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

Get to know them (and the parent/guardian) and their goals/academic needs. Discuss any special needs or challenges they face. Set short- and long-term goals. Most importantly, make sure they feel comfortable learning with me by making an effort to make a learning environment that is both productive and as stress-free as possible.

How can you help a student become an independent learner?

Each session with me will provide practical help-such as with homework and papers, but will also provide students with learning tools they can take with them outside the session.

How would you help a student stay motivated?

Even if a student dislikes the subject, motivation can be achieved by making a student feel proud of their work with appropriate praise and showing them how far they've come. Regular (not necessarily frequent) sessions will also help students have a sense of progress.

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

Take various approaches! Get creative. Demonstrate the real world value of learning this skill/concept. Remain calm, and if possible, come back to it later. Sticking with one thing that causes frustration until it is resolved may not always be the solution. Coming back to it after learning other concepts with a fresh mind relieves some stress and pressure.

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

Breaking the reading down. Reading the questions before the reading. If the whole concept of reading comprehension is a problem, asking students to apply it to topics they are passionate about.

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

Always listening and adapting to the student. Tutoring evolves just as the student's learning and classes do. Setting goals is also important to motivate and to boost confidence. The rest is unique to the individual, because setting blanket strategies is very limiting.

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

Make it relevant to what is going on today, taking care to make sure that everything is age-appropriate. Find what a student is passionate about, and find a way to integrate what they are struggling with in order to make it interesting to them.

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

After teaching, having the student teach me! Teaching is the best form of testing to see what students have retained and what they have not. It is also important to have exercises or suggestions to keep the material fresh in between sessions, as well as quickly reviewing the previous class's material before moving on to the next.

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

P&P: praise and progress! Building student's confidence is easy if they feel good about themselves, and a great way to do that is to let them know that they are doing a good job. Showing proof of progress is a more concrete form of praise that a student can see, so they do not feel that "you're doing great" is not real.

How do you evaluate a student's needs?

Asking their parent/guardian. Asking the student. Watching them react to different teaching styles and forms of evaluation and adjusting accordingly. Establishing lines of communication where students feel comfortable expressing their needs at any time.

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

Switching up teaching styles. Making sure to be patient and trustworthy, so students feel comfortable enough to not only learn but to take risks so that I may see what works and what does not.

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

Materials provided by the teacher, such as homework assignments and textbooks. Also, index cards, and different colored pens and highlighters.

What is your teaching philosophy?

Create an environment where students feel respected, challenged, and confident. Never be afraid to adapt so that the individual may be able to learn better and more.