What This Week Taught Me

Another week has passed! March is over! Here I will discuss visiting my student, reviewing the book Excellent Sheep, and thinking about reading comprehension and critical thinking.


I appreciate your patience as I have been away much longer than planned.

I got sick again and did some traveling.

Those are not excuses.

Overcoming circumstances has been a major goal for me this year.

I want to be able to get things done regardless of the unexpected occurrences that come up.

Thomas Frank mentioned even putting money on the line to force yourself, but I am not ready to do that yet (link).

Visiting a Student

I had the wonderful opportunity to visit a student of mine!

A long time ago, I actually did in-person tutoring, but since then I have remained physically distant from the lovely students I get to teach.

The experience was wonderful!

It is such a privilege to be welcomed into someone’s home.

All teachers see their students in their lessons, but to cross that threshold into the home is not to be taken for granted.

My student’s personality shined in many settings and scenarios within the comfort of her own day-to-day life.

Those moments that either reminded me of a lesson or taught me something new about her were so enlightening and enjoyable.

We went to several places.

Those experiences were educational because I found all these little teachable moments.

However, I also learned more about her and how my teachings were fitting into her thinking and life.

Some can say that a big disadvantage to working online is the lack of human contact and “living behind a screen.”

I won’t debate that here.

I can say that connecting with my student was a joy, and I came home refreshed and more passionate than I have been in a long while.

Thank you to her and her family for that!

Excellent Sheep

During my visit, I was introduced to a few new books.

The book Excellent Sheep: The Miseducation of the American Elite and the Way to a Meaningful Life by William Deresiewicz stood out to me.

I want to share some of my thoughts and findings about it.

Now, at face value, this not a book for an English tutor of Middle and High School students.

However, I am always thinking about the future for my students and how they can prepare now.

a. The Role of the University

I agree with his thesis that Ivy league schools are not serving us today and are not the answer to success.

He correctly asserts that it is more beneficial to learn how to learn than to gain a diploma.

He lays out the role of the university in the process of learning and growing as a person:

“To put it in the language of computers, you can download all the data you want, but it won’t be any good to you unless you have the software to make use of it. That software, the ability to operate on information—to understand it, to synthesize it into new combinations, to discover and create with it—is what college is meant to ‘install.'”

(p. 174)

b. Student burnout

I found his description of student burnout and overwhelm to be particularly moving.

He painted this picture of the student who does everything asked of him but has no inner voice or life path.

Students were encouraged to rise above the white noise of “what you must do” to find what your own voice is saying to you.

He writes:

“To find yourself, you first must free yourself. You won’t be able to recognize the things you really care about until you have released your grip on all the things that you’ve been taught to care about. And we already know, in the case of today’s young high achievers, what those are.”

(p. 90)

On the other hand, he had the difficult job of telling the reader that not every student is equally worthy to be in college.

More importantly, their perceived worth does not equate with reality.

In a marvelous anecdote about the old days at Yale, he quotes a man who mapped the change in the welcome speeches given to the freshmen.

In 1957, the speech encouraged the student to try because he was chosen among a very few:

“It was the duty of each of us over the next four years to prove that Yale had made the right choice by picking us instead of giving our place to someone else.”

(p. 213)

By 1969, the speech turned into a laudation of each student before they had even done anything.

Wouldn’t we be the wiser for humbling our students before they set out so they can feel a sense of deserving their achievements?

c. Teachers Transform

Lastly, he answers what is the difference between colleges and just on your own book-learning: the teacher.

Teachers need to be truly present — adding in their own experiences and stories into the content (p. 179).

A real teacher is a real person. We can read, but a teacher transforms.

This was a poignant reminder for me.

Crossroads Between Comprehension and Critical Thinking

I have been thinking about the crossroads between reading comprehension and critical thinking.

Now, let me say, I am writing to you at the beginning of my search to articulate this and not at the end.

Stay tuned for something more concrete; in the meantime, just enjoy the ride.

As adults, we take so much of reading comprehension for granted.

Holding all the details in our mind and picking up on subtleties is second nature.

For young students, though, this can often be so hard.

Reading is the cornerstone of writing so this is very important to me.

I want to get to the bottom of it.

I found, when I read with my students, the questions would be part of the problem.

“Who?” or “what?” was a no brainer, but taking it a step further resulted in confusion or shallow answers.

Thinking and reading go hand and hand.

Not just any kind of thinking, but critical thinking.

When I was in college, we did a lot of analyzing of texts.

We found patterns and arguments like prizes inside cereal boxes.

It was the hunt and we were equipped with the tools.

Now I am bringing this into all my lessons.

Temporarily, I have stopped just reading and writing with my students.

We are learning how to think better.

It is going well.

More on this topic to come.

Here are some books I have been consulting or planning to read.

Thank you for reading! Until next week!

What This Week Taught Me

Another week has passed! It is now March! Here I will discuss effective questions, importance of a schedule, and confidence.


Always Know the Answer to the Question

Recently, I have been reminded of the power of asking questions when you already know the answer. Click To Tweet

There are many kinds of questions in this world.

Some are to learn more information in the first place — Where is he?! Why did you do that?

However, others are to further your understanding — Why did you come home at 5 instead of 6?

Lastly, yet other questions are largely rhetorical and aid the speaker in discussing more about the topic — Why should we care about the pollination process?

Recently, I have been reminded of the power of asking questions when you already know the answer or, at least, half of it.

I am writing an essay with a student.

He knows a lot about the topic, but cannot seem to get it onto the page.

I remind him that he needs to use questions to pull more information out.

These particular questions are deliberate.

He needs to practice the art of question asking and expending his thoughts at the same time.

Let us use an essay on Benjamin Franklin as an example.

The student has already written down all the basic details of Benjamin Franklin’s life.

He has a basic outline, putting special attention onto Franklin’s role in the Revolutionary War.

I know my student knows more and has read more. I want to pull that out of him.

This question is not so much out of curiosity as it is pushing the writer to write more about what he already knows. Click To Tweet

Here is what I will say to him:

Benjamin Franklin convinced the French to give money and support to America.

  • How and why did this negotiation initiate?
  • Why was Franklin more effective in this negotiation than John Adams?
  • In what ways did France’s aid help win America the war?
From Benjamin Franklin Historical Society

Reaching past the one-word response, I encourage him to craft a question that will result in a short answer.

Importantly, the question itself contains details and information from his reading.

This question is not so much out of curiosity as it is pushing the writer to write more about what he already knows.

This technique has proved effective.

Scheduling

We all need a plan and a schedule.

The better your schedule, the freer you are to focus on what matters and what you have yet even to discover. Click To Tweet

For most students, this is done for them by parents and teachers.

When students reach high school, they are encouraged to begin to take that task on for themselves.

A student of mine cannot stop using the words “work” and “hassle” whenever I discuss organizing his time.

He is right.

Organization is work and is a hassle.

I have found myself spending more time talking about the long term benefits of this way of life than even about the process itself.

Sure, right now everything is manageable, but later the demands will be heavier.

At the end of the day, though, I want students to stay organized so that they can see school as more than just homework.

School is where you learn skills and find your intellectual passions.

The more you worry over how and when you will get even the minimum done, the more you cannot appreciate the task and process itself.

If you want to do more than the minimum, such as competitions, camps, extra courses, and book reading, then improving your schedule is the place to start.

The better your schedule, the freer you are to focus on what matters and what you have yet even to discover.

Confidence

What holds us back from reaching our desired heights of success is confidence. Click To Tweet

Putting words on the internet takes a lot of courage.

So does writing essays and excelling in math.

What holds us back from reaching our desired heights of success is confidence.

Even if you cannot feel the confidence running through you, you can still manufacture it in the meantime.

Project confidence. You will see how that transforms your work and your life.

I made a video on this topic, check it out.


I write these reflections so that you can take a look into my lessons.

Lessons take place every week and I learn new things from and for my students!

It is a thrill.

If you want to be a part of this process, why not book a free mini-lesson today?

Why it is Wrong Not to Teach Online

So, obviously the title is a little dramatic, but it got you here. 😉 In this post, I will discuss why it is right to teach online and use technology to our advantage.


Wider Audience

The careful balance of home comforts and outside adventure is best met through working online with people from different places. Click To Tweet

The world is only getting smaller.

Teaching online allows you to reach a much wider audience — kids in Korea, college students in Canada, retirees in Romania, and so on.

This keeps the adventure alive in teaching but also in your life.

Meeting and interacting with people of different backgrounds can be very enlightening and rewarding.

On the other hand, going away from home, even just through a computer, can also help you appreciate your own home more.

The careful balance of home comforts and outside adventure is best met through working online with people from different places.

Portability

I went into online teaching for the portability.

I wanted to be able to travel and keep my own schedule while still teaching.

Working online gives you freedom through portability.

This does not mean you need to live in another country, like I did in Russia, but you can travel with your work.

You can take a week at a B&B or visit your sick aunt, but not sacrifice your job or paycheck.

Convenience

A cup of nice herbal tea next to a computer laptop
Teaching online takes the barriers and hardships away from getting to the students themselves. Click To Tweet

You appreciate this convenience most when the weather is bad.

Snow is on the ground and it is way below freezing, but I sit in my warm home office with no intention of leaving the house.

Convenience comes in other forms.

You are always in touch with your students and files through Skype and cloud storage.

So many times, my students have written me while I am at the store or about to go to a movie.

I can pull up their homework on my phone and type a reply immediately.

Teaching online takes the barriers and hardships away from getting to the students themselves.

Digital Resources

Learning goes from presentation to interaction with live feedback. Click To Tweet

I could write a whole blogpost just on this.

Oh wait, I did!

Here, I just want to say that technology allows you to have live feedback.

In a classroom, you can present something and the students can work on projects, but online teaching can go a step further.

Everyone can share a board/canvas.

We can work on the same Google Doc or draw on the same digital board.

Learning goes from presentation to interaction with live feedback.

It is an exciting and fun way to learn.

Appeal to the Modern Child

By teaching online you meet the student in a modern arena, in which they are already comfortable. Click To Tweet
Boy accessing futuristic entertainment applications

It is undeniable the world is becoming more digital and technological.

Today’s kids know nothing else but a world filled with technology.

By teaching online you meet the student in a modern arena, in which they are already comfortable.

Taking their technological knowledge and showing them how they can use it to learn better will give them modern skills for the modern world.

Technology used beneficially and responsibly is our gift to young students today. How better to do that than through teaching online.


This is by no means the end of the conversation.

Here I just touched briefly on each header.

In the future, I would like to take each of these in their turn in order to delve deeper.

This is an important conversation for me to have with you because I am an online tutor.

I know that teaching online is one of the best mediums to connect with students and get the results they want and need.

Reap the benefits today and book a mini-lesson with me!

What This Week Taught Me

I reflect on my week — resting, proofreading opportunities, and how to begin the research process with Wikipedia.


Rest

This week I was sick.

It was one of those colds that brewed under the surface for a year in order to give the biggest punch once it surfaced. My dramatic flare is warranted after how much it messed up my schedule.

That, however, was a blessing in disguise.

It gave me a chance to slow down and not jump the gun.

I am not the most patient of people, so it was a forced slowdown.

Proofreading

I truly believe having your work edited is the best form of writing education for anyone. Click To Tweet

I have been working on something behind the scenes, this week I was able to truly debut it.

I began to offer proofreading services.

Although I believe most students and young professionals can benefit from it, I am most eager to help non-native speakers edit their English.

I learned English grammar through having my work edited.

I truly believe it is the best form of writing education for anyone.

Wikipedia

Helping young students learn how to research is a great joy.

My background is in Medieval Studies, so plowing through bibliographies and keyword searches excites me.

We all have been warned not to cite Wikipedia as a source.

Helping young students learn how to research is a great joy. Click To Tweet

Any Tom, Dick, or Harry can write on there.

That said, I am a huge proponent of using Wikipedia at the beginning of the process. Just this week I discussed this with a student.

Wikipedia can provide you with a general overview of the topic, keywords, and helpful links.

If you know nothing about the topic, read the Wikipedia article on it. Learn the keywords attached to the topic.

Then, at the bottom, read the external links section to start out your search.

When you return to Google Search, you will be equipped with general knowledge and terminology that will speed up your search time.

Start with Wikipedia but end with reliable .edu/.org sources!

Start with Wikipedia but end with reliable .edu/.org sources! Click To Tweet

This week was a bit unusual but such a blessing.

See you next week!