Kevin
Certified Tutor
Undergraduate Degree: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill - Bachelors, Psychology, Classics
Graduate Degree: University of Virginia-Main Campus - Masters, Commerce (Marketing and Management)
SAT Composite (1600 scale): 1560
SAT Math: 750
SAT Verbal: 800
SAT Writing: 750
GRE Verbal: 169
Reading, hiking, cooking, tennis
Latin 1
Latin 3
Latin 4
Quantitative Reasoning
SAT Subject Test in Latin
SAT Subject Tests Prep
What is your teaching philosophy?
Not being so far removed from being a student myself, I know that students learn best when they have good reason to do so. I will seek to help students engage with the material in a way that appeals to their own interests, and make clear the benefits that academic achievement can give them both in the short and long term.
What might you do in a typical first session with a student?
The first session will be an ideal time to get to know the student, find out what motivates them, and discover which areas I will help them improve in. This will likely include a practice assessment and engaging in a couple of icebreaker activities.
How can you help a student become an independent learner?
I believe a key to fostering independent learning is to connect material with a student's personal interest; to demonstrate how the new knowledge can enhance their experience of something they already enjoy. Also, the tutoring should not only focus on areas where improvement is most needed. Practice in areas where students already excel builds confidence that they can bring to other studies.
How would you help a student stay motivated?
Students can become discouraged when they hit a particular roadblock they struggle to overcome. I would help students stay motivated by encouraging them to reach out for help in those cases so that frustration doesn't build up.
If a student has difficulty learning a skill or concept, what would you do?
When a student faces a particularly tough challenge, I would keep an open dialogue to identify the source of the issue. From there, I would present the concept in a new context that highlights the trouble spots from a new angle.
How do you help students who are struggling with reading comprehension?
To help students with reading comprehension, I would first find out if the problem stems from a particular source that we can isolate and focus on, like grammar, vocabulary, or identifying themes. If no particular issue can be found, I would encourage the student to adopt different tactics, like highlighting important details in the passage or pausing between paragraphs to process the full meaning of the text.
What strategies have you found to be most successful when you start to work with a student?
I don't have any formal tutoring experience yet, but I believe fostering an open and engaging relationship with the student is the key to helping them approach new challenges with confidence.
How would you help a student get excited/engaged with a subject that they are struggling in?
A good way to get a student engaged with a trouble subject is to connect it to a subject they love. For instance, a student that loves reading but struggles with biology might have their interest sparked with some science-fiction literature that presents exciting possibilities of future applications of biology.
What techniques would you use to be sure that a student understands the material?
Practice assessments are always helpful gauges of understanding, especially with earlier assessment scores to use as indicators of progress. Another good way to assess understanding is to simply discuss the material with them conversationally, to see if they can draw on several of the core ideas and skills to hold fluid conversations.
How do you build a student's confidence in a subject?
Confidence can be built by showing and praising how much progress a student has achieved already, and encouraging them to greater heights. Also, having students tackle simpler questions first can help them gain confidence for more difficult questions later.
How do you evaluate a student's needs?
Because I will primarily be focusing on standardized test preparation, practice assessments will be critical in evaluating a student's needs. Also, open discussion can shed plenty of light on where students feel confident and where they want more help.
How do you adapt your tutoring to the student's needs?
The important thing to remember in a tutoring context is that unlike a classroom environment, I will have the opportunity to assess and address the student's needs on an individual basis, tailoring the lessons to their unique situation.
What types of materials do you typically use during a tutoring session?
Modern standardized testing lives within a fairly narrow space of pencil, paper, and computer screen. However, I will seek to get students more engaged by drawing on other tools like textbooks or multimedia.