The NOEO Journal
Articles written by the NOEO team and its tutors: study methods, revision, keeping track of schooling and guidance.
Private tutoring
There is no single right profile: a university student, a teacher and a level specialist can all be suitable depending on the student’s need. Start by identifying the precise block (gap, method, reasoning, practice), then assess the tutor’s ability to rephrase when the student doesn’t understand. Academic level does not guarantee teaching quality.
Methods and revision
Active recall means retrieving information from memory, without looking at your notes, and then checking your answers. It is a more effective method than simple rereading for long-term memorisation. To use it well, you need to space out recall sessions and use your mistakes to target the gaps.
Parents and follow-up
Good communication between a parent and a private tutor should be regular, factual and focused on the student’s goals. The parent needs to know what was worked on, what is improving, what is still blocking and what the next step is; they do not need to step into every detail of the session. From the start, it is therefore important to clarify roles, choose a main channel and agree on a pace for follow-up. After a session, a few precise pieces of information are better than a long debrief: the goal worked on, the difficulty observed, any work set and the priority for what comes next. The student should gradually remain the main actor in their own support.
School success and study choices
To prepare effectively for the bac de français (the French exam taken at the end of Première), you need to work on three dimensions in parallel: the method for the written exercises, precise knowledge of the works and texts studied, and regular oral practice. Rereading your notes is not enough. In the written exam, the student must be able to build a commentary or an essay within a time limit; in the oral, they must explain a text, answer a grammar question and then defend a chosen work. Preparation should begin during the Première year, with short practice sessions that gradually become timed. The aim is not to learn model answers by heart, but to become able to draw on the right knowledge alone when faced with a new topic or extract.
School success and study choices
To make progress with SVT (Life and Earth Sciences) private tutoring at lycée, learning the course is necessary but not sufficient. The student must be able to use their knowledge to explain a mechanism, analyse scientific documents, connect several scales and build a reasoned answer. A private tutor is most useful when they pinpoint exactly what is blocking: poorly memorised knowledge, imprecise vocabulary, superficial reading of documents or difficulty organising the reasoning. Effective work therefore alternates active memorisation, explaining mechanisms, data analysis, diagrams and synthesis exercises. In the SVT specialty, this method also prepares for both parts of the bac: the written exam and the assessment of experimental skills.
School success and study choices
To make progress with Physics and Chemistry private tutoring at lycée (upper secondary school), the student needs to learn to link four things: the phenomenon studied, the model used, the quantities with their units, and the steps of the reasoning. Private tutoring is most useful when it pinpoints exactly where this chain breaks, then gets the student working until they can solve problems without guidance. Doing more exercises or memorising formulas is therefore not enough. Effective support alternates understanding the course, diagrams, calculations, checking units, interpreting results and varied exercises, with regular work between sessions.
Tutors
To prepare a truly personalised tutoring session, start from three things: what the student needs to be able to do, what they can already do alone, and the mistake currently stopping them from reaching the goal. Preparation is therefore not about planning an hour of content, but about choosing a few tasks that can reveal and then work on the right problem. Review the previous session, select a diagnostic exercise, a suitable explanation or example, then an exercise the student will have to get right with less help. Also plan an alternative in case your first explanation does not work, and a clear record for what comes next. Personalising is not improvising: it is preparing decisions.
Private tutoring
The best online private tutoring site depends on your priorities: a wide choice of profiles (Superprof), delegated selection (Acadomia), educational follow-up (Les Sherpas), an integrated online environment (GoStudent) or continuity between sessions (NOEO). Compare the models on total cost, commitment, tools and follow-up to choose the one that meets your expectations.
Private tutoring
How often to have private tutoring depends on the goals: 1 weekly session is enough for regular follow-up or a targeted difficulty, while 2 or more sessions may be needed to catch up on a significant gap or prepare for an approaching deadline. Effectiveness rests on regularity, targeting and the student’s own work between sessions.
Private tutoring
The choice between online and home tutoring depends on the environment, the student’s independence and their learning needs. The tutor’s quality, interaction and regularity matter more than the format. Studies show similar academic gains, but in-person tutoring can encourage attendance and the relationship with the tutor.
School success and study choices
September 2026 brings new French and Maths curricula in 5e (the second year of collège), as well as in Seconde and Première (the first two years of lycée). Support in French and Maths is strengthened in 6e and 5e, and mobile phone use is restricted at lycée. The early Maths exam in Première remains in place.
Private tutoring
A strong student can benefit from private tutoring if the aim is to go deeper into a concept, develop their reasoning or explore a specific interest. The key is to avoid over-training: the work should offer suitable challenges, preserve the enjoyment of learning and strengthen independence. If the student expresses no need, it is better not to add sessions automatically.
Authors, sources, checks and corrections: our editorial methodology
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