Benjamin

I have worked professionally as a tutor for years, both privately and commercially. I have a bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Akron and I tutor grades 5-College.

My tutoring style:

I think that understanding is the most important thing. If someone has an internalized, full understanding of the concept, its notation, what it's communicating, and why it came about, the particular problem won't matter a whole lot nor will it be too challenging. I love to talk about details of things, and I am happy to relate ideas to other situations. I enjoy working with different personalities and let the pacing be determined by the level to which the student has proven and is proving their mastery of the topic.

‍
Success stories:

I worked with a student a few years ago. She was originally from a Central American country. I worked with her on the English and Reading sections of the ACT. She has always stayed in my mind for her amazing diligence, attention, and note-taking as we would go through practice tests. She was able to incorporate grammar concepts and ACT-specific tricks and improved from a 22 to a 31 on the English and from a 24 to a 30 on the Reading. She wrote me a thank-you card with the nicest message that I have held onto for the 6 years that it has been since we worked together

‍

Another student that I remember, NM, was a very energetic young man. I will never forget one day when we were working on SAT Math; I mentioned in passing that there is a way to calculate square roots by hand, and he excitedly said that he wanted to learn it. I took him through the process and he got it down. He ended up improving from a 1130 overall to a 1320. I was blown away by how excited he was to learn new techniques, and the standardized tests always reward those who are the best at working with fractions, algebra, and quick math by hand, regardless of the legality of calculators.

‍
Hobbies and interests:

Tennis, Disc Golf, Basketball, Baseball, Bowling

‍