How can you help a student become an independent learner?

Teach reading strategies to improve their ability to process text. Teach them how to actively read and work with material.

What is your teaching philosophy?

Find a reference point to begin from, and teach students how to work through materials to come to a cohesive understanding of texts, arguments, and information as a whole.

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

Ask questions. It's important to identify what a student needs help with, what they are working on, what their needs are, and what I can do to help.

How would you help a student stay motivated?

Encouragement and empathy. Sometimes being frustrated is a good thing, as long as it leads to a step back and a reset of how we approach a problem.

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

Figure out their reference point, what they do understand, and help them go from there, sometimes just changing they way we look at things can give a whole knew meaning or layer to material.

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

I want to teach them to read actively and how to digest a text. Reading actively means not just skimming over a paragraph, but with a pen in hand going over each word, asking what it means, and putting every sentence together to understand the text as a whole. Reading comprehension can be frustrating, but the best way to get better at it is practice. I hope to keep a student motivated and work them through their frustrations so that they will not be discouraged and scared away from reading, but instead will 'embrace the grind' of working through a dense text.

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

Figure out why they don't like it, first. Often, a student won't like something simply because they don't understand it or it's intimidating. If I can help them in their approach, maybe think about the subject differently- show them the interesting side or the usefulness of it, I hope that I can get them on the track to liking it.

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

If they can explain it to me in their own terms, that is an immediate sign that they are comfortable with the material. In addition, I will be sure to use all of the free learning tools and practice questions available, if they are in need of an assessment. Obviously, if they have an assessment in their class or requirements they have to meet, I can quiz or review them based off of that.

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

I want to show them that learning is fun! As clich� as that is. I've always looked at learning like the plot of a narrative, once you start to figure out a little bit of what's happening, it becomes much more exciting. I want my students to see that side of school, and I hope to get them on that track by making their subjects relatable and putting their material in terms they can understand.

How do you evaluate a student's needs?

In the first session, I'd like to talk to them about what they are interested in getting out of tutoring. Perhaps they have a large test coming up they want to do well on; perhaps they want to get ahead in a class; or perhaps they are really struggling in a subject and need to catch up. It's helpful if a student can come prepared with materials from their class and has a reference of what they need to get done.

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

I'd like to stick in the boundaries of what the student provides from their own class. If that is not enough, I'm confident in referring to outside texts, databases, articles, learning tools, or anything else that provides a bit of elucidation to a question or subject. Personally, I think Wikipedia is a great place to start with learning any new subject. It's written in a common, easy to read prose and any new or confusing terms are often linked to brand new articles. In addition, in the references of Wikipedia are often primary sources and scholarly articles that provide much more in depth and first hand coverage that brings understanding to a higher level.

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

I try to tutor based off of a student's needs. Meaning, I want to identify what they need help in and work based on that knowledge to help them gain in that area. If I can accurately assess what their needs are through communication, I can better work to provide them with the information and explanation they need.

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

Communication is key. I want the student to tell me what they need and work from there. I want to start my sessions off by asking questions, getting comfortable with the student, and having them be comfortable with me as a resource. If they feel confident to ask about something they don't know, I can better provide them with help.