Tutoring @ TJ’s

As i sit down to write this blog I have to go back and remember all my tutoring appointments from the last semester. The appointments that were good, great, no so great and the ones that never happened because one of us missed it…accidentally of course! Anyway, I remember my favorite appointments were with student who were well prepared and were genuinely confused about something. They had used a tutor as a last resort and only if they couldn’t figure it out on their own. My worst appointments were with those clients that were impatient and arrogant, as if I was their servant as a tutor. Other appointments that were right in the middle were those that weren’t as prepared as they probably would have liked but acknowledged it and were ready to achieve the goals that were set during the appointment. Those were really nice because they didn’t make me feel guilty for suggesting that they read the book!

I’m happy that we discussed the concepts of changing the language we use and being assertive, especially the first! I honestly don’t have a problem with being assertive, in fact, I think at times, I can be TOO assertive in general. It definately reflects in my tutoring sessions because sometimes I feel that I ask my questions too boldly or don’t give my clients enough time to answer or to think. After those questions that were hung I could simply look up and find a better way to pose my question, in a non offensive way.