Robin: Darien tutor

Certified Tutor

When I graduated college, I was completely torn over my career choice – journalism or education. Writing had always been my strength and thus I aspired to make a career of my skill. I had not considered teaching when I began college. However, many of my friends there were education majors who influenced me on a daily basis as they passionately related how rewarding it was to be able to push a pupil just a little bit further through encouraging words.

When I was studying in Paris, I not only traveled throughout Europe, but had the exhilarating opportunity to tutor a French student in English. After a couple of weeks, she had become more than just my student – she was a special person in my life. In fact, I was so captivated by this experience that upon my return to college, I volunteered to be a teaching assistant for a French course. Although I lacked prior teaching experience, I instantly felt comfortable in front of the classroom. I enjoyed sharing my knowledge with others and felt my enthusiasm made them eager to learn. Unfortunately, this experience took place during my last semester. I figured it was probably too late to change paths and become a teacher – though I longed to. Thus, I decided to give journalism a chance before considering other options.

Within a few months, I found my way to Wall St. as a financial journalist for Standard & Poor’s. While the job had been a thrilling learning experience, I knew that sitting in front of a computer all day hardly made a positive impact on anyone. However, that experience, combined with my many journalism internships, have qualified me to be the faculty advisor of The View.

I am now in my tenth year of teaching, having taught eight years of French and tutored one year of English as a Second Language. As I continue on my journey as a French teacher, it is my goal to work with students of all proficiency levels, from I to AP. I am currently teaching levels II Honors, III, and IV. In addition, I would like to become more proficient in Spanish, while continuing to expand my French vocabulary. I would also like to attend more professional conferences so that I can acquire new techniques for which to instruct my students.