distracting for clientts to hear about there being customer overflows; we advise tutors to avoid informing clients about temporary spikes in customer overflows. Our live monitors will do their best to transfer so do your best to help the extra client(s).Don’t message the monitor just to tell them that you have customer overflows – our monitors already know. Toggle between the clients, and give each one questions to occupy them while you work with the other client. Monitors only available between 2 pm – 1 am ET. No monitors before 2 pm ET
#4How do you upload lessons that you want to use onto the whiteboard?
Click on CloudPack explorer button on the wb.
#5Where else other than the whiteboard can you find the lessons?
Brainfuse web site at by logging in with the tutor username/pw. Go to the MiscellaneousMy Curriculum. Then on the next page, find Brainfuse Lessons from the drop down menu as shown below. **CloudPack explorer on your tutor wb is NOT the same as My CloudPack on the tutor homepage.
#6If a client asks for help with a standardized test, how would you handle the session? With a Brainfuse test? With a test or homework assignment from their school?
Brainfuse recommends that Tutors should NOT help clients with tests from their school.
Tutors can help clients with homework assignments, but are encouraged to should use examples to help the client understand concepts so the client can do the homework assignment on their own.
You can use Brainfuse lessons to help clients with standardized exams. **Tutors cannot access the Brainfuse practice quizzes directly. Tutors can review any Brainfuse practice test that a client has already taken by right-clicking on the client’s username and choosing the “Who Is” link.
Brainfuse tutors can always go over Brainfuse exams with clients.
#7The following actions by the tutor do not comport with clientexpectations. We may stop working with the tutor immediately if he/she engages in any of the behaviors below.
- Referencing Wikipedia or YouTube
- Having personal chats with clients and monitors while tutoring
- Asking a client for personal information (email address for example), or exchanging personal information with a client.
-Sending inappropriate links to a client
#8What are the differences between the tutor and the customer whiteboards?
The tutor white board has the tools menu at the top and many more buttons (clients cannot access lessons, etc). CloudPack is different for both white boards. Customer whiteboard is web-based and is not the same as the tutor wb which is software based. Clients for instance do not have the Mark-Up button so if you decide to load a lesson onto the whiteboard, be sure to click on the Mark-Up button so that the client can write on the board.
#9How does instant staffing work?
If a tutor is unscheduled, they can log onto the Quick Connect to pick up any available sessions with clients. To do so, they should log into the practice White Board.
#10What does this button do ?
This is the Brainshare button. Please see above.
#11How does Brainshare/live file sharing work?
Brainshare allows clients to exchange documents with tutors in real time. Clients can upload documents by clicking on the Brainshare button. Clients and tutors can also exchange documents using CloudPack, which allows clients to upload directly onto the whiteboard.
#12Name two ways clients could send/show you documents in a live session. Is it ever acceptable to exchange or accept email addresses with a client?
We consider exchanging personal emails with a client as UNACCEPTABLE. Instead, you can use Brainshare, CloudPack, or the client can copy and paste onto the white board or chat.
#13 What do you do when a client or someone claiming to be a teacher, parent or a librarian starts asking personal or other questions unrelated to the subject at hand?
Please direct the client/parent/teacher back to the lesson. If the client persists, please inform them that it is not Brainfuse policy to share personal information.
#14 What do you say when a patron asks about our access hours?
If users ask any administrative questions, please refer them to .
#15 What is procedure for un-approving subjects?
Please email . Do NOTtry to unapprove subjects.
#16 How do you contact Brainfuse? Is it ok to call the office? List the email addresses.
Do NOT call the office, except in the case of an emergency (such as a natural disaster), or if you have an outstanding payment issue which you have emailed the office about, and have not received a reply for more than 10 business days.
-For tutor payment issues, email
-For scheduling and task issues, email
-For technical issues, please email
-For issues with lessons, please email
-For pressing general issues, please email your recruiter
-Do NOT email
#17Describe the use and interaction of these two icons: and .
The first button is the HTML icon, and the second is the MARK UP button. Some lessons are in HTML format, so you cannot write on them/interact with them on the White Board. In order to be able to, please click the Mark Up button. To switch back, click the other icon.
#18 A client asks for a requested lesson, but you don’t know which category it is under. How do you respond to the client?
Do not tell the client to wait. Ask the client probing questions to garner their background knowledge about the subject, as well as keep them occupied while you search for the lesson.
#19 If you need to leave a session, what is proper procedure?
Make sure to notify the client at least 15 minutes before you need to leave. Contact the monitor only if you need to transfer the client.
#20 What do you do with the End of Session Report that pops open when you try to exit the tutor whiteboard?
For all IA sessions (almost all currently available sessions are IA which stands for instant access), simply check off the box as shown below and type in Done.
#21 What do you do if you close the End of Session Report without checking off the box(es) and typing in “Done”?
Either from the QC or from log into your tutor homepage and then click on the Message Center > My Inbox > Tasks to view the open session reports.
#20 How do you download the QC?
You can download the QC by logging into your Brainfuse account and going to “Miscellaneous”> “DownloadCenter”. Make sure you have downloaded the “Supervisor” version.
#21You received a message saying that there is a new message in your inbox but when you check, nothing is there. What does this mean?
This means that another tutor has accepted the submission before you.
#22If you lose internet connection in the middle of a session but you return in 10 minutes or less, no need to ask for the monitor. Some monitors may ask you what happened but you don’t need to ask for the monitor. If you lose your internet and cannot return, send email to explaining what happened.
#23If you tutor in writing or reading, clients expect you to help even if you have not read a particular book. Our goal is to help clients write and read better so if you know nothing about the book, you can look up information about it online ( Do NOT send Wikipedia links to clients or refer clients to Wikipedia sites.
#24If you tutor in math or any of the sciences, you may ask the client if they have a calculator and have the client work with one. However, you are discouraged from using or referring clients to sites that give answers to the clients. Basic calculation is fine, but you are encouraged to avoid not using websites that solve the question for the client.
#25Whenever possible, clients expect all interaction to be on the whiteboard or chat. Clients do not want 3rd party links during tutoring. The tutor can copy/paste relevant information onto the wb and review it with the client.
#26Clients may choose social studies but want econ help. Look up the info and if it’s information that cannot be found, inform the client that economics as a stand-alone subject is not offered to K-12 clients. It’s offered through our higher ed services. **Note that clients expect you to know econ topics discussed here: Click on global or us history to view the econ topics covered.
#27If you are a math tutor and you get a customer who asks for writing help, do NOT ask the monitor for a transfer as the monitor can only transfer between tutors with similar subject approvals. Ask the customer to log out and choose writing.
#28Monitors cannot transfer every client that you connect with. That is, if you are experiencing a spike in customer traffic, the monitor will do her/his best to transfer but don’t demand that the monitor transfer the client that you picked. This is different from asking for a transfer because you are totally stumped by the client’s question. Also, don’t dictate to the monitor which client should be transferred and follow the directions given by the monitor. ***If you are arguing/talking with the monitor then the client is left hanging!
#29**Brainfuse will stop working with tutors who paste inappropriate/irrelevant materials on the whiteboard or chat.
#30 A customer logged on asking for help with grammar, punctuation, and organization issues on an essay they wrote. Should I refer them to the 24/7 Writing Lab?
-NO, tutors are expected to help the customer as much as they can during live tutoring. The customer can send the paper to the tutor through Brainshare or upload the document on the Whiteboard through CloudPack (see whiteboard section of the guide for more information on using CloudPack) where the tutor and the customer can review the paper together. Both customers and tutors can also just copy/paste or capture a screenshot (use any available screen capturing tool on your computer like the Snipping Tool on Windows) of what’s on the MS Word file onto the WB. If you are nearing the end of your session and feel that there is more work to be done with the paper, you should ask the customer if they are familiar with the Writing Lab. If they are, you can then let them know that they can submit the paper to the writing lab where a tutor will respond within 24 hours with a review. If they want to work with a live tutor, you can ask the monitor to have the customer transferred to another writing tutor.
#31 A customer is being rude/using profanity/not using Brainfuse for its intended purpose. What should I do?
-If you are connected to a customer who you suspect is using multiple accounts or is being verbally abusive, please notify the monitor of the student’s behavior. Pending the response from the monitor, you should ignore the customer and do not confront them. Remain professional and remember that all chat logs and sessions are automatically recorded and will be reviewed by monitors, administrators and parents/teachers/librarians. The monitor will notify the customer if they deem that their behavior is unacceptable and administrators will be notified and decide on further action. If there is no monitor available, then inform the student the following: Brainfuse does not allow profanities and expletives in tutoring sessions. Also note that all sessions are recorded and monitored and can be shared with parents, teachers and other administrators. Please stop or we will end the session. at this point if the behavior continues unabated, unless the tutor still has the release button, the tutor will simply stop responding to the student after typing in the chat the following We are ending the session. Thank you for using Brainfuse.