Manori: Montgomery County tutor

Certified Tutor

I received my doctorate degree in physics from University of Cincinnati in 2007. Since graduation, I have worked as a postdoctoral fellow in the department of chemistry at University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio for three years and as a lecturer in physics in the department of physics at Northern Kentucky University (NKU), Kentucky for three years. Currently, I work as an associate professor of physics in the department of Math, Physics, and Computer Science in the Blue Ash College (UCBA), University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio. Since I joined UCBA College in 2013, I have been engaged in teaching extensively and my main area of teaching includes calculus based and algebra based introductory physics courses and physics labs. I also teach variety of math causes including college algebra, calculus I and calculus II.
My passion and my responsibility as an educator are helping students to continue their learning beyond the time and location constraints of the classroom. As a result, I expect my students to gain a broad view of the subject matter in my course. But I also expect them to sharpen their critical and creative thinking, advance their analytical and problem-solving skills and acquire the necessary tools to prepare them for life beyond college. I strive to achieve these goals by establishing an interactive and cooperative environment in which students actively participate in the learning process.
The mathematics and physics curriculum provides many opportunities to practice problem solving skills and they create opportunities for students to develop multiple skills such as questioning all evidence, breaking down complex situations and researching information related to the problem. The instructor/tutor serves as an example for his or her students as he or she explains the logic supporting an argument, places the problem in context and clarifies the questions surrounding the problem. I develop students' problem-solving skills in the following ways.
I believe a good teacher/tutor does not necessarily impose his or her method of thinking onto students, but rather steers them through their own thought processes to develop more effective approaches to problem solving. My approach to helping students who struggle with a problem is to first ask them to explain their ideas about the problem. I then walk them through the process of breaking the problem down into more manageable steps.

If a student approaches a problem through a method different from the one, I presented, I help him or her embrace that method and provide guidance on how to proceed. I understand that nurturing different approaches to a problem enhances student creativity, and that the best place to experiment with different problem-solving methods is the classroom. Even if all the equations are forgotten once the semester is over, students familiar with multiple, scientific, and mathematical approaches to problem solving will possess a valuable skill that will provide a lifelong benefit.

When a student asks a particularly difficult question, I often will ask a series of easier questions that lead the student from the subject knowledge he or she already has to the bigger answer he or she is seeking. I do this not only to help the student see the problem from a broader perspective, but also to guide him or her through the best thought process for reaching the answer. Thus, the student learns to use existing knowledge to explore and solve new problems.
In my spare time, I enjoy reading that which enriches my life, gardening, walking, jogging, and the odd game of disk golf with my friends.