Experience Summary
I came back to the United States after living most of my early life in the Dominican Republic in order to pursue post-secondary studies in the physical sciences. I majored in biology, chemistry, and mathematics at Manhattanville College and graduated with departmental and Summa Cum Laude honors. I recently completed my Master's thesis on imaginary quadratic number fields as a mathematics graduate student at New York University and will be applying to Ph.D. programs for the Fall of 2017 to continue research in either abstract algebra or mathematical logic.
In the meantime, I work as a tutor in math, science, Spanish, and English as a Second Language. I have been tutoring for the past 10 years and have helped over 600 private tutoring students reach their full academic potential. Overall, I calmly and actively seek to fill the gaps in understanding my students may have in our typical ninety minute sessions. I emphasize practice, practice, and more practice when it comes down to math problems. I also love to point out and ask my students why a certain formula or process is rigorous and accurate. I relish the logic behind mathematical proofs and wish to help my students appreciate the unique elegance of such a demonstration. Similarly, when working on chemistry word problems, I work out an example or two and then encourage my students to emulate what I did. I also quiz them throughout the sessions. For instance, if functional groups are being studied, I ask them to explain why amines have lower boiling points than alcohols with similar molecular and structural formulas. If pressed for a hint, I tell them to consider the respective differences in hydrogen bonding. Additionally, as a native Spanish speaker, I am fully aware of the difficulty of learning languages and know what students need in order to remain interested as they start rolling their R's or memorize stem-changing verbs. Regardless of the subject I am tutoring, I remind students regularly that preparing index cards will make studying much easier by helping them collect and organize key diagrams, formulas, and definitions in a convenient, portable format.
My clients know they can count on me for constant help with their coursework as my sessions provide a relaxed learning environment that bolsters their understanding and accomplishment. Over the years, I learned patience and empathy are the most important contributions I can offer to enhance my students' learning experience. Required courses in high school and college can be uninspiring or fast-paced, and the amount of material that needs to be mastered by the final exam date is overwhelming. Tutoring sessions help students overcome these frustrating circumstances by focusing the pupil's attention on the important details; on the patterns and commonalities present in the concepts, the notes, and the assigned problems; and on the study skills they will need to eventually become self-learners. As such, I also encourage discussion with and continuous feedback from my students so as to make sessions engaging and to fully develop motivation and analytical thinking.
Note:
Sessions are always at least 60 minutes in length. To avoid any confusion, my cancellation policy is the following:
*if you contact me at least 24 hours prior to a scheduled session to cancel or reschedule, no fee will be assessed;
*if you cancel or wish to reschedule the day of the session, I will assess a fee equivalent to one hour's worth of tutoring.
These are honors and awards I have received:
SACNAS National Conference Travel Scholarship (10/2008); Summa Cum Laude (05/2008); Manhattanville College Board of Trustees Scholarship (09/2004-05/2008); Dean’s List (09/2004-05/2008); POLYED Undergraduate Award in Organic Chemistry (04/2006); American Chemical Society and CRC Press Freshman Chemistry Awards (04/2005); and Valedictorian (06/2004).
Teaching Style
I like to get started immediately and start working through problems as soon as the client and I are seated. I ask tons of questions to gauge my clients' understanding. I do a few example problems, and then I want my students to try twice as many problems while in session. I guide them when they are stuck, but I want them to reach their own conclusions. I go over any necessary foundations and help bring new clients up to speed, so they can understand what is going on in class. For math classes, especially, I like to go over intuitive memory aids, but I also derive formulas from basic principles to make sure students follow the reasoning behind everything I do. Understanding will only come from total familiarity with all facets of the subject. Practice is key.