2008 Woodie Awards
Software teaches math tutors new skills
By Devin Dziuk
Issue date: 9/21/07 Section: News
Originally published: 9/20/07 at 4:43 PM CSTLast update: 9/22/07 at 9:07 AM CST
- Page 1 of 1
The math department has obtained new software to train tutors to help students do their work more independently.
The department is raising expectations for its more than 30 tutors to make them more effective.
"We have to hold them to a higher standard," said math Professor Susan Paddock, who is assisting in the re-evaluation of tutors.
Paddock said in an interview Sept. 14 that the first thing students seeking help in the math lab are going to have to do is to put in more effort.
"The tutors' job is to enable the student to think and solve on his or her own," said Paddock, who has been with the department for nearly 17 years.
Tutors are not employed to do the students' homework. They act as a facilitator to students to help them where needed.
"They help you fill in the gaps," she said.
Richard Sanchez, chemistry sophomore who uses the math lab twice a week, likes the idea for further training of tutors. "I am taking physics and they help me a lot … anything that would help the students, why not?"
If a student comes in with a problem, the tutor will evaluate where the student is. The tutor will then determine if the problem is minor to help jump-start the student, or if the problem is more detailed in which the tutor will then explain the process and setup of a problem.
The motto for the tutors is "the process whereby a student can move from a state of dependence to one of independence," according to a guide for tutors prepared by Paddock.
When students come to the tutoring lab with homework, a tutor will pick other examples to work, instead of those from the homework.
Paddock said teachers make students do homework to see what the student knows and doesn't know. Allowing a tutor to do the work is not a good way to determine if students understand what is being taught.
"If you allow someone to do the problems for you, you are not only cheating yourself, but the other person is put in the same situation," Paddock said.
Tutors will learn better teaching skills using the software program purchased by departmental funds. Paddock said it cost $300 to $400.
Tutoring Techniques, produced by North Carolina State University, has eight segments, about 20 minutes in length. Each segment addresses a separate technique.
The segments include information on positive reinforcement, creating an environment that puts the student at ease, encouragement, constructive correction, listening and questioning skills.
The software can be viewed by tutors in the lab. By spring, all tutors will be required to watch the video in its entirety. Another accomplishment that the department wishes to achieve is to become certified under the College Reading Learning Association.
The association is a national society that certifies colleges and universities in training students to become more independent.
The goal is a Level 1 of three levels of certification.
Paddock said she and other math teachers had complaints from students that they did not understand math even after working with tutors.
Math faculty attended a workshop in which they discovered software when speaking to other community college officials from the Denver area.
Their trip is a part of the Achieving the Dream program, a grant from the Lumina Foundation that is used to improve student learning.
Paddock said that most students who take advantage of the lab are in remedial math courses or college algebra.
The department does not have reliable software to track how many students use the lab in a given week or term. Information on the number of students using the lab in a semester or year was also not available.
Some advice that Paddock gives to students is not to let homework or questions build up.
"There will be no gain if there is no individual effort."
When seeking help in the lab, she advised students to bring lecture notes, textbook and questions.
The tutoring lab is located in Room 124F of McCreless Hall. It is available from 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Friday and 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday. For information, call the math and computer science department at 733-2450. To learn more about the Achieving the Dream Foundation, visit luminafoundation.org.
Tips to a successful math tutoring experience
1. Come prepared and bring your text.
2. Don't expect the tutor to do the work for you. They fill in the gaps, and you do the rest.
3. Practice!
4. Not everyone is the same. Choose the right style for you
5. Relax. Don't give up when you get frustrated.
Source: Mary Liz Pierce, math professor at Central Arizona College
The department is raising expectations for its more than 30 tutors to make them more effective.
"We have to hold them to a higher standard," said math Professor Susan Paddock, who is assisting in the re-evaluation of tutors.
Paddock said in an interview Sept. 14 that the first thing students seeking help in the math lab are going to have to do is to put in more effort.
"The tutors' job is to enable the student to think and solve on his or her own," said Paddock, who has been with the department for nearly 17 years.
Tutors are not employed to do the students' homework. They act as a facilitator to students to help them where needed.
"They help you fill in the gaps," she said.
Richard Sanchez, chemistry sophomore who uses the math lab twice a week, likes the idea for further training of tutors. "I am taking physics and they help me a lot … anything that would help the students, why not?"
If a student comes in with a problem, the tutor will evaluate where the student is. The tutor will then determine if the problem is minor to help jump-start the student, or if the problem is more detailed in which the tutor will then explain the process and setup of a problem.
The motto for the tutors is "the process whereby a student can move from a state of dependence to one of independence," according to a guide for tutors prepared by Paddock.
When students come to the tutoring lab with homework, a tutor will pick other examples to work, instead of those from the homework.
Paddock said teachers make students do homework to see what the student knows and doesn't know. Allowing a tutor to do the work is not a good way to determine if students understand what is being taught.
"If you allow someone to do the problems for you, you are not only cheating yourself, but the other person is put in the same situation," Paddock said.
Tutors will learn better teaching skills using the software program purchased by departmental funds. Paddock said it cost $300 to $400.
Tutoring Techniques, produced by North Carolina State University, has eight segments, about 20 minutes in length. Each segment addresses a separate technique.
The segments include information on positive reinforcement, creating an environment that puts the student at ease, encouragement, constructive correction, listening and questioning skills.
The software can be viewed by tutors in the lab. By spring, all tutors will be required to watch the video in its entirety. Another accomplishment that the department wishes to achieve is to become certified under the College Reading Learning Association.
The association is a national society that certifies colleges and universities in training students to become more independent.
The goal is a Level 1 of three levels of certification.
Paddock said she and other math teachers had complaints from students that they did not understand math even after working with tutors.
Math faculty attended a workshop in which they discovered software when speaking to other community college officials from the Denver area.
Their trip is a part of the Achieving the Dream program, a grant from the Lumina Foundation that is used to improve student learning.
Paddock said that most students who take advantage of the lab are in remedial math courses or college algebra.
The department does not have reliable software to track how many students use the lab in a given week or term. Information on the number of students using the lab in a semester or year was also not available.
Some advice that Paddock gives to students is not to let homework or questions build up.
"There will be no gain if there is no individual effort."
When seeking help in the lab, she advised students to bring lecture notes, textbook and questions.
The tutoring lab is located in Room 124F of McCreless Hall. It is available from 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Friday and 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday. For information, call the math and computer science department at 733-2450. To learn more about the Achieving the Dream Foundation, visit luminafoundation.org.
Tips to a successful math tutoring experience
1. Come prepared and bring your text.
2. Don't expect the tutor to do the work for you. They fill in the gaps, and you do the rest.
3. Practice!
4. Not everyone is the same. Choose the right style for you
5. Relax. Don't give up when you get frustrated.
Source: Mary Liz Pierce, math professor at Central Arizona College
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