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

The student's confidence in a given subject depends on the teacher's in the subject. I would take seriously what am teaching, and stay within the guidelines. The teaching should be about story telling throughout the assigned time.

What is your teaching philosophy?

My teaching philosophy is to diagnose and then treat; identify the student's needs and then get the right material to help him/her.

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

For a typical first session, we will try to know each other through our backgrounds. And then I would ask the student why he/he is interested in learning French. From his/her answer, we will start discussing on the right materials.

How can you help a student become an independent learner?

By directing the student to the right material (books, videos, websites...), I can help him/her become an independent learner.

How would you help a student stay motivated?

I would keep the student motivated by covering things that are of great interest to his/her goals in learning the language.

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

Only patience and encouragement would help in the long run.

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

Vocabulary is very important in reading comprehension. So, I would first try and take a look at the vocabulary with him/her, so as to make sure he/she gets the meaning of the main words of the text.

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

Comparing, for example, two languages (the student's first language and the target language), would better help the student learn faster.

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

I would ask the student to tell me about the main idea of the text. If he/she does not get it right, I will help him/her. Doing so, I am sure he/she will start off and do well.

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

Participation from the student to the discussion throughout the session is the best technique of "measurement" I can use to be sure that the student understood the material taught. Questions from the student are very important.

How do you evaluate a student's needs?

A student's needs should be evaluated from where he/she stands and where he/she wants to be in a short or long term. For example, if his/her level is 1 and he/she would like to be in level 4 next year, it would require more effort from him/her than if he/she wanted to move from level 1 to level 2 within the same period of time. The longer the distance between the current and target level, the more effort from the student it will require.

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

The higher the student's knowledge of the subject, the faster I will be able to move. I will let him/her work independently and ask questions. On the other hand, the lower the student's knowledge of the subject, the slower I would move, as the student relies on me to bring lot of information; he/she is less independent.

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

Usually I use books, short videos, photocopies of texts, newspapers, and live radio for listening skills.