I've always found engaging with people to bring a certain joy into my life that is reflective of my species - humans are and have evolved from social animals. Each human has their own personality and method for which they can best learn, which may or may not be suited for most forms of how academic materials are presented.
I believe that the greatest advantage a tutor has over an instructor or even a teaching assistant is their adaptability. A tutor has the ability to present classroom material in a way that makes the most sense to the tutee. And this is why I encourage people to tutor others — aside from being beneficial to the tutee, the tutor gains several skills along the way that are beneficial to any career path chosen.
Several people have advised me that it's not what you say, it's how you say it. A topic that one student finds relatively easy to master might be extremely daunting for another student, which is not always the student's fault! Many professors have their own teaching styles, which are themselves dependent on the type of class, the number of students, the subject, and so on. Needless to say, some styles just don't jive with students, which would make it much harder for them to learn the material.
I have had my share of college professors and high school teachers who simply did not teach the course in a way that would make the most sense to me, and I found that asking for help from someone who does know the material to be an invaluable skill.
A tutor would be able to use their extreme adaptability to explain a previously difficult concept to a tutee in a much shorter time than the instructor could. By meeting different tutees, a tutor would be able to greatly increase their proficiency in communicating with tutees of different backgrounds and personalities to best suit them. Communicating with people is key to gaining more lucrative jobs and furthering one's career, regardless of profession. Professions ranging from medicine to history and even engineering revolve around clear communication between two or more parties - being able to handle different personalities in the workplace can greatly assist anyone.
Aside from simple communication, a tutor's role is far more dialectic than didactic. A didactic method is practiced in lecture classes, where the instructor bombards a student with information that they are expected to soak in and absorb. A dialectic method, on the other hand, is when the instructor and the student engage in meaningful discussions that apply the material instead of simply writing it onto a chalkboard. A dialectic method is what I prefer, as it also builds on what one previously knows to make meaningful connections between each concept.
Tutors typically explain the material in a way that is more dialectic, such that they may help spawn those connections between the tutee's existing foundation and the new material. This approach actually solidifies both the tutee's understanding as well as the tutor's, as one must be able to understand the material well enough to explain it to someone else. Teaching is one of the best ways of learning, and the tutor may end up doing themselves a favor, as well!
Furthermore, paid or not, a tutor shows so much humanity when they decide to dedicate a chunk of their time to help another human being learn. It helps me realize that life isn't just a decades-long rat race and that collaboration is more important than competition. Tutoring reminds me that being truly successful is by helping another person become successful in their own right and that fostering this collaborative spirit is key for building stronger connections and helping humanity advance as a species to the next frontier.
