A demo class usually goes like this. The tutor teaches a clean, well-prepared forty minutes. The guardian sits in the next room. Everyone is polite. Everyone agrees it went well. Six weeks later somebody wants out.
The demo went well because nobody tested anything. It is the one hour where both sides can still walk away at no cost — which makes it the most valuable hour in the whole arrangement.
For guardians: what to actually watch
Sit where you can hear it. Not hovering, but not in another room either.
Watch the student, not the tutor
The tutor will perform well; that is what a demo is. The signal is on the other side of the table.
- Is the student answering, or nodding?
- When they get something wrong, does the tutor notice, or carry on?
- Roughly what share of the talking does the student do? If it is near zero after forty minutes, that is what every future class will look like.
- Does the tutor ever ask the student to explain it back? This is the single strongest indicator of a teacher rather than a lecturer.
Ask for a hard topic, not a fresh one
Pick something the student already failed. A tutor teaching a brand-new chapter is doing the easy version of the job. Watching someone untangle a topic that has already gone wrong tells you far more.
Three questions after the demo
Ask the tutor: "What did you find out about her today?" A good answer is specific — she can do the mechanics but not set up the equation from a word problem. A vague answer means they were performing, not diagnosing.
Ask the student, privately: "Did that make sense?" Children answer this question honestly and immediately.
Ask yourself: would I be comfortable if this happened three times a week for six months?
A polite demo is not a good demo
If nothing was difficult, nothing was tested. It is entirely reasonable to say "could you try the chapter he is struggling with instead?" in the first five minutes.
For tutors: how to run one that gets you hired
The instinct is to demonstrate how much you know. That is the wrong instinct — it is exactly what the guardian cannot evaluate.
Ask before you arrive. Which chapter is weakest? What was the last test score? Turning up already knowing the problem is more impressive than any credential.
Spend the first ten minutes finding out where it broke. Give a couple of questions from earlier chapters. Say out loud what you find: "He is fine with the formula, it is the word problems that are the issue." You have just shown the guardian your method.
Teach one thing properly rather than four things quickly. Depth reads as competence; coverage reads as rushing.
Make the student talk. Get them to explain one step back to you. The guardian in the next room hears their own child understanding something, which is worth more than anything you could say about yourself.
Close with a plan, not a pitch. "There are three chapters to repair before the school exam. I would do them in this order, with a short test each Thursday, and message you after each one." Then stop, and let them decide.
Agree the boring things before the first paid class
Whichever way the demo goes, do not let this slide:
Five minutes of slightly awkward conversation now removes almost every argument that would otherwise happen in month three.
Key takeaways
- Watch the student's participation, not the tutor's polish.
- Ask for a topic the student has already failed — a fresh chapter tests nothing.
- Ask the tutor what they found out about the student; vagueness is the answer.
- Tutors: diagnose out loud, teach one thing properly, and close with a plan rather than a pitch.
- Settle money, days, missed classes, notice period and reporting before the first paid session.
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