New Dimensions in Learning

hope you are enjoying these final days of summer. With classes starting next week, the staff at Support Service Programs (formerly Special Support Services) has been busy gearing up for the new semester. There are several things that we need all tutors to do to get the new semester off to a good start. First, if you did not tutor this summer, you will need to renew your papers so please come directly to the NDIL office as soon as possible to fill out a new employment appointment form. If you have been awarded financial aid in the form of work study, you will need to bring your award papers with you when you fill out the form. If you do not have a new employment form filled out, you cannot be assigned any students to tutor. If you are unsure as to whether you need to fill out a new form, please contact the office; and I will let you know.

Due to budgetary constraints, NDIL will not be offering tutoring for writing this year. If you are a tutor who tutors primarily in writing, please contact the NDIL office so that we may talk about other alternatives.

Please let the NDIL office know as soon as possible if there have been any changes to your address, phone number, or e-mail address so that we can keep our records current. Also, if you would like to add any courses to your list of approved courses for tutoring, please stop in and pick up additional faculty approval forms so that we may add those new courses to your roster.

Since Kristi is still on maternity leave, there is a chance that the time it takes to get assignments made could be delayed to some degree. We are doing everything in our power to reduce the chance of that happening, so please be patient as we make adjustments to our regular work duties. I’m happy to report that Kristi has stopped in with baby Clarice several times and all seems to be going well!

The new web site is in the final stages of completion and should be available soon. The site will be located at http://www.uiowa.edu/~ossp, and I hope that you will take the time to take a look at the various resources offered there. The section with information most relevant for current tutors will contain an electronic bulletin board system (BBS), a tutor directory, and links to tutoring resources. This section will be password protected so you will need to have a personal password to access this part of the site. Passwords will be distributed during the first couple weeks of the semester. The Tutor Tool Kit will also be available soon. Each tutor will receive a copy of the Tool Kit which will serve as a resource manual for current tutors. The manual contains information, suggestions, guidelines, and tips on tutoring, learning styles, working with students with learning disabilities, and other useful information for tutors. Keep your eye on the tutor listserv for information about when and where you can pick up your Tutor Tool Kit and when the web site will be up and ready to go.

Finally, I want to pass along a few reminders for both new and returning tutors. Please check your e-mail regularly for announcements about upcoming events, important policy information, and tutoring needs. As part of your employment with NDIL, you are expected to have an e-mail account and maintain your subscription to the tutor listserv. This insures that you will receive all important information. Once assignments have been made, make sure that you do not go over the allotted hours of tutoring per week. If you feel as though your student would be better served with additional tutoring hours, check with me, another member of the NDIL staff, or the student’s counselor first. As always, double check your Tutoring Reports to make sure that they are complete and try to get them in within one week of the tutoring session.

In early August, SSP staff said goodbye and sent their best wishes with Raymundo Rosales. Raymundo left NDIL to fill the position of Director of the Learning Assistance Center at Luther College, in Decorah, Iowa. In his year and a half with NDIL, Raymundo has had many different roles including writing the regular Tutela column "Dear Paulo," acting as a contact for students with disabilities, supervising the Resource Center and the study skills tutors, and assisting with tutor training.

In his new position at Luther College, Raymundo will supervise tutoring for Luther students, maintain a tracking program for students that have difficulties succeeding in class, and provide accommodations for students with disabilities. He is very excited to be starting his new job. We wish him the best of luck as he moves on in his career!

Alisha Crowe represents a classical tutor in more than one sense of the word. Not only has she been a tutor for four semesters (and will be entering her fifth and final semester this fall), but she also has chosen the classics to study and tutor. Majoring in Latin, Spanish, and Foreign Language Education, Alisha has gathered considerable experience in Latin language courses and Roman and Greek civilization courses.

Although she’ll be completing her education requirements this fall and going on to student teach in the spring, Alisha isn’t sure she wants to begin teaching immediately. Alisha has spent summers in Japan and Mexico and would like to spend a more substantial amount of time traveling and studying abroad. She also hopes to pursue a Master’s degree in Latin and possibly a Ph.D.

Although it may be a while before she begins her career as a classroom teacher, Alisha has a good feel for what it is like to be an educator. After beginning her student career studying Latin and Spanish, she decided that it would be practical to add a teaching certificate. Her experience as a tutor played a significant role in this decision. Alisha expresses, "Tutoring has helped secure that education is the right choice."

Alisha speaks very fondly of her students. All in all, she insists, her tutoring experience has been challenging yet very good. In working with students with learning disabilities or physical disabilities, Alisha has seen the deepening of her own patience and understanding. In seeing others struggle with classes, she realizes how lucky she is that learning seems to be a natural process for her. "Some students are constantly fighting an upward battle," Alisha comments.

Alisha’s frustrations mirror the concerns of many tutors. All too often we see our students’ efforts go seemingly unappreciated or maybe even unnoticed. She remembers the frustration that both she and a very hard working student felt after the student had put lots of effort into a project only to have it graded lower than expected. Alisha says of her student, "If classes were graded by effort, she’d have an A+."

In spite of the frustrations, Alisha understands that her efforts are appreciated. She sees herself, as a tutor, bridging the gap between faculty and the student. "It is good to have that level of equality between the tutor and student," she states. It is nice for the student to be able to talk with someone who has already been where they are.

Since it is the beginning of the semester, it seemed appropriate to ask Alisha to comment on how she prepares for a new tutoring relationship. Alisha, though very experienced, has only had to start a limited number of tutor-student relations. Quite often she will follow her students through multiple semesters of Latin. Nonetheless, she has the following suggestions. The tried and true "getting to know you questions" are always a necessary beginning. What is your major? What are your interests? Why are you taking this class? Next, she suggests moving on to talking about study habits such as student’s approach to studying, time spent studying, etc. Finally, when the comfort level is high enough, she suggests that "bizarre honesty" and funny stories help to make the relationship a little more personal. When asked exactly what "bizarre honesty" meant, she explained that telling a story about yourself or sharing a strange and entertaining anecdote would all be categorized under "bizarre honesty."

Alisha also offers some suggestions to beginning tutors. "Be open to the possibility of students approaching things entirely differently." While some students flourish in a lecture class, others may struggle. Some prefer multiple choice tests while others prefer essays. Secondly, she believes that tutors must always be armed with multiple explanations and the ability to rapidly switch gears if a student can’t seem to grasp a point. Finally, Alisha restates a very important point. "Don’t be afraid to admit you don’t know something." Making this admission not only helps to build trust between you and your student, it enables the student to learn how to find a piece of unknown information.

Even with four semesters of tutoring behind her, Alisha still admits that there are still many things she doesn’t know. She says the tutoring experience has been wonderful, nonetheless. More than once she mentions the quality of her students and the relationship between her and her students. Finally she smiles and says, "The success of my students has been all them. My role as a tutor has been encouragement and support. They have been really great students. I have been honored to work with them."

Motivation. What is it? How do you make it work to your advantage? How can you get your students motivated and keep them that way? In his book, A Guide to Motivating Learners, Howard N. Sloane tells us that motivation can be defined as the "extent to which certain stimulus objects or events effect the occurrence or nonoccurrence of the behavior in question" (1974). For example, a student may do poorly in a class and consequently decide to seek tutoring. The poor marks in the class are the stimulus events and pursuing tutoring is the outcome behavior.

This concept of motivation was widely explored by a number of psychologists beginning in the 1930s. Freud theorized that almost anything could act as a stimulus. Human beings, in turn, were motivated to relieve themselves of these stimuli, thus seeking a state of homeostasis, free from all stimuli. With the research of B.F. Skinner, it came to be realized that organisms also respond to reinforcement. Skinner defined two types of reinforcement: positive and negative. Positive reinforcement involves offering the subject a pleasant reward following the targeted behavior. For example, many parents reward their children for good grades with money or special treats. Negative reinforcement centers around the removal of a negative stimulus after the subject performs the behavior in question. This is seen, for instance, in the student who falls into academic probation. When the student’s grades are raised, the label "academic probation" is removed.

Tutors must realize the importance of reinforcement systems. The tutoring experience must be challenging as well as rewarding for both tutor and student in order to be effective. In some cases, it may be that the student has trouble understanding the rewards intrinsic to a job well done (in other cases, the student may understand this better than anyone). In those instances when the student struggles to find value in the work that he or she has begun, the tutor, in part, can help the student find meaning (positive reinforcement) in studies. This is no easy task. However, it can be approached using some relatively straightforward tools. It is important to keep the concept of reinforcement in mind and be open to offering a variety of rewards to your students. Examples of positive reinforcement include praise for success or for good effort, encouragement, or positive comments on written work.

It is also important to help students find pleasure in their learning experience. Alderman and Cohen stress the importance of assisting students in focusing on the role of personal effort on their performance (1985). Once students can see that personal effort leads to positive results, students may be more motivated to study and learn. It is extremely important to remember to tailor tutoring sessions to the level of the student. For students to see the rewards of hard work, the task must be realistic. When facing a challenge, most everyone prefers to be hardworking and capable rather than just hardworking.

Tutors must also strive to increase their own autonomy and the autonomy of students. Tutors and students alike must realize that there are many ways to approach a problem. In most cases, each method is as correct as any other. Deci and Regan assert that in most learning situations it is appropriate to focus on outcomes rather than the means to arriving at them (1982). They also remind us that orienting ourselves toward autonomy in learning does not mean abandoning all structure. The tutoring sessions must allow high amounts of flexibility yet maintain focus and be centered on class-work.

Does this all sound as if we would have an easier time walking a high wire while juggling flaming torches and whistling Dixie? Maybe. However, there are many resources available to tutors. Tutela is only the tip of the iceberg of resources available tutors. Other resources such as the NDIL Resource Center, the upcoming NDIL web pages, the Tutor Tool Kit, and NDIL staff are also available to tutors. All tutors must develop their own personal style of tutoring and learning; try to always be open to suggestions and don’t be afraid to try something new or different!

Entering the fall semester, we are all faced with the prospect of beginning new tutoring relationships. Maybe you have done this many times already. Possibly it is your first try at tutoring. Whatever your situation, here are some suggestions, offered by your Tutela editor (with a little help from Ken Kosier in The Discipline Checklist) for making the first session go smoothly and creating a positive and comfortable atmosphere for the rest of the semester.

Feel the need to put some of your "first session thoughts" into writing? Here are some possible ways to share your ideas of a positive beginning with your students. Feel free to copy, amend, and reuse these suggestions.

Would you like to carve your expectations and goals in stone (or at least paper)? It may work for you to draw up a learning contract with your student that states your expectations and limitations explicitly. You may want to include a goal statement and particular methods for reaching those goals in your contract with your student. Here is an example:

Goal Statement: We, (insert names of tutor and student), plan to work together to gain a better understanding of the material in (insert course name). We will meet (insert meeting schedule) throughout the semester to study and review class material. In the end, (insert student’s name) hopes to achieve (insert goal here).

Tutor's expectations of Student:
1. Student will show up on time for scheduled meetings.
2. If student must miss a meeting, every possible effort must be made to contact the tutor ___ hours prior to the missed session.
3. Student will come to the tutoring sessions prepared. This means having reviewed the relevant course materials and formulated questions regarding the day’s lesson.
4. Student will ask questions when something isn’t clear.

Student's expectations of Tutor:
1. Tutor will show up on time to scheduled meetings.
2. If tutor must miss a meeting, every possible effort must be made to contact the student ___ hours prior to the missed session.
3. Tutor will come to the tutoring session prepared. This means having reviewed the relevant course materials and developed a robust understanding of subject material.
4. Tutor will make every effort to clarify relevant points and to be understood by student.

It can sometimes make us feel uneasy to talk about our expectations for students in the tutoring process. Students often feel a similar discomfort. However, the more open both parties can be from the beginning, the more likely the tutoring experience will be a positive one. If you are looking for a way to approach the subject of expectations with your students, consider making up a Tutor/Student Bill of Rights such as the following:

The Tutor/Student Bill of Rights

I have the right to hear and be heard.
I have the right to offer ideas without being afraid.
I have the right to be myself.
I have the right to respect and to be respected.
I have the right to be happy or sad or frustrated (or other emotions) while tutoring or being tutored.
I have the right to not know all the answers.
I have the right to have fun.
I have the right to learn.

References
Alderman, M. Kay and Cohen, Margaret W. "Motivation Theory and Practice for Preservice Teachers." Teacher Education Monograph #4. Washington DC: ERIC Clearinghouse on Teacher Education. 1985.
Beard, Ruth M. and Senior, Isabel J. Motivating Students. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul. 1980.
Berte, Neal R. Individualizing Education Through Contract Learning. University of Alabama Press. 1975.
Deci, Edward L. and Regan, Richard M. "Curiosity and Self-Directed Learning: The Role of Motivation in Education". Chapter to appear in Current Topics in Early Childhood Education. Vol. 4. Ed. Katz, L. Norwood: Ablex Publishing Co. 1982.
Kosier, Ken. The Discipline Checklist. NEA Checklist Series. National Education Association of the United States. 1998.
Sloane, Howard N. and Jackson, Donald A. Guide to Motivating Learners. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Educational Technology Publications. 1974.

Starting off a new semester, sometimes I feel my motivation sagging a little bit. I am sure it is that way (or maybe even worse) for my students. How can I get myself and my students going in order to start off the semester on the right foot?

This is a wonderful question, one I struggle with at the beginning of all tasks, particularly teaching or tutoring. The beginning is extremely important because it can inspire us to continue on and sustains us when we run into "walls." A question I like to ask myself at the beginning of a tutoring relationship is, "How do I want this student to remember me once our work together is done?" In other words, it's best to begin with the end in mind.

I usually take some time, after meeting the student for the first time, to sit quietly and imagine the student talking to someone at the end of the semester and saying something positive about my tutoring—perhaps something like this:

Paulo is one of the best tutors I have ever had because he was constantly asking if what he was doing was helping me, or if he could do something different. Also, he was patient and let me struggle with the problems and did not jump in too soon to assist me with the procedure. I also liked the way he took time to make sure that what we were doing was directly connected with the overall goals of the class, often referring to my syllabus and checking in with my teacher occasionally. He has lots of energy and has a sense of humor, obviously he loves to tutor, and when he was off, he just said so and moved on.

After "hearing" the student, I write it down and keep it in my wallet on a 3 x 5 card throughout the semester.

So, give yourself permission to say some good things about your tutoring and ask yourselves the question, "How do I want to be remembered by my students after our work together is finished?" Take some quiet time and engage your inner eye and "hear" what students say about you after your sessions are done. This exercise is one of the most powerful I ever practice. Athletes have been doing it for decades. They visualize a performance prior to the actual event, seeing themselves at their best, and then go out and do it the best they can.

When I am feeling like I don't really want to go and teach or tutor, I refer back to my 3 X 5 and, more often than not, I feel inspired to go on. Likewise, students can ask themselves a similar question or questions such: "How do I want my teachers to remember me after this class is finished?", "How do I want my tutor to remember me?", "How do I want to feel about the effort I put into this class?".

Ask them to write down the responses to these questions and when the "blahs" arrive, refer to them and see if they are inspired to go on.

While travelling, a man lost his way and came to a fork in the road. Standing at the fork were two brothers. One brother always told lies and the other always told the truth. Assuming it was not known which brother was which, how could the man ask just one question that would give him the information he needs to choose the correct way (assume that the brothers know the correct way).

10. The shortest war in history was between Zanzibar and England in 1896. Zanzibar surrendered after 38 minutes.

8. Dueling is legal in Paraguay as long as both parties are registered blood donors.

7. The sentence "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog." uses every letter in the English language.

5. American Airlines saved $40,000 in 1987 by eliminating one olive from each salad served in First Class.

3. The Eisenhower interstate system requires that one mile in every five must be straight. These straight sections are usable as airstrips in times of war and other emergencies.

1. The word "lethologica" describes the state of not being able to remember the word you want.

Ask either one of them the following question: What would your brother say the correct way is? Whatever the answer, choose the other direction.

Tutela

a guiding influence

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