
Dan
Certified Tutor
Undergraduate Degree: Thomas Edison State College - Bachelors, Natural Science/Math
Graduate Degree: The University of West Florida - Current Grad Student, Math
I enjoy drinking large amounts of coffee, reading and old Columbo episodes.
What is your teaching philosophy?
I am a firm believer in relating new, potentially difficult concepts to previously learned material that the student is more comfortable with. For instance, when introducing integration by parts, I think a common method of introduction is to show the formula and then immediately jump into worked examples. I believe that a refresher on more the more basic idea behind substitutions followed by a derivation of the formula helps to represent the new concept as an extension of material and not something new, which, in my experience, is less jarring.
What might you do in a typical first session with a student?
Introductions followed by the student's current course load and with the subject. Then perhaps a short diagnostic that will help me identify more clearly what to focus on.