What is your teaching philosophy?

My philosophy is that each student is his or her own person and everyone can learn material in a different way. There isn't one simple way to solve a problem, so if a method is not currently helpful to a student I think that the best way to teach is to find an alternative method that might work better.

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

In a first session with a student I would try to find out what topics they understand and what they might need to work on. I would also talk to them about the materials that they have and what they might need from me.

How can you help a student become an independent learner?

To help a student become an independent learner I try to let them pick a track to solve the problem and begin to solve it while I just try to direct them and keep them on track. I think that if a student is working through it and not just being told what the next step is repeatedly they are much more likely to actually learn and retain the information.

How would you help a student stay motivated?

I would help a student stay motivated by showing them how much they have improved from previous sessions and also by helping them to see how what they are learning now will help them later.

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

If a student has difficulty learning something I would work with them to find a different way to teach the material. I would also try to figure out what type of learner they are and use that to help them understand. I also think that in math the best way to learn and understand a concept is by working problems until you are comfortable with the material.

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

I help students break down what the passage is trying to say and try to figure out why they are having a problem with it. Most of the time it is because there's so much information given and it can be hard to figure out what is going on, so breaking it down and isolating information can help them comprehend and score better.

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

When I start to work with students the best strategy I've used is to have them answer a few problems to try to place where they are with the material and figure out what needs to be covered. It's also helpful to go over material they have already learned to make sure that they have a good foundation to build off of.

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

I would help a student get excited about a subject by trying to show they how the subject that they are working in applies to the world, specifically with something that they might be interested in as a career or hobby. By giving the material purpose the student might be more interested in learning it.

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

To make sure that a student understands material it's helpful to have them work through a similar problem that applies the same concepts without help and see if they get the correct answer. Another method would be to have them explain the process to get to the right answer or just the concept of the material in general.

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

To build a student's confidence in a subject I think it's really important to have them complete more and more practice problems while getting the correct answers to make them feel like since they can get the right answers in practice they will be able to get the right answers on a test or exam. This normally builds up their confidence with the material and helps make test taking less stressful.

How do you evaluate a student's needs?

Normally I would evaluate a student's needs by asking what they believe they need help in and by using diagnostic tests to figure out what they already know and where their weakest areas are.