Today I observed Corey’s English session. I do not take many English students so I found it very helpful to observe a subject which requires a different style of tutoring and structure to the lesson.
The session started out with the student providing Corey with an intro and body paragraph that he had written which Corey read through and provided some feedback on. Next, they discussed what the student knew about the text (The Crucible) so that Corey could assess the students understanding since it is a reasonably new topic in class.
When working through writing about the text, Corey provided key examples of paragraphs and structure that he used and suggested that the student follow a similar one. I think this was highly effective because having a specific structure to follow guides the students flow of thinking. This can be carried across to different subjects such as maths where it is important to follow a flow of thinking to solve a problem.
He also encouraged the student to not just pick random quotes but find some that are meaningful and that stick out to the student personally. This allowed him a deeper connection and understanding of the text which he can use to write his ideas down himself.
Throughout the entire session, Corey was very communicative and was effective at portraying what he wanted the student to think about with each aspect of the text they were discussing. He also reminded and encouraged the student to ask questions when they needed help whilst still helping them to come up with their own perspectives. He continued to provide the student with feedback and advice on ways to dig deeper into the text and improve their writing without giving him direct answers, a highly effective strategy to guide thinking.
Riva Burkett
