How to choose a safe online tutor for your child: a checklist

Why does safety matter so much with online tutoring?

Because an online tutor is someone your child spends time with, often in your home, through a screen. A good provider doesn't rely on trust alone. It builds safety into how tutors are recruited, how lessons are run and how problems are handled, so your child is protected even when you're not sitting beside them.

The questions below work for any provider, from a large platform to an individual tutor. Good providers are happy to answer them. If the answers are vague, or you're told not to worry, keep looking.

How are tutors checked before they teach?

This is the first question to ask, and the answer should be specific. Phrases such as “carefully selected” or “hand-picked” don't tell you what actually happens. Ask:

• Does every tutor have a background check before they can teach children?
• Who confirms the check: the provider, or does the tutor simply declare it?
• Do tutors sign an agreement or code of conduct covering how they behave with children?
• Is a tutor blocked from teaching until the checks are complete?
• How are tutors' teaching skills assessed before they start?

Where do the lessons take place?

Lessons should take place inside the provider's own classroom or platform, not over personal video calls or chat apps. When lessons stay inside one system, the provider can set the rules, control who can join and act quickly if something goes wrong. Ask:

• Do lessons only happen inside the provider's platform?
• Can anyone other than the tutor and your child join a lesson?
• Can you see how lessons work or sit in, especially at the start?
• Are lessons recorded? If so, who can watch the recordings, and how long are they kept?

How can tutors and children contact each other?

Private, unsupervised contact is where risks grow. A safe setup keeps all communication inside the platform and away from personal accounts. Ask:

• Does messaging go through the platform, where parents can see it?
• Does the platform stop tutors and children swapping phone numbers, emails or social media details?
• Is there a clear rule against tutors contacting children outside the platform?
• Can you control what your child can open in the app, for example with a child mode protected by a PIN?

How do you report a concern?

Every provider should make it easy to raise a worry, big or small, and should tell you what happens next. Ask:

• Is there a clear way to report a concern during a lesson, not just afterwards?
• Who reads reports, and how quickly do they respond?
• Can children, as well as parents, raise a concern easily?
• Will the provider tell you what action it has taken?

Teach your child a few simple rules too: they never have to keep a secret from you, they can leave a lesson and come and find you if something feels wrong, and they never share personal details such as their address, school or passwords.

What should you ask about data and payments?

• What personal information does the provider collect about your child, and why?
• Where is your family's data stored, and who can access it?
• Are there ads or third-party trackers in the parts of the app your child uses?
• Who handles card payments? A provider that uses a specialist payment processor doesn't need to see your full card number.
• Can you ask for your family's data to be deleted?

What are the warning signs to look out for?

• A tutor asks to move lessons or chats to another app.
• A tutor contacts your child directly, or asks them to keep something private.
• The provider can't explain how tutors are checked.
• There's no clear way to report a concern.
• Your child seems uncomfortable, anxious or unwilling to join lessons with a particular tutor.

If you notice any of these, pause lessons and raise it with the provider. If you believe a child is at risk, contact the police or your local child protection services straight away.

What should you watch for in the first few lessons?

The first lessons are your best chance to see how a tutor works. Stay nearby and notice whether:

• The tutor introduces themselves and explains what the lesson will cover.
• The conversation stays on the lesson and on topics suitable for your child's age.
• The tutor is patient and encouraging, and speaks to your child respectfully.
• Any messages from the tutor or provider are about lessons only, and go through the platform.
• Your child seems relaxed afterwards and happy to go back.

Ask your child about each lesson in a relaxed way, such as “What was the funniest part?”, so talking about lessons becomes normal. That makes it easier for them to tell you if anything ever feels wrong.

How can you set up lessons safely at home?

• Put the device in a shared room, not a bedroom, with the door open.
• Check what's visible behind your child on camera, such as school uniforms, name labels or the view from a window.
• Stay nearby for the first lessons so you can see how the tutor teaches.
• Use the parent controls the provider offers, and keep your own login details private.

How does CurioKids keep lessons safe?

Here is how CurioKids answers the questions in this checklist:

• Teachers can't teach until our team has confirmed a background check and they have signed our teaching agreement.
• A “Report a concern” button is in every lesson and throughout the app.
• Messages block the sharing of personal contact details.
• You control a child mode protected by a PIN.
• Lessons happen only inside the CurioKids classroom.
• There are no ads or third-party trackers inside the classroom or the children's app.
• Payments are handled by Stripe. CurioKids never sees your full card number.
• Your family's data is hosted on AWS in Singapore.

Read more on our safety page or in the FAQ, and book a free first lesson from our Singapore or Malaysia page when you're ready.