Caitlin

Caitlin

Learning is a collaborative process. As a tutor, I use a motivational scaffolding approach to enhance my students’ understanding of topics. Motivational scaffolding refers to those tutoring strategies used to support students’ efforts to arrive at their own solutions or problems. This technique emphasizes connectedness case-by-case, rather than applying a broad pedagogy to every tutorial.

I have used this approach to develop the writing skillset of college-aged students during my time as a writing peer tutor at Penn State Learning. As a peer tutor, I met with approximately 10 different students in-person several times a week. My students studied across disciplines, and all had extremely varied backgrounds and educational goals that I worked to meet. Additionally, I have spent several months providing students feedback on their writing remotely through Pearson’s tutoring program Smarthinking. On the basis of this experience, I believe I have acquired the skills necessary to promote a student’s academic career.

My educational credentials have also advanced my ability to teach students and meet their unique needs. In January 2020, I received my B.A. in history from the Pennsylvania State University. As a student in the College of Liberal Arts, I was able to use my creativity, strong analytical sensibilities, experience conducting research, and communication skills to create meaningful work, as well as to assist others in their academic endeavors. I have particularly strong experience in writing, U.S. history, European history, philosophy, English, women and gender studies, and film/art analysis.

With regard to my AP scores, I earned a 5 on both the U.S. History exam and the English Literature and Composition exam. As for my SAT scores, they are based on the pre-2016 SAT scoring system. I received a 640 in reading and a 720 in writing. This accomplishment is noteworthy, as it means that I scored higher than my peers by 89% in reading and by 97% in writing. Therefore, I am qualified to help students develop strategies to improve their testing scores.