TJ
Certified Tutor
Undergraduate Degree: University of Ilorin - Bachelor of Science, Mechanical Engineering
Undergraduate Degree: Prairie View A&M University - Mechanical Engineer, General Engineering
I enjoy swimming, social interactions, playing basketball, tutoring and dancing
Algebra 3/4
GMAT Quantitative
Mechanical Engineering
Quantitative Reasoning
What is your teaching philosophy?
I believe that given the right tools and motivation, everyone has the power to excel, and that is one of my methods of working with my candidates. My philosophy is a connect, serve, grow, and go linkage; that is to help students connect with their academic tasks and school teacher's methodologies, then tenaciously build the required discipline to maintain that connection (which I call the service phase). Over time, I would train students on how to work independently. The last phase would be for each student to go out there and disseminate the knowledge and skills that we have worked together to acquire.
What might you do in a typical first session with a student?
I would reintroduce myself, ask them about themselves, in what areas they need extra attention, and how they believe we can achieve the impossible. I would then go ahead with a short diagnostic test to see where they stand and how we can improve their confidence.
How can you help a student become an independent learner?
I would be corresponding with the student at least once every three days to ask about their progress and what they have achieved so far, and I would give them an opportunity to ask me any questions. I would also encourage the student to create a curriculum to follow and to help them track their progress.
How would you help a student stay motivated?
I would let them know that their initiative to even try places them above the rest. I would help them accentuate their success, no matter how small, and boost their morale with questions a tad more tedious than their previous successful answer until they are completely confident handling the questions with the highest difficulty rating.
If a student has difficulty learning a skill or concept, what would you do?
I would try to personify the quandary into commonplace real life situations so that they would be able to relate to the problem. If this proves unsuccessful, I would re-explain the fundamentals of the concept until I am certain that they have understood the concept.
How do you help students who are struggling with reading comprehension?
I advise them to skim through the entire passage just to get necessary ideas like the author's tone, the author's reason for writing the passage, and the best theme topic. I would then recommend reading the question and going back to the passage to look for their answers two lines above and below the reference line.
What strategies have you found to be most successful when you start to work with a student?
First, I try to make them comfortable so that they can easily ask questions. Secondly, I try to reiterate their success thus far and keep them motivated. Lastly, I reinforce what we've learned so far with an abundance of homework and make sure to check the accuracy of their work during the next session.
How would you help a student get excited/engaged with a subject that they are struggling in?
I would personify the task at hand and give them a brief history about the origin of the topic and what makes it relevant to their course work. As much as I can, I would make it come alive and begin from the simplest tasks under the topic to cover.
What techniques would you use to be sure that a student understands the material?
Feedback and positive reiteration technique. I would intermittently ask vital clues during the class in a way to reinforce the new knowledge so that they do not forget.
How do you build a student's confidence in a subject?
I would empathize with them and help them understand that in the future, I look forward to reciprocity of knowledge on the same topic. I would also tactically begin the course with simple practical tasks in a way that boosts their confidence and gets them excited about the new topic.
How do you evaluate a student's needs?
I evaluate my student's needs by looking at their actual work. through this, I could understand their strengths and in what areas they require special attention.
How do you adapt your tutoring to the student's needs?
First, I state the objective and explain to them why it's important to understand the course. Secondly, I provide to them written directions as to how the course would progress, and encourage them to ask questions or make suggestions along the way. Finally, I make them succinctly reiterate key points that I have passed across, and subsequently give them homework to practice with.
What types of materials do you typically use during a tutoring session?
I typically use expressive, imaginative skills, and if this proves abortive, I implement visual aids like pictures and graphs. My last resort is typically using realistic objects to express the ideas that I am trying to pass across.