Category Archives: TIPS + TRICKS

TIPS + TRICKS

What if students just want the final answer?

We understand that sometimes students are impatient and they insist on the final answer rather than following our step-by-step solution as the approach that Got It has set out for Experts. Here are several tips for you to work through to overcome this situation.

The best approach to take is to set the right expectation for students in terms of solution delivery.

It can be in the middle of the session when students start to urge for the final answers while you are still working on the step-by-step solution. Kindly let them know that step-by-step solution is important for them to solve similar problems themselves and provide an estimated time until you can come to the final solution. 

You can use our suggested messages as below:

“Please note that here at Got It, we are required to provide a step-by-step solution, which will help you to understand the way how the problem is solved. It will take me about [x] minutes until I can finish the final solution. Please hang tight with me!”

If you find that this strategy is still not working well for these types of sessions, you can take a more selective approach in deciding which sessions to bid on or skip.

Some students indicate their desire for a quick solution in the problem description.

Examples of those subject titles:

  • I need the answer real quick not the steps just the answer
  • I just need the answer. 
  • I want answers
  • Answer only
  • Final answer

As a result, you may want to pay close attention to their description as you make your decision to bid or skip. 

You got a low star rating anyway, even the above tips are used. What to do?

We understand it will be frustrating when you get a low star rating after all of your effort. However, don’t be too upset about it. Star rating is only one component of expert rank. If you make sure that your session has strictly followed the 5 Dimensions of a good session, your Audit Scores can balance out the lower ratings. 

Furthermore, in an effort to control student’s behaviors, our team does a review of potentially unfair low rating sessions and we take necessary actions to help inform student expectations on our platform.

TIPS + TRICKS

Chatting with Students

How to chat with students with the help of canned messages

Under no circumstances is any of the following allowed to be shared in the chat. Any violation serves as immediate grounds for removal from the platform. Any use of inappropriate words, profane words and personal information is not allowed. Attempts to share such words in the chat will be censored and appear as “*****” instead of the actual word.

  • Personal identifiable information
  • Flirtatious compliments
  • Angry rebuttals
  • Discussion of finances or pay
  • Profanity
  • Links to external third-party sites

Canned Messages

You can send pre-scripted messages to quickly deliver messages and optimize your response time for a better student experience. All you need to do to pull up these messages is type a forward slash into the chat ( / ) and a list of drop down options for full sentences or responses will appear.

Here’s the list of canned messages available to use:

/wait – I apologize for the wait. I’m working on your explanation and will share it with you soon!

Greeting statements:

/g1 – Welcome to PhotoStudy! Happy to be your expert today!

/g2 – Hi there! I’m looking forward to helping you today.

/g3 – Hey there – happy to help you with this problem!

/g4 – Welcome to PhotoStudy! I’ll be your expert today – be sure to ask me any questions you have!

/g5 – Welcome to PhotoStudy! I’ll make sure you understand how to solve these types of problems.

Confirming the student’s understanding:

/u1 – Did this step make sense?

/u2 – Was this step clear?

/u3 – Did you understand this step?

/u4 – Feel free to ask questions about any of the given steps!

/a1 – Now that we’ve finished the explanation and final answer, did you have any questions on how we did this?

/a2 – And that’s how you get the answer! 🙂 Do you have any questions on the explanation or final answer?

/a3 – These types of problems can be tricky – did I explain how we reached the final answer in a way that makes sense?

/a4 – Now I’d like to make sure that I’ve explained how to solve this in a way that makes sense. Was everything clear to you?

/a6 – That’s the final solution! 🙂 Did it all add up?

/a8 – That’s the final solution! 🙂 Hope I helped you out.

Closing statements:

/c1 – Glad you came to PhotoStudy for help. It’s been a pleasure to help you today!

/c4 – If you enjoyed your experience don’t forget to share it with your friends!

/c5 – Thanks for using PhotoStudy 🙂 Have a great rest of your day!

/c6 – Thanks for using PhotoStudy!

/c7 – It has been a pleasure to work with you today. Come back and see us again!

/c9 – I’ve enjoyed helping you today! Please come back soon!

/c10 – Thanks for working with PhotoStudy. Have an awesome rest of your day!

/c11 – Thanks for choosing PhotoStudy! Please come back again soon! We’re happy to help.

/c12 – Thanks for using PhotoStudy. Remember you can view your explanation even after exiting the chat 🙂 Have an awesome rest of your day!

/c13 – Please enjoy the rest of your day and thank you for letting me help you solve this problem!

/zz – Thanks for choosing PhotoStudy! It’s been a pleasure helping you!

TIPS + TRICKS

Chat Safety Protocol

Use this document to know what to do when a student states that they are:

  • Under 13 years old
  • Planning to commit suicide
  • Involved or planning to engage in criminal activities

What you should do if a student explicitly says they they are in Grade 6 or below OR below age 13:

  • Provide your Expert ID for the Safety team to investigate by emailing Safety@gotitapp.co

What you should do if they encounter a student who is going to commit suicide:

Judging behavior based on their sessions posts is a challenge, but there are potential warning signs or indicators for self-harm or suicide. Below are questions to ask yourself to help assess if another user is feeling suicidal:

  • Has this person specifically noted that they intend to harm themselves
  • Has posted an attachment that implies self-harm or harming others?

If you’ve assessed the situation, and know the person involved, encourage him or her to seek professional help. If, on the other hand, you don’t know the person involved, you may still contact them to express concern or refer him or her to a counselor, a suicide hotline, or someone who might know them better.

  • Provide your Expert ID for the Support team to investigate by emailing Safety@gotitapp.co and providing all relevant information
  • The Safety team will reach out and provide resources to the individual student

What you should do if they encounter a student who is involved, says they will be involved or mentions illegal activities:

  • Do not engage the student in regard to the activities
  • Provide your Expert ID for the Support team to investigate by emailing Safety@gotitapp.co and providing all relevant information
  • The Got It! Safety team will provide this information to local authorities.

Source Materials:

Resources:

TIPS + TRICKS

What Makes a Good Expert?

What makes a good Expert?

(Getting low ratings? Looking for ways to improve your sessions?)

Study experts with higher ratings are routed more questions for bidding AND are more likely to win the bid. Here are some tips from our 5-star Study Experts that can help raise your rating.

Remember, our mission is ensuring the highest educational sessions for our students – not only providing the correct answer, but also helping them understand the concepts and how to apply them to get the correct answer.

  • Ensuring the student understands the explanation and final answer
  • Slicing your explanation multiple times so the student can follow along
  • Engaging and updating the student as you are working
  • Use of proper English and grammar
  • Using LaTex or Wiris editor
  • Setting time expectations
  • Clarifying the question
  • Closing out of a session properly
  • Things to avoid

Ensuring the student understands the explanation and final answer

  • After providing the concept, step-by-step explanation, and final answer – ask if the student understands how you arrived at the final answer. Also, help clarify if (s)he does not understand – remember, just because you have provided the final answer does not mean the session over. The student may have additional questions.

  • Do not continue explaining a problem if the student is clearly not following.

Slicing your explanation multiple times so the student can follow along

  • Slice your explanations in multiple parts – this way shows the students you are continuously working on the problem and gives the students a chance to speak up if they are unclear about a particular step. Students have a much better experience with Experts who use slicing since they feel they are not waiting as long for a solution.

 

 

  • Do not lump the entire explanation into one message – this method has a greater chance of a confusing a student during the explanation, causing you to explain the step again and spending more time on a problem. Additionally, note the blue text in the below explanation – hyperlinks to external sites are strictly forbidden and will result in disciplinary action.

Engaging and updating the student as you are working

  • Talk to the student throughout the session – this method lets the student know you are working through problems, putting him/her at ease. Remember, these students may be potentially stressed from being unable to complete the problem – this is your chance to help ease their frustrations and make learning a more enjoyable experience!
  • Do not ignore what the student says or disappear for the majority of the session to solve the problem. These sessions are a dialogue between Expert and student, so answer appropriately and follow up with questions they may have.

Use of proper English and grammar

  • A majority of our students are English speakers, so using good English improves the quality of your explanations.

  • Poor English and typos will make explanations harder to understand and potentially confuse the students more.

Using LaTex or Wiris editor

  • The LaTex and Wires editor makes equations easier to understand – it is crucial to use these tools as mathematical problems are difficult to type and read using plain text.

  • Not using the LaTex and Wires editor increases the chances a student will get lost during the explanation. Take a look at the difference between the example above and below – see how much easier it is to read mathematical equations after being processed by LaTex and Wires?

Setting time expectations

  • Let the student know that it will take a few minutes to solve the problem. We understand some problems may be more difficult and take longer to explain, which is why we also recommend splitting up the explanation (as already mentioned above) to walk the student to the correct answer.

  • Do not leave the student to solve the problem without telling him/her how long it will take. Students may have their own idea for how long it takes an Expert to solve a problem (we call them Experts for a reason) and be upset if you do not meet their expectations – increasing the chances that they would give a low rating.

Clarifying the question

  • When an image contains more than one question, it is a great idea to clarify which question the student wants answered so an Expert does not answer the wrong one. This also sets the expectations with the students that only one question can be answer per session.

  • Do not answer whichever question you think the student wants. Always clarify the question as not doing so may lead to answering the wrong question and being unhelpful to the student.

Closing out of a session properly

  • Ask the student if (s)he needs any more help with the problem. If not, thank the student for using Got It! and end the session politely.

  • TIP – if you are still working on the problem there is a new shortcut, /time2, that notifies the student that you will continue working on the problem even after the 10-minute timer has expired.
  • Do not just provide the answer and ask the student to close the session. Students evaluate the entire session from beginning to end – it is in your best interest to be kind and courteous until the student closes the session.

TWO THINGS TO ABSOLUTELY AVOID, NO MATTER WHAT

  • Students expect Experts to be able to answer their questions correctly and explain how to get to the correct answer. Do not claim a question unless you are ABSOLUTELY certain you can solve it. Providing incorrect answers always leads to a low-rated session and the potential suspension/termination of a contract.

  • While we are all human and make mistakes sometimes, if a student is telling you that you don’t understand the question, do not continue to try answering the problem until you clarify what problem the student needs. A student is sending in a problem expecting an answer to that problem – providing an irrelevant answer leads to a low-rated session.

 

TIPS + TRICKS

Earn More During Peak Hours

At certain hours of the day, Got It! experiences a higher volume of questions from students. During these times, it is critical to have Study Experts online to handle the higher demand. These are also the times when you can make the most money as an expert!

In order for you to understand when these higher volume times are, please see the chart below. There are four colors, one for Monday – Thursday, one for Friday, one for Saturday, and one for Sunday. Each of those four colors is stretched across the 24 hours of that day (in the Pacific timezone), showing the amount of incoming question volume historically measured for that hour. The higher the peak, the more questions we typically see for that hour.

Example:

  • On Monday – Thursday, you can see that the question volume starts to increase in the early morning and has a sharper Question / Hour rise starting at 01:00 PM. Volume increases until it peaks around 8:00 PM PST (20:00) and then lowers as the evening progresses.
  • Sunday afternoon/night has peak hours since students are getting ready for Monday classes!

To convert to your time zone, you can use this website (it will open in another tab).

http://www.thetimezoneconverter.com/

This chart is placed here in the FAQ for reference purposes. As an Expert you are an extremely valuable part of the Got It! community and we are constantly working to improve your experience as an Expert. Making sure to be online during the peak hours will help you make the most amount of money!