Here are two ways of helping them to overcome their difficulty. This may take the form of notes attached to a marked assignment, or telephone- discussion points built into the course design and regularly scheduled. When planning what you want to say to the student incorporate questions into the session so that you can be sure you will draw the students into the discussion. Questions should be more specific than that. It will also help the students if you phrase the question in such a way as to invite them to draw upon their own experiences in life as they answer.
All persons move more easily from a familiar starting point.
Thirdly, the structure of a telephone-based tutorial needs to be examined, particularly where it is to be incorporated into an established course. Outlines and course guides will have to be altered because some material previously read will now be discussed. Some form of external pacing will be necessary to ensure that the student has completed preparatory work prior to the interaction with the tutor. Increased interaction may mean that both participants need to know each other. There's some evidence that students are more likely to telephone tutors whose faces and voices they know.