Michael P.
Private tutor in Cincinnati, OH
Education
- Stony Brook University, Psychology and Sociology B.A., GPA: 3.91, Summa Cum Laude - Master's in Teaching Arts from Dominican University, GPA: 3.71
Experience
- Illinois Certified Teacher - 2012 Teach for America Corps Member (Considered highly competitive at 12% acceptance rate) - 90 Percent of my students ended 1st grade at or above grade level in reading by the end of the year! - Scored in 90th percentile in Verbal Section of the GRE Test - Scored in the 93rd percentile in the Writing Section of the GRE Test - Scored in the 90th percentile in the LSAT - Scored in the 80th percentile in the Math Section of the GRE Test - Accepted into 2012 Teach for America – Chicago, considered highly selective 12% acceptance rate - Master's in Teaching Arts, with Elementary Endorsement from Dominican University - 3.91 GPA at Stony Brook University in Psychology and Sociology, summa cum laude - In third year of teaching 1st grade, with high levels of coaching and development provided by my school - Experienced in teaching high and low levels of phonics, grammar, writing, reading strategies, spelling, fluency, comprehension, vocabulary, and integrating those in science and social studies - Conducted psychological, education-related research on human perception and academic performance, achievement goals and emotions, and intergenerational secure-base parenting scripts at prestigious research institutions Stony Brook and New York University
Availability
Weekends at any time, Monday after 5PM, Thursday after 5PM, Friday after 5PM
Can Meet
Up to 25 minutes away for no additional charge
Hobbies
I recall my first standardized test in 8th grade... I didn't know what a Scantron was or how it worked. Having been homeschooled up until 8th grade, my approach to education was one that was subject-integrated, self-directed learning. I essentially taught myself, with the guidance of my mother, a certified elementary and middle school teacher. My difficulty started when I started in public school, sharing a classroom with up to 30 other students, taking TIMED tests, and filling out worksheets that seemed pointless and banal. I thought to myself, "Is this really what real school is like?" Since then, I have taught myself the test-taking skills I needed to succeed on timed and standardized tests. "Write a critical thinking essay? No problem! But, fill out 50 empty bubbles... What is going on?" Fast forward to senior year of college: My shift in educational experiences began the impetus for my passion for teaching. How was it that I could write essays that impressed my teachers, but couldn't seem to "crack the code" on standardized tests? As a psychology and sociology double major at Stony Brook University, I proposed my senior thesis on researching the link between achievement emotions and actual academic performance. How would emotions in students such as depression, anxiety, boredom, or hopelessness impact their performance at school? How would these emotions interact with their goals to succeed? For the last 8 years, I have worked with elementary students in various environments - educational, tutoring, camp, sports, etc. After exploring Architecture in my first two years of college, I realized my true passion was still with helping bring others to points of understanding! So, I graduated from Stony Brook University with a double major in Psychology and Sociology and a minor in Studio Arts, maintaining a 3.95 GPA. In the past two years, I have joined Teach for America and taught 1st grade at a progressive, environmentally conscious, academically rigorous charter school near Midway airport, Chicago. I also just received my Master's of Teaching from Dominican University, while teaching with Teach for America. I have trained under a rigorous learning environment complete with master teachers, math and reading specialists, ELL instructors, and have completed 50+ hours of observation of other classrooms in and around my current school. I have taken the LSAT and GRE in the past two years and scored in the 90th percentiles on both, in all subjects including verbal, math, logic, reading comprehension, logical reasoning, and writing. While I am consistently working on myself and hope to retake these tests and score even higher, what I have is the ability to self-teach, and then impart my original experiences to others. I can guarantee you that I will both 1) identify your learning style and "speak your language" and 2) help you find in yourself your best working and thinking habits to apply not to just one current area of academic difficulty, but to the rest to come as well! What is funny is Einstein's quote that, "If you can't explain it to a 1st grader, you don't truly understand it." I am a 1st Grade teacher and more challenging than the toughest math and reasoning problems has been explaining abstract concepts to six and seven year olds, all at extremely different points of cognitive and socio-emotional development with different personalities and learning styles to boot! Elementary years have so much potential, given a student's excitement for learning and discovery. I love working with that and having the responsibility of setting up the cognitive building blocks for students' future success! My daily work is to show my students how to truly understand and apply these concepts. If I can do that, you can be assured I will put the same effort into best "revealing" the fundamental understandings of a test, concept, or task. In my spare time, I love photography, Instagram filters, Starbucks French Vanilla Iced Coffee with a dash of Cinnamon, playing drums and guitar, frisbee, and biking anywhere I can!
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