Frequently Asked Questions
Why do I not use my Child’s teacher to tutor them?
This is certainly a possibility that you can use. However, what quality of tutoring is your teacher going to be able to provide after teaching for eight hours? Their heart and mind might be in the right place, but they are going to be exhausted and may not be able to focus as much on your child as much as your child deserves. Additionally, one teacher can only provide so many ideas to your child, there may be other ideas that might allow your child to better grasp and utilize the material. I can provide a different fresh perspective on that material.
Why do I have to pay $X an hour to tutor my son/daughter or self?
The simple answer is that you do not have to. You do not have to. But you have to also realize that your children are learning from you, your children will duplicate your actions, and you have to instill in them what is important. If being good at math is something that is important for you, then you have to show that to them by providing them with tutoring if it is necessary.
Even if tutoring is not necessary, because you or your child are already good, I can provide additional challenge and discussion so that you can get more out of your learning experience. Think of me as your “Mathematics Personal Trainer”. You might be able to read the book and work some of the problems, but I can provide the insights and discussion to help make you even better: in a word, I can help make you Unstoppable!
If your child is having difficulty in math, and you find that to be a problem, you have to remedy that situation right away. Mathematics can be likened to a brick wall, each idea builds on a previous one just as each brick is laid on one that has been laid before. If you build a wall and the first brick is crooked, each successive brick will be more and more crooked. And if you or your child’s understanding in mathematics is on a shaky foundation, each successive concept or idea will be less and less understood. Tutoring at the earliest sign of weakness or misunderstanding will allow for those misunderstandings to be worked out earlier, and will improve the chances that future concepts will be grasped better.
Another way that you can think about this is to ask yourself the following question: “Would you fix your plumbing or electricity by yourself or seek expert assistance?” You might also ask: “What do I look for in someone who is going to help my child?” If I was seeking someone to help my family, I would seek an expert. I am an expert at helping people correct their misunderstandings, and in challenging those who already are good to become better. I am also an expert in Mathematics as is evidenced by my Master in Mathematics.
Will you tutor anything besides math?
Yes. I will tutor Finance, Elementary Physics, Elementary Chemistry, Java Programming, using Mathematica as an interactive computing platform, and anything else that I feel competent to tutor. I can also help you write your papers in terms of coming up with a topic to write about, developing the ideas that you want to talk about that topic, developing strong ideas, teaching you how to question and listen better to engage in a dialogue with the printed material so as to come up with better ideas and more probing questions to write about. I can help you write your paper and organize your ideas. If you need to write an argument, I can help you establish your contention with solid facts, develop all your claims fully, locate logical fallacies, and make sure that you present a rock solid argument.
Why don’t you teach?
Some people are designed to be teachers. I was not one of them. My sole aim is to help those people who want to excel to excel and reach their highest potential. I want to build people, starting from where they are, to where they can be. I do not want to be restrained by those who may not have the same aspirations for people that I do. I am also not one who wants to be restrained by having to focus on preparing students for a test. My focus rather is on helping people understand basic concepts and their application and interrelation with other concepts. Fostering this kind of understanding is the best way in my opinion to remedy misunderstanding and develop a foundation for future learning. This is the difference between memorizing facts and understanding logically how to piece together concepts to solve a new problem.