What is your teaching philosophy?

There is no defined way to educate others. Knowledge is fluid, and like the individual, takes many forms. Thus, to truly illuminate, it's necessary to strip a concept apart and build it back up again.

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

Give them the floor to set expectations. Connecting with a pupil and teaching aspects are indicative of understanding the needs of that student, alongside aligning with your own perspective.

How can you help a student become an independent learner?

Motivation is key; it's not sufficient to just provide resources and rhetoric. You have to encourage the student to dig deep, and through their efforts, make it click for them so that their success was 25% you and 75% them.

How would you help a student stay motivated?

By setting realistic goals and counting shortcomings as successes. Reaching out for help is strength, and consistent reinforcement is key. You put in 100%, and through aligned vision, encourage the same.

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

I strip the material down and present it in pieces, alongside visual but relatable aids.

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

Essentially, this difficulty arises because the words and their meaning converge on the student to an overwhelming extent. I dismantle the reading into a visual of what the words are trying to say, and then bit by bit we reconstruct the initial context.

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

There needs to be a clear and concise rapport. Listening to your student and working together, rather than dominating the interaction, makes for a truly enriching experience.

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

I like to show the value of a concept, not by necessarily presenting the initial material as imperative, but the underlying purpose of why something exists. Every piece of knowledge can be applied in some fashion, but the ability to make something relative to the world around the students is the seed of motivation.

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

I'm a firm believer in versatile reinforcement. It's wonderful to know that a student is following your meaning. However, I shoot for their ability to apply the material learned in and outside of academic settings. I use a strategy that focuses on the academic principles of a lesson, application on a general level, and their ability to share that material with another. I always end by asking that student to educate me about what they've learned.

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

By helping them understand that the subject doesn't have control over them, but rather the other way around. Excellence is not an easy road, but a gradual process that everyone must surmount.

How do you evaluate a student's needs?

Ask and listen. I typically ask what the student is working on and what about the material is challenging. I always start by asking how they'd like to learn. There is no defined "formula" for teaching; it's dynamic and unique to every student.

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

By not only inquiring directly about what methods have worked well in the past, but also through observation. Listening and watching are two of the best ways to learn as a teacher.

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

As cliche as this sounds, I love webs and compare and contrast charts. There's something about organization and visual aids that take scrambled concepts and give them voice. I use audio materials as well, and even make animations, if applicable, to help my student learn.