Paul: Blaine tutor
Certified Tutor
I have several years of experience tutoring and teaching students learning languages. In my current position which I've held for 8 years, I advise students applying for nationally-competitive awards. For all students, I listen, develop a rapport, earn trust and advise accordingly. I will do the same as your tutor.
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Undergraduate Degree: Missouri University - Bachelors, German, International Studies
Graduate Degree: Indiana University-Bloomington - Masters, Second Language Studies
Building and sculpting; hiking; reading. Favorite genres right now are memoir and graphic novel.
What is your teaching philosophy?
My philosophy is to bridge what someone is learning to how it intersects in her/his life. To use creative analogies to make abstract concepts easier to grasp and promote questions and encourage curiosity.
What might you do in a typical first session with a student?
Learn about what their interests and hobbies are so that, when possible, lessons can be catered to those interests.
How can you help a student become an independent learner?
By encouraging them to look for opportunities to learn outside the places where learning stereotypically occurs. For example, names of places that derive from a language they are learning. Where does the name come from?
How would you help a student stay motivated?
By keeping up the pace of tutoring sessions and establishing constructive, realistic and obtainable goals.
If a student has difficulty learning a skill or concept, what would you do?
If it's something multifaceted and complex, I might advise just putting it down for a day and coming back to it another time. In other cases, try to present it as a cube that you need to rotate and look at from another angle.