What is your teaching philosophy?

My teaching philosophy is to present the information in the form that best accommodates the needs of the student. Every student has the capacity to improve their knowledge with the right guidance.

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

In a typical first session, I like to establish where the student is currently in regards to where they need to be. We may do this through simple conversation and getting to know you dialog, through me asking specific questions about what they've covered and how well they understand the material, as well as mapping out a plan that will help us achieve their goals.

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

When students have trouble learning a concept, we just haven't found the right way to present the material to the student in a manner that works best for them. So, we keep changing our methods until we find what works.

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

I like to have the student explain concepts back to me. I do this by simply asking some questions about materials we've covered. Because science is so dynamic, I can often have them draw me a picture to demonstrate comprehension.

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

Confidence is built with lots of small wins. I like to set smaller goals for each session that we know we can accomplish so that the student feels like they are making progress. If we can work to make the student successful right away by achieving these smaller goals, that has a tendency to build their confidence.

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

I love using images, videos and drawing diagrams. There's not a large need for me to lecture, as the student likely gets plenty of that at school. I try to make it a little more interesting and present the material in formats that they enjoy/benefit from the most.

How would you help a student stay motivated?

I help students stay motivated by doing everything I can to make them successful at achieving their goals. I like to use small goals for each session, in addition to longer term goals, such as passing an exam or a class. When people work to achieve smaller, short-term goals and they are successful, it has a tendency to motivate them to keep plugging away at achieving the longer term goal.