Introduction
This document presents the tutoring policies and philosophy of Dr. Kempton Smith, a private math and statistics tutor in Wake Forest in North Carolina.
Eligibility
I offer tutoring only to students who choose to be successful in math and end their pattern of struggling with math. I will not take on a student who has no desire to learn, but is being pressured to be tutored by his/her parents or guardians. Adults who are interested in receiving tutoring are encouraged to work with me, whether it be for yourself, or because you want to be able to help your children with math.
Scope and focus
The subjects for tutoring include basic math, pre-algebra, algebra 1 and 2, geometry, advanced functions and modeling, trigonometry, pre-calculus, calculus, probability, statistics, and biostatistics. I also offer individualized classes to prepare students for the math section of the SAT and ACT tests.
The reason that most students struggle with math is that their math skills are not up to the grade level at which the subject is being taught in school. The focus of my tutoring is to help students bring their math skills up to their grade level. Doing this, they will be able to break the cycle of frustration and struggle with math. Once a student gains confidence in his or her math skills, a rapid improvement in math grades usually follows.
Rates
An initial half-hour meeting is free. This meeting is to get to know your needs and to determine if I will be able to help you, and vice-versa. If, after this meeting, you decide that I am not the right tutor for you, I will accept your decision.
My rate for tutoring is $45 per hour. Payment is expected at the beginning of each tutoring session. Discounted rates are available for group sessions (see below).
Tutoring Location
I tutor only at the Starbucks coffee shop in the Wake Forest Target store at US 1 and Rt 98.
Tutoring Times
A tutoring session will normally last 60 minutes. A session may go over for a few minutes to allow completion of last minute work.
Tutoring Schedule
Most of my tutoring students like to have tutoring sessions weekly at the same time and location. I will attempt to accomodate this, depending on my availability. Students may reserve sessions more than one week in advance as long as this privilege is not abused.
I am usually available for tutoring Monday through Thursday, day or evening, and on weekends.
Cancellations
I ask that you call me at least one hour prior to the scheduled starting time. If cancellation comes after that, I will charge you for one hour of my time.
Private vs semi-private sessions
I usually offer private tutoring sessions to one student at a time. However, if several students with comparable math abilities agree to combine forces and save by having a semi-private group tutoring session, I will be amenable to discussing this and will offer an discounted group rate.
Learning disabilities
I have taught and tutored students with various learning disabilities or difficulties. These students can benefit greatly from being tutored away from their normal classroom environment. I encourage students with learning disabilities to be tutored in math.
Language
I have taught math to students whose native language was not English; some of these students had a very limited knowledge of English at the beginning. I also encourage these students to be tutored in math.
Non-discrimination
I do not discriminate in any manner at all. All students are welcome.
Preparation and materials
Most students expect me to help them with their homework as part of a tutoring session. If this is the case with you, then I expect that you will prepare by working as much as you can on your homework assignment before coming to tutoring. Please bring your text or homework worksheet and your work with you for your tutoring session.
Additional assistance
If you have a question in between tutoring sessions, you are welcome to email me, and I will try to answer it for free. Please do not abuse this by merely asking me to do your homework for you.
My tutoring philosophy
A primary reason that a student struggles with math in school is that the grade level of the material being taught is beyond the grade level of the student. For example, a student may have trouble solving a simple equation in algebra, like 3X + 4 = 2, if he or she does not have a basic understanding of addition. So my initial focus in tutoring is first to determine the grade level of the student's math skills. We can do this by observing how the student solves current homework problems or by having the student take a short assessment test. Once we get down to the heart of the problem, we can work on whatever math skills need shoring up.
Learning math is a sequential process. Learning a new math topic depends on the student knowing previous topics. It is not like learning to play the piano, where you can learn to play one piece without previously learning to play another. Students have a lot of trouble with algebra if they do not thoroughly understand fractions, least common multiples, and ratios. Similarly, students have a hard time with calculus if they are not comfortable with functions, exponents, and algebraic manipulation. To learn math successfully, you need to keep up. If you fall behind, you will struggle with the next topic.
In today's schools, the math teacher simply cannot adjust the curriculum to accomodate students not at the expected grade level in math. A teacher is required to teach to the proscribed curriculum, regardless of the grade level of the class. Students who fall behind in math must catch up, either by themselves, or with help from a parent or a tutor.
The goal of my math tutoring is to help you catch up so that you can to break the cycle of feeling frustrated and being unsuccessful with math. It is possible that you will never love math, but I will help you get to the point where you no longer struggle with it and hate it.
If you are several grades below level in math, which is extremely common among high school students, I must first bring you up to grade level, or close, before we can tackle problems on grade level. This will go very quickly if you are willing to work hard, but it is certainly not something that can be accomplished within one or two sessions. Math is learned step by step. Almost all of the troubles that students have with math is due to the fact that they do not fully understand all of the previous topics upon which the current topic is based, and they are either unwilling, unable, or do not have the time to go back and fill in the gaps.
A common reason that middle and high school students struggle with math is that they do not know their times tables. Even though today's students all use calculators, not knowing basic multiplication tables will seriously hinder their performance in math classes. Calculators should be used for graphing and sophisticated calculations, not for calculating 6 times 9.
Students sometimes struggle with math because they do not undertake to learn the necessary new vocabulary and other material introduced in class. This is particularly true in high school geometry, where it is essential that students memorize all definitions, postulates, and theorems. Without doing this, it is very easy for students to fall behind and for grades to drop precipitously.
Contact
To schedule your free introductory meeting, or if you have any questions, please email me at tutor@wakeforestmathtutor.com.