Bansho Tutoring Review Summary

Bansho is an online tutoring company for North American students in grades K2-8. They hire teachers from the US and Canada with degrees and experience, offer $15-25 per session plus compensation for correspondence, though hours are part-time after school/weekends and they don’t provide teaching materials.

Pay (per hour):$15-25
Native/Non-Native Speakers accepted?US, Canada
TEFL / TESOL / CELTA required?No
Degree / diploma required?Yes
Adult / child students?Children
Class size:1
Minimum hours (per week):0

Bansho Tutoring Pros and Cons:

Pros:

  • Good pay rate
  • Regular longer-term students
  • Correspondence/feedback time with parents is financially compensated
  • Autonomy to devise tutoring materials that address learners’ specific needs
  • No financial penalties for teacher cancelations – just reschedule the session

Cons:

  • North American tutors only
  • Part-time contract position – not a full-time job
  • Only elementary-middle school students
  • Must be comfortable creating bespoke tutorials for individual students – can take time
  • Must maintain a consistent schedule for regular students

Is Bansho Legit?

Bansho is a small edtech company based in New York, USA. It started in 2020 by making educational videos, before branching out into live online tutoring. As opposed to teaching lessons, Bansho tutorials are primarily focused around homework help for North American students in grades K2-8, and take place via Zoom. Tutors (or ‘Learning Partners’ as Bansho calls them) are expected to ‘work with parents and students to identify specific gaps in learning and areas for long-term improvement in literacy, mathematics and executive functioning’.

How Much Does Bansho Pay?

The Bansho pay rate is $15-25 per hour, depending on the length of the session (sessions can last anywhere between 15-60 minutes, as determined by the needs of the student and their parents).

Tutors/Learning Partners are financially compensated for some of their time corresponding with and giving feedback to parents.

Invoices must be submitted at the end of each month before the Bansho salary is paid around the following 10th of the month via bank transfer.

There are no financial penalties or cancelation fees for teachers (you are expected to reschedule), and half-pay is received if a student’s parents cancel their child’s tutorial less than 24 hours beforehand.

Bansho Tutoring Hours

Bansho tutoring hours are primarily in evenings after school and at weekends (US time zones), though sessions are scheduled for the day time during holiday periods.

Bansho tutorial sessions vary in length, depending on the child’s needs in agreement with the parents. Typically, they are either 15, 30, 45, or 60 minutes long.

Instead of opening up available hours, as is the case with most teaching companies, Bansho Learning Partners/Tutors instead block off their UNAVAILABLE hours in a Google Calendar.

While there is no minimum hours commitment, Bansho expects its Learning Partners to manage between 5-25 students and their parents. There may be 1-3 sessions a week with the same student, depending on their specific learning goals. The company matches tutors with families, though you have the option of declining any students that you are offered.

Bansho Learning Partners/Tutors must also be available to answer any questions via text when needed, and provide supplemental resources and support for the parents. Some of this correspondence and feedback time is financially compensated.

Any tutor cancelations must be rescheduled (without penalty), while you will receive half-pay if a parent cancels within 24 hours of a session.

Bansho Tutoring Requirements

To become a Bansho Learning Partner/Tutor, you must meet the following requirements:

  • Be from the USA or Canada
  • Possess a Bachelor’s degree
  • Have prior teaching or tutoring experience
  • Excel at teaching in a virtual setting
  • Be able to present a clean, professional virtual setting on a computer with a reliable internet connection, webcam, and microphone
  • Have a solid understanding of child education, social-emotional learning and family engagement strategies
  • Be able to quickly develop rapport with children and parents, and approach educational problem-solving and planning with empathy and creativity
  • Pass a comprehensive background check

It is also preferred (but not essential) that you possess a US teaching certification and have a minimum of 3 years virtual and/or classroom teaching experience.

Bansho Tutoring Application Process

To apply for Bansho jobs, visit their website and complete the application form by submitting the following information:

  • Full name
  • Email address
  • Phone number
  • Resume
  • Cover letter
  • Describe your experience teaching both literacy and mathematics for K-2, 3-5, and/or 6-8.
  • Are you working as a traditional classroom teacher (in-person or hybrid) during the 2021-2022 school year? (Yes/No)
  • Share your time zone and typical weekly availability.
  • Are you available after school, evenings, and/or on weekends? (Yes/No)

Once your application has been reviewed, you will receive an email back to schedule a Bansho interview and mock class on Zoom. You will not be provided with teaching materials for it but are expected to prepare and use your own. Be aware that the information given during the interview will help determine which families and students you are matched with after being hired.

Upon passing the Bansho interview and mock class, there will be a technology training session, background check and contract signing before you can start tutoring.

Bansho Tutoring Reviews

Being a small and relatively new company, there are very few Bansho reviews from teachers available online.

There is a Bansho Glassdoor page with just 2 reviews on it, though both award a maximum rating of 5*:

Bansho Glassdoor review
Bansho Glassdoor review

Conclusion – Is Bansho Tutoring Worth It?

While a different proposition to ESL teaching, Bansho tutoring is another non-China option for teachers looking to replace the work they have lost in that country (though after-school US hours will suit some but not others). The pay is good, there are no penalties, and correspondence/feedback time is compensated. Regular, longer-term students can be nice, but they do reduce flexibility from week to week. This is only an opportunity for teachers in the US and Canada, however, and you must be comfortable with part-time hours, alongside another job elsewhere, and devising bespoke tutorials for elementary-middle school students.

You can apply to Bansho here.

A full list of other online teaching companies can be found here.

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Dr Daniel Spence

Daniel Spence is the founder of Online Teaching Review. He has been an international teacher since 2008, an award-winning academic, author of two books, and holds a PhD, MA, BA (Hons), and TESOL.

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