Patrick
Certified Tutor
Undergraduate Degree: University of Tennessee in Knoxville - Bachelors, Mechanical Engineering
3-D Computer models, Computer Aided Design and Drafting, Finite Element Analysis, Nonlinear Heat Transfer / Stress and Strain models, Matlab
Engineering
Mechanical Engineering
Other
Summer
If a student has difficulty learning a skill or concept, what would you do?
I would slow down and listen. Use different approaches and learn an application that spoke to them individually. Then train the application in a way that built "muscle memory."
What strategies have you found to be most successful when you start to work with a student?
Mnemonics are effective as a memory aide. Pictures are easily visualized. Experiences tend to be remembered. "I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand." - Confucius
How would you help a student get excited/engaged with a subject that they are struggling in?
I would find a relevant application or at least one that appealed to them. If the application wasn't relevant to the work, I would show the application as a possibility that was achieved by the work at hand. "Can't get into compressible flow? What if you did the hard work so it could be applied to the amount of shock diamonds from a jet engine's afterburner? Yeah? Well, as soon as we understand how this table of values is set up; we will reference it to do just that!"