Experience Summary
I have always loved mathematics, but never thought I would end up being a teacher. I initially used my strong analytical skills in the business world. As I continued to work with young people through my church and professional jobs lead me to human relations positions, I yearned to combine this talent in relating to young people to my passion for math. I completed a career transition four years ago and it has been everything that I expected. I especially enjoy one-on-one tutoring because it allows me to ensure that the student has completely grasped the concepts before moving on. My specialty is AP Calculus and PreCalculus/Trig. In three years time, I have improved the pass rate on AP Calculus exams from 0% to 50%.
Teaching Style
I am a strong believer in student-directed learning. While I am happy to explain concepts and answer specific questions, many students merely ask “Can you show me how to do this?” While a demonstration is useful and necessary the first few times, I will then switch to leading questions to allow the student to recall the appropriate next steps. It is also useful to have the student explain what they DO understand about a problem to better identify what they DON’T understand and why. To add an element of variety, games like timed challenges or linking current events to math problems are relevant “distractions”.