Essay Week 5: The Trials of Teaching

I've been working as a tutor for about four years, and I cannot find the words to describe how useful the new Collaborative Learning Center in the library is. As the president and founder of a student organization that offers group-oriented academic help, it's our perfect habitat.

I bring this up because I gave a test review session last night in the CLC, and I tend to reflect on my effectiveness as a teacher the next day. With my limited experience as a tutor, I find the amount of diversity in students to be one of the greatest challenges. Whether it's diversity in ability or background, a teacher has to be able to adapt to the student's perspective. Last night, we had a setup that allowed me to do just that. Students were grouped at tables and were able to bounce ideas off of each other. That peer-to-peer interaction gives me the freedom to give students individualized attention without my feeling that I'm putting anyone in some sort of academic queue.

Last week's test review session for Organic Chemistry I (Personal photo, taken September 8).

Last year, we utilized a lecture format in a large classroom for the test review sessions. While such a format allowed us to serve anywhere from forty to one hundred students at the time, it's comparable to casting a broad net. Students at the ends of the normal curve lose out. Some would leave early because they needed one-on-one help, and others would leave out of intellectual boredom. As a tutor, it's frustrating to watch that happen, and it makes one wonder if it's a reflection on one's ability.

Given the comfort I felt last night while tutoring organic chemistry, I believe we've found a better format for both myself and the students. The sessions flow more easily. The teaching feels organic, no pun intended. I'll be interested to see how sessions go down the line, but for now, I'm contented experiment with what the CLC has to offer.