About Me

I started teaching and tutoring as a retail employee in Cleveland, teaching people how to use the technology I sold. From there, I worked in the Writing Center at John Carroll, then taught composition. I taught composition while in graduate school at UW-Milwaukee, and I spent a considerable amount of time teaching technology - in a sense - through a customer service job at a big cell-phone company. I taught 5th grade in Chicago Public Schools, worked as a substitute teacher in CPS, and finally moved into a middle-school science and reading position in the northwest suburbs, where I recently began my 10th year as a classroom teacher. I love to teach, and I think that my teaching experience is diverse enough to make virtually any subject - and any audience - within reach. My favorite areas, though, are those that are fundamental to everything else (in my opinion) - reading and writing. I finished a Masters in Reading Education at Olivet Nazarene University, and I am also a certified Reading Specialist. I hope to eventually pursue a doctorate and advanced research into the complex and changing intersections between literacy and technology. To me, this is the most practical and relevant area that I can focus on, and it also happens to fit my passions and my strengths. I love to write, and I love to teach writing because of what it helps me learn about my students and about writing itself.

Education & Certifications

Q&A with Ben

Tutoring Subjects