What is your teaching philosophy?

I seek to find what motivates a student in other aspects of their life, and apply that to their studies.

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

A first session typically consists of getting to know one another: the learning style of the student, what motivates him or her and how much background knowledge he or she has on the subject.

How can you help a student become an independent learner?

Teaching a student how to learn can be much more effective than teaching them what to learn.

How would you help a student stay motivated?

By making their studies relevant to their everyday lives, students often find their classwork to be much more engaging.

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

Identify what step in the learning process the student is having trouble with, then work to best clarify and simplify the process based on this information.

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

Breaking down a large reading passage and taking a story sentence by sentence can often make an intimidating reading assignment much more manageable.

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

The best way to help a student learn is to find what motivates him or her in everyday life and apply that to their studies. All interests can involve math and science, whether it's the physics of soccer or the linear logic of computer games.