In this article, we will analyze the role of the virtual tutor beyond the academic level, allowing us to rediscover the importance of its functions in distance education.

Are tutors no longer important?

Virtual tutoring has been misinterpreted, including it only at strictly academic levels, leaving aside the important individual support and accompaniment to the students of a course or throughout a distance career.

Why is virtual tutoring necessary?

Virtual Education as a method of study and flexible power independent student learning, enabling him not only to acquire knowledge but to learn, learn by doing. Forging autonomy in terms of time, space, style, pace and learning method. Building virtual learning together with a virtual community.

Due to the characteristic isolation of this type of study, good tutoring like Eka Tutor is important, since support should be offered to create spaces for socialization, not only to discuss a class topic but also to develop relationships of empathy and collaboration, as we do it in the presence.

Psycho-affective skills that a virtual tutor must have

The tutors beyond the guidelines in the domain of the subject and the aids in the use of technology should be able to stimulate the student to generate a feeling of confidence in their faculties to manage their own learning.

The virtual student is usually very demanding with himself and sometimes suffers from a feeling of overwhelming, for not believing himself capable of achieving the obligations of his distance studies together with his multiple personal activities.

Motivating function

When we first arrived at classes in person, we all looked at each other's faces, being difficult to break the ice "because we do not know anyone". It is even worse to interact in an environment where writing is the predominant means of interaction.

The Eka tutor will help to create that virtual community, through the generation of strategies that invite to transform the members of the course into support partners and knowledge co-operators, looking for those communities to remain in time to continue advancing in the research of that area of knowledge.

Integrative Function

Adults who study in virtual environments present substantial individual differences in terms of motivations, experiences, prior knowledge, needs or beliefs. The tutor must be able to detect, diagnose and properly handle the different learning styles and rhythms of their students, advising them on the personalized organization of their curricular journey and integrating it into a virtual community.

Accompanying function

The virtual tutor who accompanies the students throughout the course must be able to act in the face of difficulties or different situations that may arise in the work groups since they are known individually and know how they relate to virtually.

Conclusions

Finally, we can say that virtual tutoring is a complex process, since each institution, course, group; context has its own characteristics that make it unique and different. The virtual tutor needs to be redefined in the profile of knowledge facilitator; since their psycho-social skills in virtual learning environments are important to maintain the motivation of the virtual community.

In addition to being a pillar to strengthen confidence, participation and preserve an atmosphere of collaboration, generating a harmonious environment, where the chances of dropping out and the rapid adaptability and permanence of students in the courses increase.