What is your teaching philosophy?

Anything can be learned with enough desire, patience, guidance, and persistence. As a teacher, I will always bring the last three things to the plate, provided the student chips in the first.

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

In our first session, I'll ask you to bring in some recent notes, homework and tests, so that I can see what your current learning process is. That way, we can see what you're already doing right, compared to what you may need help in. From there, we'll identify goals and build a plan to follow in order to achieve them.

How can you help a student become an independent learner?

By focusing on a methods based approach, I can give students the tools they need to solve any problem.

How would you help a student stay motivated?

I would keep a student motivated through those same homework and test items that they bring in initially. That way, they will be able to see how far they have progressed, and how much closer they are to achieving their goals.

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

First of all, we would focus on breathing to stay relaxed and remove frustration. Then, we would go to the beginning of where difficulties are happening, and we would focus on every step to make sure we knew what was happening. That way, no stone goes unturned in the learning process.

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

I find that reading comprehension is easiest when you ask students questions; this keeps them engaged and provides a sense of ownership in the process. If you can have a student relate the information back to you, almost as if they are teaching the teacher, then they will almost always grasp the concept better.

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

除了基本的教学方法,我find that getting to know more about the student's interests and likes will provide a deeper rapport, and will allow me to relate information to them more directly and in a way that they will appreciate.