Dawn: Fairfield tutor
Certified Tutor
Tutoring has always been one of my supreme passions. I believe in blending academic work with play: scientific curiosity with artistic enthusiasm--and the results have always paid off.
I started tutoring privately, as a college student. I worked with one little girl from the ages of 7-11, tutoring her in all subjects--and every session was a delight. After receiving my BA, I started teaching ESL to children from other countries. Later, while I was pursuing my MFA degree, I tutored children ages 5-16 at a tutoring company for over seven years. While there, I helped students with their homework in all subjects, often using individualized ELA and Mathematics curriculum. Similar to this job, I also tutored elementary school children in homeless shelters and worked with at-risk high school students in a college readiness program at various centers and organizations. I've also worked with children in a variety of creative ways. At several institutions, I taught music, movement and drama. All of my tutoring sessions are interactive and fun, which is vital for children as they learn and grow.
In addition to working with children, I also have extensive experience with the college classroom. Since receiving my PhD from Binghamton University, I have taught several English Composition and Literature courses in institutions as varied as LaGuardia Community College and the College of Southern Nevada. At these, and other, institutions, I tutored my students extensively during office hours, helping with remediation or examination prep. As a scorer for both ETS's AP English and CUNY's ACT exams, I am in an excellent position to help students prepare for any high-stakes examination that requires written essaysa task that many students are challenged with.
Please feel free to set up a tutoring session. I promise that you'll love it!
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Undergraduate Degree: SUNY Purchase - Bachelor in Arts, Literature
Graduate Degree: SUNY at Binghamton - Doctor of Philosophy, English
Archaeology, Singer / Songwriting, Nature, Hiking, Drama
- College English
- College Essays
- Comparative Literature
- Elementary School Reading
- English
- English Grammar and Syntax
- ESL/ELL
- Essay Editing
- High School English
- IB Extended Essay
- Literature
- Phonics
- Public Speaking
- Reading
- Writing
What is your teaching philosophy?
The function of education is to enrich the student, to illuminate their minds and, above all, to nurture creativity and community. When students vibrantly engage in their education, a deep form of learning takes place. The educational philosopher, Paulo Freire, has inspired my methodology. Freire was a proponent of the principle of student-centered learning and his concept of critical pedagogy advocates a transformative approach to education. This is why I consistently endeavor to link my students' critical and creative activities with interdisciplinary and artistic engagement. Working one on one with students enables me to help students critically evaluate and creatively reconstruct their worlds. The study of reading and writing, in particular, is an empowering practice. The very act of creating a body of written work and analyzing literature evokes within the student empathic response, an important contribution to the evolution of civic society. My personal philosophy also synthesizes with developmental psychologist, Howard Gardner.