When Elise Tadros, sophomore, gets dropped off at her tutor’s house, she brings her geometry homework, positive energy and eagerness to understand the numbers and symbols carefully organized to confuse even the brightest of students.
“I struggled in math a lot in previous years,” Tadros said, “and just to have that person there as a safety net is so great.”
Tadros, who receives tutoring from Allison Owens, a current teacher at Lift for Life Academy, said tutoring is a great tool to utilize and should not be seen as something only “stupid kids” do.
“I have a 4.0 and I’m proud of it,” Tadros said. “Anyone who knows me knows that I have worked my butt off for every grade I get, and tutoring has helped me get there.”
Rachel Cosic, sophomore counselor, recommends tutoring to students when their grades get low.
Cosic said she considers seeing teachers outside of class a form of tutoring as well, and says many students take advantage of teachers who stay after school, as well as the tutoring program held on Wednesdays in the library, run by Romona Miller, assistant principal.
A majority of freshmen and sophomores attend the tutoring sessions, though some juniors arrive for help.
Students who come are paired with tutors who can help with that area of interest.
“Some students are really up on our curriculum,” Miller said. “They can be more helpful than paid tutors because of that.”
National Honor Society students also tutor for service hours and try to help students in a variety of subjects. Though students try to make tutoring hours work, Cosic said adults are able to help more because of flexibility in schedules and experience helping students.
The bonding experience between tutors and students can also play a part in how well they learn curriculum. When a student dislikes a teacher, sometimes they do not learn as well as they could.
Tutors bring a different personality and take on the subject into the equation.
“Sometimes you click better with other people,” Cosic said.
Though it might seem confusing to learn the same thing from multiple teachers, Tadros attests to the fact that different learning styles can help understanding a certain idea or problem.
“If I don’t get something my teacher is saying, [my tutor] will put it in different words or show me a different way to do it,” Tadros said. “It turns out to be a lot of help.”
Many opportunities are available for students to receive help, but students like Tadros enjoy working with tutors to improve their grades.
“I actually look forward to going to tutoring,” Tadros said. “She’s super patient, easy to get along with, and she has a bunch of great tools and tricks that have really improved my math skills.”
