The Peer Tutoring Program offered by the residential colleges constitutes an invaluable academic resource at Princeton. While not all students employ it, those who do consult with an academic tutor stand to benefit considerably in their studies. Princeton should indeed be commended for the strength of its program and for freely providing these services to students. Currently, however, the University prohibits tutoring during finals week because “tutors need to study, too.” We believe that this limitation is misguided and that tutoring services should be offered even during finals week.
Although students might ideally receive all the tutoring that they need during reading period, substantial papers or other studies might preclude students from utilizing tutoring services as much as they might desire. The reality is, furthermore, that a substantial amount of studying occurs during finals week and that tutors would serve as an effective supplement to students’ last minute cramming. The University’s decision to stop tutoring services during finals week is thus detrimental to students’ academic success. That students may not consult private tutors for their coursework only serves to underscore the necessity of University tutors during finals period.
Tutors do need to study too, but actually prohibiting them from assisting other students is unnecessary. Removing the limitation on tutoring during finals week would not compel tutors to offer their services. Indeed, we recognize that a tutor’s studies must take precedence over tutoring sessions. But the current prohibition presupposes that all tutors necessarily have insurmountable time commitments during finals, which may simply not be the case. Why restrict a tutor from meeting with a peer if both parties have mutually available time and stand to benefit from the exchange?
The program also ought to reform its policies relating to the number of tutoring hours available per semester. While the program officially dictates that students “may receive a maximum of 15 hours of tutoring per course, per term,” a residential college dean or director of studies may extend that limit at his or her discretion. We believe that this temporal limitation serves only as an academic detriment to struggling students. Those who are willing to seek more help ought to be able to, and since the program is able to accommodate more tutees, we believe that all students as a matter of course should have access to more than 15 hours of tutoring, if they so desire.
That the Peer Tutoring Program represents a valuable campus asset is clear. Its contribution to campus, however, would be measurably greater should tutoring services be extended to finals period. We believe that the stress and overwhelming amounts of studying that accompany finals period necessitate the continuation of the tutoring program during that time. It is unfittingly paternalist of Princeton to assume that tutors do not have time to tutor, or do not know how to efficiently allocate their time during finals week. Obviously, tutors have greater knowledge of their schedules than do college offices. Allowing them to act on their own initiatives will benefit both the tutors and the students who utilize the service.
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