What is your teaching philosophy?

I believe the best way for a student to learn is through self-exploration. Nothing is more rewarding than figuring out a problem yourself. In terms of tutoring, I believe that a tutor should facilitate a student's problem solving and help when they get stuck. Also the best way to gauge comprehension is to ask the student to teach ME the material. If they can do that, they will certainly succeed!

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

During the first session, it is critical to know the student. My plan is gauge how the student learns and tutor based around their learning style. For example, if a student is more of a visual learner, I will bring utilize visuals to assist the student.

How can you help a student become an independent learner?

My job as a tutor isn't just to teach the material, but also teach valuable study skills that the student can use forever. The best way for a student to become an independent learner is self-structure and resilience. First, it is important that a student can set goals and follow through with their goals. Additionally, bouncing back from mistakes and learning from them is also an essential skill toward independent learning. As a tutor, I hope to teach these skills so my students can grow into independent learners.

How would you help a student stay motivated?

Constant encouragement is key. When a student feels accomplished about their efforts, a student will remain motivated. I will help a student stay motivated by acknowledging their achievements while supporting them if they struggle. As long as they give an effort, they will succeed.

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

I totally understand what it is like when a student becomes frustrated; it happens to everyone. Based on personal experience, the best way to help a student is to give them confidence. Sometimes just by reminding them "You can do this!" and encouraging them with a smile will give the student motivation to figure it all out.

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

Reading through a complicated passage can be quite a frustrating task. The best way to help a student is to break the passage or question down to smaller chunks. I would help the student comprehend the parts piece by piece and they put it together as a whole when finished. Also I would ask the student to summarize the passage in order to reiterate their understanding.

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

One of the strategies that I have found most helpful for students is to tailor my teaching style to them. Again if they are more of an audio learner, I would use more verbal cues and questions with the student. However, if the student is more of a kinetic learner, I would have them actually do a practice problem and show me how they did it. Another useful strategy is to have the student teach me (or anyone) a certain concept. It has been proven that concept comprehension is best shown when a student can teach a complicated topic to anyone!