Sarah

What is your teaching philosophy?

For me, teaching is about instilling confidence in the subject matter. As a student, my biggest struggle was feeling confident ether in my ability or in my understanding. I have found that this is many students’ largest obstacle. Confidence can be a massive hindrance to a student's understanding and their ability to perform. Through utilizing questions and helping students come to their own answer, my teaching method and philosophy is to show students that they can understand and master a subject.

What might you do in a typical first session with a student?

I believe questions are the most powerful tool we can use in tutoring. In a first session, I would get to know where the student is struggling-- but more importantly, why they are struggling. If a student has trouble focusing, that would lead to a very different session than if a student does not understand.

How can you help a student become an independent learner?

I can help a student become an independent learner by finding a learning technique that fits that student. Some students are auditory learners; others are visual or any other number of styles. It is important to figure out how this student would excel and help them development techniques that fit them.

How would you help a student stay motivated?

A key way to keep students motivated is through goals. While it is good to set deadlines, this can often burden students with extra work and stress. Rather, when a student feels a sense of understanding or mastery of a subject or technique, it is often very satisfying and can be the best motivational strategy. For example, I was tutoring a student in AP US History, and while she had a good handle on the subject manner, the wording of the questions on the AP Exam confused her. This is a problem many students have. I developed a technique where she would write her own questions in the style of the test and encouraged her to write 4 questions a week. Becoming the test maker broke down a barrier and allowed her to overcome her fear of the test. She felt so satisfied at this mastery that she began writing ten questions a week and used the technique in other courses as well.

If a student has difficulty learning a skill or concept, what would you do?

Switch it up. If a student is having difficulty, understand it is often because of the way it is being explained. It is the tutor’s job to find out where the difficulty is stemming from and re-shape the lesson to fit the student’s need.