It is a requirement of Foundation Training that you have a tutorial of at least an hour once a week, during normal working hours. The timing needs to be agreed between you and your Educational Supervisor as time must be set aside which is free from patient appointments and interruptions. The content of the tutorial will depend upon your learning needs, but some structure is essential.
Things which can form a tutorial include these items:

• Review of your E-Portfolio
• Looking at the reflective logs for the past week/month.
  Points for discussion could be:
• Self assessment: What went well? What were the challenges? What didn’t go well?
• Considering evidence: e.g. feedback from assessment? Trainer feedback? Nurse feedback? Patient feedback? Unexpected outcomes of procedure? Own feelings?
• Analysis: Describing WHY. e.g. identifying cause & effect for unexpected case outcomes, or identifying reasons why progress slow in one competency are and fast in another etc.
• Formulating change: Describe the learning outcomes from this exercise. Identify what you will do to address any slow progress or problems.
• Discussing areas of concern, or problems to be solved. These may produce learning needs to be recorded in the E-Portfolio
• Discussion of Day Release Course topics, both last and next study days.
• Tutorial topic for the week plus plans for next tutorials

If there is an assessment to be undertaken, either an ADEPT or a CbD, this, together with the feedback and discussion, may form the major part of the tutorial. It too will need to be recorded fully in the E-Portfolio.

Additional Points

Remember, for a tutorial to be successful planning is usually required, both by you and your ES.  You will benefit much more from tutorials if there is regular discussion as to which subjects you are going to cover.

Tutorials do not need to be about clinical topics.  Much of general dental practice is about management, communications and professional and NHS values.  These are subjects which may not have been explored greatly in a dental school environment, and yet which need to be discussed and understood. 

Ideally your tutorials will take place in a quiet environment away from disturbance, noise and interruption. Your practice may well have a dedicated ‘teaching room’ or perhaps an office will be used. Some tutorials, however, are best held in a clinical environment - in the surgery. You may even have a clinical tutorial with you ES acting as a nurse/tutor whilst you treat a patient, or vice-versa.

At the start of the year, you will probably have many ad-hoc clinical teaching interactions with your ES, or with other members of the team. Please don't forget that each of these encounters is a mini-tutorial in its own right, demand reflection and learning from yourself if you are to benefit and to grow in experience, wisdom and skill.