A SUPPORT GUIDE FOR UNIVERSITY TUTORS

As result of the implementation of degrees adapted to the European Space for Higher Education, the University of Burgos has decided to launch a Tutorial Plan (PAT); that contemplates different orientation forms for its students. One of these forms is the academic path tutorship, which is expected to improve the capacity of the students to understand what and how they are learning, to review, plan and take responsibility for their own learning and to help them, with the aid of the services offered by our university, in their personal, educational and career development. Therefore, in the course 2010/11 all the students who join our University will have a tutor teacher who will accompany them along all her/his academic trajectory.

For the implementation of the PAT, the formation of the faculty staff through seminars and workshops for this, new for many, task, has deserve special attention. In these formative actions, the teachers have stressed the need to have resources that could facilitate the work in the tutorship. Gathering this proposal, in a meeting of tutors of the whole University was proposed to form a work group in order to prepare a “quick start” guide, principally for those who were going to realize this activity for the first time. The Group remained constituted by four volunteers teachers (2 of the faculty of Sciences and 2 of the High Polytechnic School), the Director of the Institute of Formation and Educational Innovation (also teacher of the faculty of Humanities and Education) and the Chief of the Information service and University extension.

The Group has worked from May until July, 2010, using different sources: existing written materials about tutorship, the practical knowledge about the subject of some of the members and the different questions put by the faculty during the formative actions. The support Guide prepared collects the following contents:
1.-Introduction: How is organized the PAT in the University of Burgos
2.-The university tutorship: concept and types
3.-Tutor’s functions
4.-Recommended actions for the planning and development of the tutorship.
5.1. Program of activities and timetable
5.2. Recommended actions for the first meeting with the students
6. Good practices and limits of the tutor’s action
7. Frequent questions
8. Useful information for the tutor’s action: General information about the University (faculties and schools, degrees, facilities, services)
9. Bibliographical references and other reference sources.

This guide was presented in different seminars to the whole faculty staff, in order to improve it, through the feedback from its future users. We think this support guide could be helpful for others universities that are trying to implement similar tutorship programs.