Christen

What is your teaching philosophy?

I believe that people should have access to an education in language that is communicative, multi-cultural and inclusive of all disciplines in order to foster confidence and continued interest in language learning.

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

During the first session, we'll determine what you already know and what your needs are. Once we've done that, we'll talk about where you want to go, what you want to accomplish during our sessions and we'll set some short and long term goals to help us get there.

How can you help a student become an independent learner?

Building confidence is one way you can become a more independent learner - sure of your skills and abilities. In addition, I can help you develop critical thinking skills and analytical abilities to help you break down new concepts and information.

How would you help a student stay motivated?

Motivation is all about being proud of what you know and focusing on what comes next. Once you've mastered something and you're proud of your hard work, you'll want to keep going on your own!

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

Sometimes you have to go backward to go forward. Let's go back to the last place you felt you really had understanding and then try again, slowly and with smaller chunks of information.

How do you help students who are struggling with reading comprehension?

A dictionary and thesaurus are great to have on hand for that - as are flashcards where you examine the word specifically, looking at synonyms, contexts in which the word is normally used and how and under what circumstance you might use or restate the idea mentioned in the text.

What strategies have you found to be most successful when you start to work with a student?

Consistency is the biggest barrier to comprehension, learning and mastery. Learning requires constant practice and use of new information, so it's really important to be consistent in your studies and have regular sessions where we recycle material, over and over, until it is fluid.

How would you help a student get excited/engaged with a subject that they are struggling in?

I try to make the material relevant by giving real- life examples or anecdotes, or by asking the student to imagine how it might become relevant to them in their daily life. If you can find common ground, then it's easier to make connections.

What techniques would you use to be sure that a student understands the material?

Repetition works great for language learning. Flashcards can be useful too. Some students have a need to understand and use a straight grammar approach, so I try to find the method that works best for the student.

How do you build a student's confidence in a subject?

Focusing on what you DO know is a great way to feel good about your learning.

How do you evaluate a student's needs?

A combination of grades, test scores, and verbal questioning will give me a pretty good idea of what a student does or doesn't know.

How do you adapt your tutoring to the student's needs?

Questioning is a big part of tutoring. By asking about comfort level, using reflection and meta-cognition, both student and tutor can make changes to the learning process that support learning.

What types of materials do you typically use during a tutoring session?

I prefer to use the materials that the student already possesses or material that they are presently working on in a course. Absent that, I have volumes of reference materials and activities that can be shared digitally.