What is your teaching philosophy?

My philosophy is quality over quantity. I would rather teach the student 2 concepts and have them know it than teach 10 concepts and have them not be comfortable with them.

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

I would find out how they learn and gear my approach to satisfying their specific needs.

How can you help a student become an independent learner?

Teach them note-taking strategies and teach what information is vital to write down and what is side information.

How would you help a student stay motivated?

Implement a rewards system for staying focused and understanding the material.

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

I mainly tutor math and science subjects. Reading comprehension in these areas are crucial. In math, reading comprehension is all about pulling the relevant information out of the text to set up the math. In science, complex language is sometimes used to ask a simple question. I will make sure that the student is able to recognize what the question is actually asking. Then I will show them how to solve the problem or get the answer.

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

Finding out the student's learning style through their profile and by asking them is effective, and then molding my approach to satisfy their learning needs.

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

Sometimes students get discouraged when they are struggling in a subject. If I can relate the subject to something they are interested in, then hopefully I can engage them. For example, if a student likes animals and is struggling with biology or chemistry, I could show them that learning those subjects can be used to help animals. Sometimes setting vague career goals like being a veterinarian will motivate a student.

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

I would first walk the student through the material, explaining the steps and how to get the answer. Next I would have the student go through the material with my help, getting the answer. We would then transition to the student, working through the material by themselves and explaining to me how they got the answer.

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

Show the student more basic problems than they are used to so they can build their confidence, and slowly make the problems more difficult to the level that they were originally having trouble with in class. Then hopefully they will have enough confidence and understanding of the material to tackle it.

How do you evaluate a student's needs?

I evaluate whether the student has trouble with understanding the material, note taking, and concepts. I will do this by asking them what they do not understand and by looking at their notes to see if they are writing down the vital information.

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

I like to use only the materials the student will have access to in their class, such as a calculator, besides their notes.

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

I would break it down in a way they can understand. Visually, physically (doing) or whatever they need.

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

I figure out which way they learn, visual, audial, and kinetic for example, and gear my lesson towards that type of learning.