It will not be too long before autumn arrives in Cairo. For newly arrived foreigners it will be impossible to imagine that by October the leaves will have started to turn and the temperature will plummet. It is hard even for me to believe it at the moment. Ramadan is beginning this week and those same newly arrived foreigners should discuss with their more established compatriots the dos and don'ts - including what "supplies to horde before Wednesday and where to spend the Eid holiday in mid-October. But I am not going to write about Ramadan this week, but another old chestnut, tutoring. Private tutoring has been called unnecessary, a drain on the household budget and even illegal during my own four years in Cairo. But parents calling in private tutors to work miracles is common around the world. I don't know if it is more widespread in Cairo than say in New York, where the rampant rush to swat up on SATs, has kept a good friend of mine, Mike Giles, in full-time employment for more than 20 years, but it is certainly a buoyant black market. Apart from the preparations for Ramadan, parents are now looking for tutors for their children, which started me thinking, how do parents select a good tutor? Many of my friends and former colleagues have worked as private tutors in Cairo. For the most part, as I understand it, tutors come via word of mouth and after a brief meeting, where the fee is agreed and the deal is done. Generally speaking, it would seem private tutors charge LE 250 per hour. But are parents getting their money's worth? Parents may like to consider the following questions; (1) What is the teaching plan for each session? - (2) Has the tutor set homework? - (3) Does the tutor have set objectives? - (4) Is there evidence that the student's learning is being extended? - (5) How is the learning being assessed? There is an old axiom in the market place; buyers beware. And in the freelance private tutor market, I think this would be very apt. Where to go then to find a reputable tutor? I know that Phil Neild's expatriate service company, cairolist.com, handles reputable tutors and I am sure that the British Council in Dokki could also recommend reliable and qualified teachers. I think parents should receive regular feedback from tutors and work together with parents on an overall plan for their children. I have often been told by tutors that they end up helping students with their homework, writing their essays and completing assignments. Which not only makes education even more expensive, but could also make the student lazy and reliant on a tutor as if he or she was their maid. So, to recap, effective tutoring is a two-way street. Which is my lame way of getting onto Zamalek's new one-way system! The rumor of course is that the President's son, Gamal Mubarak, is moving into Ahmed Heshmat Street. Which is surprising to me, as this is the low rent side of 26th July, the southern side being where all the posh apartments and villas stand. So, if the new one-way system helps Mr Mubarak get to work, so be it. But I do hope that the Zamalek beautification program doesn't wipe out the graffiti on Mansour Mahmoud, adjacent to Hardees Restaurant. I have been watching this graffiti develop over the years. The kids who hang out on the Hardees corner graffiti the nearby walls, leaving each other messages, to celebrate birthdays and I guess it is also a crude dating service. Hardees corner is an institution. It is almost the 1950s movie "American Graffiti, where the coming of age is fuelled by a diet of burgers and shakes. Any tutors looking for work should advertise on these graffiti walls near Hardees, as the target market is just standing around waiting for that life changing event. Though remember, when looking for a tutor, parents should take a close interest in what the tutor is teaching your children. What is their relationship? What is going on in your child's bedroom or the tutor's apartment? I believe George W. Bush had private tutoring at Harvard and or Yale and he is still calling Australia, "Austria. This is up with former Vice President Dan Quayle, who regretted that he hadn't studied Latin at school, when on an official tour of Latin America, because he couldn't speak with the "friendly and warm people there. As I said, "Buyer beware.
