Jesse
Certified Tutor
Undergraduate Degree: Pomona College - Bachelor in Arts, Philosophy
SAT Composite (1600 scale): 1550
SAT Math: 760
SAT Verbal: 760
SAT Writing: 770
Rock Climbing, Journalism, Baseball, Backpacking
AP US History
College English
College Level American History
Comparative Literature
Elementary School Math
High School English
High School Level American History
ISEE Prep
SAT Subject Test in Literature
SAT Subject Test in Mathematics Level 1
SAT Subject Test in Mathematics Level 2
SAT Subject Test in United States History
SAT Subject Tests Prep
What is your teaching philosophy?
My goal is help students reach a point where they no longer need my assistance. I always focus on teaching the fundamentals of whatever subject my student is studying so that they start to see why we do things a certain way instead of just learning the way to do them. That way, they can start to anticipate approaches to novel questions and see for themselves how to find an answer. When a student sees a type of question they have never seen before, and is able to use the fundamentals of that subject to figure out the proper technique on their own, I know I have done my job.
What might you do in a typical first session with a student?
Before I give any advice on how to answer a question, I always want to see how the student approaches the question to understand where they are coming from, to see their strengths and weaknesses. There is no one-size-fits-all approach to teaching. You can learn so much about a student's needs and learning style by simply watching and listening.
How can you help a student become an independent learner?
Students become independent when they understand the most basic parts of whatever subject they are studying. Everything builds on the thing that came before it, and once students start to see that structure for themselves they can independently tackle all sorts of questions, even ones they have never seen before.
If a student has difficulty learning a skill or concept, what would you do?
I would go to the most basic elements of the concept we were are working on, and build up from there until the problem areas are identified and dealt with.