Ashley
Certified Tutor
Undergraduate Degree: Princeton University - Bachelors, Spanish and Portuguese Language and Culture
Graduate Degree: Rice University - PHD, History
SAT Composite (1600 scale): 1500
SAT Verbal: 760
SAT Writing: 770
Reading, swimming, contemplating
11th Grade Reading
11th Grade Writing
12th Grade Reading
12th Grade Writing
Adult Literacy
African-American History
AP Spanish Literature and Culture
AP US History
College English
College Level American History
Conversational Spanish
High School English
High School Level American History
High School Writing
Latin America History
SAT Subject Test in Spanish with Listening
SAT Subject Test in United States History
SAT Subject Tests Prep
Spanish 1
How can you help a student become an independent learner?
I aim to teach students to see themselves in the material they are learning. Independent learning is best achieved when students can match their own personalities, interests, and learning styles with appropriate methods of mastering a subject.
What is your teaching philosophy?
The best teachers are those who are willing to learn and re-learn. I see myself as more than a coach who gives guidance from the sidelines; I’m also a fellow athlete who helps students hone their skills by doing the workout routine with them and teaching them the techniques I’ve gleaned from my past experiences in the “sport." As a tutor, my purpose is to serve students by working alongside them in order to increase their efficiency in learning their subjects.
How do you help students who are struggling with reading comprehension?
I would teach students to break down books, chapters, and passages into digestible portions. Written language—not unlike math problems or scientific theories—has structure and logic behind it that students can be taught to look out for. Heightening my students' awareness of organizational “cues” within reading passages should not only help their reading comprehension but also increase students' reading speed, making them more efficient readers overall.
How do you build a student's confidence in a subject?
Every student is gifted in some area. One way to build a student’s confidence is to help them apply the knowledge and skills they already have to their learning of the subject. Aside from that, once a degree of competency is gained, nothing beats continually practicing the subject. Having students repeat the skills they have learned will go a long way in growing their comfort with the material and building their confidence for test day.
How do you evaluate a student's needs?
The student needs a tutoring approach that blends their own needs and preferences with the demands of their teachers and/or the guidelines of the given standardized test. What is the student’s preferred learning style and how does this line up with their instructor’s teaching style? In what specific areas does the student need to gain competency, and how will the student be graded? What does the student want to get out of his or her tutoring sessions?
How do you adapt your tutoring to the student's needs?
The tutoring experience is meant to combine students’ individual needs with appropriate, efficient teaching in a particular subject. I adapt my tutoring to students’ needs by altering subject materials, learning methods, and structure and frequency of sessions as needed.
How would you help a student stay motivated?
Perspective is key. Learning is a privilege that is too often misconstrued as a chore. I try to make sure my students are reminded of the bigger picture--both in an academic, subject-based sense as well as in terms of the wider goals of their studies and long-term careers. Details and strategies are necessary, helpful, and often fascinating, but they can sometimes be burdensome if we are not mindful of the larger purpose of our studies.