The reading
A tutor sets a question that specialists still disagree about, with the reading to go with it.
Oxford Summer Academy · How Oxford Teaches
Oxford teaches by argument.
The tutorial is the oldest and strangest thing about an Oxford education. A student is set a question with no settled answer, reads for it, writes what they think, and then reads that aloud to a specialist whose job is to test it.
The tutorial
An independent programme organised by Oxford Global Education.
The standard
I
The tutorial teaches a standard rather than a syllabus.
Every claim has to carry its reasons, every objection has to be met on its merits, and vagueness is noticed immediately. Students used to being the quickest in the room find it unfamiliar at first, and most of them come to prefer it.
Tutorial discussion
The academic architecture
II
Five components.
One
Tutorials
Each student takes a major subject and a minor. OGE tutors are selected from academics and graduates of the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge.
Two
Independent research
Every student writes one extended paper in their major subject, on a question narrow enough to answer properly in the time available.
Three
The Future Labs
Five afternoon labs, taken by every student, on questions specialists have not settled. The task is to reach a conclusion, not to summarise the reading.
Four
The Oxford experience
The parts of the programme that can only happen here. Students put their arguments to an audience in the rooms where arguments are made professionally.
Five
The Oxford Global Forum
World-class guest lecturers. Each sets out a live problem in their field, then takes questions from the room. Students read on it beforehand.
What the student does
III
A tutorial asks the student to prepare, explain and reconsider.
The student arrives with a written position rather than waiting to be told what to think. During the discussion, they explain the reasons for that position, respond to objections and identify where the argument needs more work.
- Prepare
Read the material, identify the question and write a response in your own words.
- Explain
State the position clearly and show which evidence supports it.
- Test
Respond to questions, consider the strongest objection and decide what should change.
The tutors do not push you to memorise the material. They work on your understanding of it.
🇺🇦Dmytro · Ukraine · Oxford Summer Academy 2026
Tutorial · 2026