Questions to Ask Before Hiring an Academic Coach
Updated: Oct 27
Hint: The Goal Is to Become Unnecessary
Dr. June Starkey, OCT
About half of the students who come to me have already tried another tutoring service. Their families usually tell me the same thing: after three months, they weren't seeing results. That isn't because those tutors didn't care. Many tutoring services promise better test scores and report cards, and that's a worthy goal. But if a student can only produce those results when a more experienced learner is sitting beside them, the student is caught in a cycle of dependence. The grades may rise for a while, but in this model, the skills that make a learner independent, confident, and willing to take learning initiative never get built.
And here is the problem: the tutor isn't in class with your child.
Nobody is sitting beside them during a test, a timed in-class essay, or a new unit that moves faster than expected. From day one, my job as an academic coach is to help students see what they need to do, then build their ability to do it on their own. That takes skill, and it also takes awareness. The goal of academic coaching is not to make me indispensable. It's to make sure I become unnecessary.
After more than 30 years in education, and 20 years running Great Brain Learning, I believe this is the most important lens a family can use when choosing support. The questions below will help you find a coach who is building your child's independence, not renting it out by the hour.
1. "How will you figure out what my child actually needs?"
This is the question that separates coaching from homework help. Any coach who starts working on this week's assignment before understanding the learner is guessing. Guessing what a learner needs moves the goalposts further away.
What a strong answer sounds like:
In my practice, the work starts before the first session. I speak with the student and their family to understand their academic history, their strengths, their current goals and challenges, and what they want to be able to do on their own. Then I review the Ontario grade-level expectations, and I design a personalized diagnostic assessment, which the student completes independently. That last part matters. I need to see what the student can do without me, not what they can do with prompting.
From the results of the diagnostic assessment I design, I look closely at three things:
How the student approaches a task
Where they get stuck
Which strategies they can already use independently
I always read the results through an asset-based lens. A student's strengths are the bridges we use to reach the hard places. If a child has a rich vocabulary, a strong memory, or a gift for verbal reasoning, those strengths become the starting point for the work on whatever is harder.
Red flags:
No conversation with the family before sessions begin
No diagnostic, or a generic one that isn't tied to grade-level expectations
A plan that starts and ends with "we'll work on whatever homework comes up"
2. "Will you sit with my child while they do their homework?"
Many parents expect the answer to be yes. With an academic coach, it should be no.
I don't sit with students while they do their homework. Instead, every coaching session combines three things: direct instruction in a skill, practice using that skill on the student's real coursework, and gradual habit building. The coursework is the material we practise on. The skill is what we're there to build.
If a coach's main value is keeping your child company while the work gets done, you may see short-term results. But you're paying for supervision, and supervision ends when the session does.
3. "Can you tell me about a student whose challenges looked like my child's?"
Experienced coaches have stories, and good ones can explain why a student struggled, not only that they improved.
A case study: from a few words to a full paragraph
One of my students was 11 years old and in Grade 5. He was twice-exceptional: his cognitive ability was in the very superior range, and he had significant challenges with writing. He could only write a few words at a time.
When I looked closely, it was clear this wasn't one problem. It was several working together:
Learning online during the pandemic, at the age when handwriting is usually taught, practised, and mastered
A lack of motor muscle memory for forming letters
No automaticity in letter formation, so every letter took conscious effort
Executive function challenges that made it tough to focus on effortful tasks
Three years, from Grades 1 to 3, in a toxic learning environment where he was blamed and judged for his errors, his illegible printing, and not knowing how to write in cursive
He knew what he wanted to say. His vocabulary was excellent. But all his mental energy went into forming letters, and every attempt carried the weight of years of criticism.
Three months later, he was writing a 5- to 7-sentence paragraph on his own, at grade level, without supervision.
How? Because he knows what he wants to say, he has a great vocabulary, and he can now write the whole alphabet in about 30 seconds. Once letter formation became automatic, his thinking could finally reach the page.
Another tutor might have spent those three months on writing prompts or paragraph structure. Without the right diagnosis, the real barrier would have stayed in place.
What to listen for:
Does the coach explain the root causes, not only the outcome?
Do they talk about what the student can now do independently?
Do they recognize the emotional history a student brings into learning?
4. "How will I know this is working?"
Grades matter, but they come late, and they don't tell the whole story. Ask a coach what they track along the way.
The first thing I track is self-confidence, because confidence feeds initiative and motivation. A key turning point comes when a student dives into a task that has historically caused them grief. When I see that, I point it out and ask questions to help them notice their own growing confidence.
Many students don't realize how much they can learn just by paying attention to their own thinking. Noticing when you don't understand something comes before knowing what to do about it. Self-monitoring, or knowing whether you're on track before it's too late, is an essential skill for every learner. Once those skills are in place, learners really begin to take off.
Ask about communication, too.
I report to parents during or after every session. That's not a formality. Students whose parents are involved make faster progress, so keeping families informed is part of the work.
Red flags:
Progress is measured only by grades
Parents only hear from the coach when there's a problem, or only at the end of a term
The coach can't describe what independence would look like for your child
5. "What's the plan for ending?"
Many parents may never think to ask this, and it may be the most revealing question on this list. A coach whose goal is your child's independence will already have a plan for stepping back.
I think of it like flying a plane. At first, I'm the co-pilot: prompting, asking questions, and modelling the thinking. Gradually, the student takes the lead in sessions, explaining aloud which steps they're following, which strategies they're using, and how it's working. As soon as they're ready, I move out of the co-pilot seat and leave the flight deck entirely.
In practice, that means:
The student leads sessions and explains their own process
Sessions are spaced further apart
Scheduled check-ins make sure the growth lasts
Most families work with me for about a full year before the student is independent. It can be shorter or longer depending on the student's needs and circumstances, but there's always an end point in view.
Red flags:
No discussion of timelines or how support will decrease
Support that stays at the same intensity month after month, with no change in what the student does alone
6. "What's your background, and who do you work best with?"
Credentials aren't everything, but they matter, especially when your child's needs are complex. Families tell me the parts of my background that matter most to them are:
30+ years in education and 20 years at Great Brain Learning
An MA and a PhD, during which I conducted primary research about feedback for learning
Ontario teacher certification since 1987
Bilingual teaching in English and French from Kindergarten to graduate school
Master's and Doctoral Specialization in literacy
Classroom teaching experience in public, private, and independent schools
Expert knowledge in connecting the most current educational research with learning
Just as important is knowing who a coach is the right fit for. The students I help most are students who are ready to learn what they need to learn. That includes:
Twice-exceptional students
Neurodiverse students
Students who learn in French, including French Immersion students
Students applying to independent schools for high school
Students preparing for the SAT who need to build deeper learning skills for post-secondary planning
Students who have decided that they will never learn to write, or read, or do math
Students who have walked away from high school, college and university
7. "Who isn't a good fit for you?"
A trustworthy coach will tell you honestly when they're not the right person.
My approach isn't the right fit for families who mainly want homework supervision, or for students who need a formal psychoeducational assessment first. In those cases, I refer families to trusted professionals in my network so they get the right support from the start.
If a coach says they can help everyone with everything, be cautious.
Quick Checklist for Your First Conversation
Bring these questions to any coach you're considering:
How will you figure out what my child actually needs?
Will you sit with my child while they do their homework?
Can you tell me about a student whose challenges looked like my child's?
How will I know this is working, beyond grades?
What's the plan for stepping back and ending support?
What's your background, and which students do you work best with?
Who isn't a good fit for you, and where do you refer them?
The right coach will welcome every one of these questions.
Work With Me at Great Brain Learning
Since 2006, Great Brain Learning has helped students in English and French build the skills, self-awareness, and confidence to learn on their own. My coaching service is available online across Canada and in person in the Greater Toronto Area. Every partnership begins with a conversation about your child's strengths, needs, and goals.
Send a message to find out whether academic coaching is the right next step for your child.
Comments