Helping children thrive in school is one of the most important ways parents can set their kids up for success in life. But that’s no easy feat, especially for parents of kids with learning disabilities or other challenges. Tutoring can be a great way for parents to give their kids the extra level of support they need and build skills to succeed in school and beyond.

Modern technology has made it easier than ever to get tutoring – there are plenty of online platforms that offer remote tutoring, right from home. But that also means it’s often up to the parents to find a tutor, make sure the tutor is qualified to teach their child, and schedule sessions. 

We compared two of the top online tutoring services–Wyzant and Marker Learning–to see which is the better learning support option, particularly for students with learning disabilities. We reviewed both services based on Teacher Qualifications, Personalization, Support for Learning Disabilities and Special Needs, and Cost. Read on to see how they stack up. 

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Teacher Qualifications

Winner: Marker Learning

Wyzant is an online tutoring marketplace with thousands of instructors. Each tutor lists their education, qualifications, and approved subjects in their bio. However, just about anyone can sign up to be a tutor on Wyzant. Applications must be reviewed and approved by Wyzant’s review team, but they don’t list the specific certifications required to become a tutor on the platform. Reviews can help parents make a decision, but ultimately, independent tutors can mean students have to try several before finding a good fit.

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For parents of children with learning disabilities, the options are much fewer. Most tutors qualified to teach strategies to overcome dyslexia, for example, only logged a few dozen hours actually teaching those strategies.

Marker Learning takes the guesswork out of the process by ensuring every tutor is highly-qualified and certified to teach in specific strategies. Marker’s impressive advisors who help with the qualification review process include Dr. Kelli Sandman Hurley, co-founder of the Dyslexia Training Institute, and Monica McHale-Small, Director of Education for the Learning Disabilities Association of America. 

That means parents can get peace-of-mind knowing that each instructor is hand-selected and will be qualified to teach their child. Marker’s tutors are also qualified in specific strategies to overcome learning disabilities, including Orton-Gillingham and Wilson structured literacy approaches. 

Winner: Marker Learning

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Personalized Plans

Winner: Marker Learning

The stakes are high for parents choosing a tutoring program, especially for parents of children with learning disabilities. With Wyzant, the choice is entirely up to the parent – and with dozens or even hundreds of tutors matching each search, there are plenty of options. However, tutors have widely varying levels of qualification and many have few or no reviews. Picking the right tutor involves a lot of trial-and-error, and parents can never be certain that the tutor is the best fit for their child. 

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Marker, on the other hand, provides a tutoring plan that’s research-backed and personalized to each learner. Parents can book a free consultation with a Marker specialist to discuss their child’s needs and challenges. Marker will then send a recommendation for a plan that addresses those exact needs using only proven methods. With Marker, parents can trust that they’re getting the best support for their child. 

Winner: Marker Learning

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Learning Disability Tutoring

Winner: Marker Learning

Tutoring for learning disabilities involves highly-specialized strategies that not all tutors are qualified to teach. For example, a Structured Literacy approach is often best for students with dyslexia, and Executive Functioning coaching helps learners overcome ADHD. 

A search for “dyslexia tutors” on Wyzant returns over 300 tutors. Digging deeper, though, many of these tutors only logged a handful of hours actually teaching students with dyslexia – or in some cases none at all. The tutors that do have experience are pricey, often charging $150 per hour or more. And few of these tutors actually list the specific skills they’re equipped to teach.

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Marker, on the other hand, specializes in learning disability tutoring. From the start, Marker is transparent about the specific skills and strategies that each tutor is equipped to teach. Marker will also match every learner with a tutor that is qualified to support their specific needs and challenges. For parents who want to trust that their children are getting the specialized support they need, it’s a no-brainer.

Winner: Marker Learning

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Cost

Winner: It Depends

Tutors on Wyzant set their own prices, which means sessions can range anywhere from $10 to $300+. This makes choosing the right tutor even more difficult. For parents on a budget, a $40/session tutor might seem attractive, but these tutors often have very few hours logged or no reviews from other parents. A $150/session tutor lists a deep history of experience and qualifications, but may be out of the price range of many parents. 

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Marker, on the other hand, sets their price at $75 per hour-long session for all tutors, and discounts are available if parents book multiple sessions together. While Marker’s price-per-session is higher than the lower end on Wyzant, it’s more affordable than many of the more-qualified Wyzant tutors. And with Marker only providing tutors that are highly-qualified and specially-trained, it’s often a much better value for the price. Unless a parent is only looking for the bare minimum at a low cost, Marker is the best value for learning disability tutoring.

Winner: It Depends

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The Ultimate Winner: Marker Learning!

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While Wyzant offers a wide range of tutors at varying costs and qualifications, Marker’s highly-qualified tutors, personalized plans, and affordable prices make it the best option for parents looking for extra support for their children. With Marker, every parent can trust that their child will be receiving the best support available.

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